For two years in a row we’ve seen a solitary eastern screech owl in the reserve. As they blend in so well, you have to search hard to find them. We came upon this owl last April, and we continued to see it for several weeks in the hollow of the tree or perched on a nearby branch. I look forward to seeing one again this spring.
Today was a cold cloudy day with more snow in the forecast. Not being a fan of winter, I thought the perfect antidote would be a colourful summer scene. I took this shot of a metallic bee with my 105mm lens and flash. Although pleased with the result, I stood a bit too far back so I had to crop more than I would have liked. (I am new to macro photography and still getting comfortable with insects.) When the warm weather returns there will be plenty of opportunities to try shots like this again from a closer perspective. It’ll be fun to compare the results.
Happy New Year All!
Although relatively common, I had never seen a northern shoveler before and couldn’t believe my luck when I spotted this solitary shoveler in late November. Their spatula-shaped bills give them a distinctive and comical appearance. We went back to the same area in the reserve for several days in a row and saw him each time. However, when we returned after a snowfall to check on him he had left. Like other Canadian “snowbirds” he was headed south no doubt.
The eastern phoebe in this photo landed in the perfect place to be photographed. The fall leaves add an additional bit of colour to the scene. This was taken in October. The bird could be looking back at the summer just ended. (I know I was.) Phoebes are a sure sign that spring is on its way as they are one of the first migrants to return to our area. I look forward to spotting my first one of the season.
There’s a large tree in the reserve which the local raccoons have claimed as their own. On hot summer days we’ve seen them stretched out on the limbs of the tree, waiting for the hint of a breeze. Clever animals, as we push our way through the humid air… The light on the raccoon and tree trunk were very harsh. A few adjustments in Lightroom to the exposure, highlights, contrast and shadows corrected this.
I usually see downy woodpeckers on the vertical as they work their way up and down tree trunks searching for insects. So it was nice to see the first bird in a landing pattern on the tree branch if only for a minute. It was windy that day and it had ruffled his head feathers. I came upon the second bird as he was feeding on Staghorn Sumac something I’ve only seen in the fall. Most of the year they seem to prefer an insect diet.
These photos were taken within a few days of each other. The brown hues of late fall turned to a white snowscape very quickly this month. These eastern grey squirrels are sporting thick coats and look alert and well fed as they make their rounds of the park. At times you get the sense that you’re being watched as you walk along the trail. Chances are it’s one of these squirrels, as they’re everywhere you look.
We had a wonderful fall, not too cold, not too windy. The leaves remained on the trees for a good long time making for wonderful reflections on the lake. I took the first photo as the mallards swam towards shore; the colour of the water and the patterns they created are as much a part of the photo as the ducks. The second photo taken on a dull day a few days earlier is all about the duck!
The owl was perched in a tree just off the main pathway when someone pointed it out to us. We had walked by minutes before and hadn’t seen it. We took our share of photographs, the owl was quiet and watchful but in no hurry to fly off. The light was tricky that morning, so I made some exposure, contrast and highlight adjustments in Lightroom.
This is not the first time a stranger in the park has shared what he had seen with us. You often meet the nicest people in the most unexpected places.
These yellow-rumped warbler photographs were taken in April during the spring migration. It can be a little easier to capture them when the trees are just budding than in the fall when the leaves provide them with cover. (Spring takes its time arriving here.) As with all warblers, they’re lightening fast and can take off before you raise your camera to your eye. It’s always a good day when you catch a few of these warblers on the fly!
Spreadwings’ larger size distinguishes them from other damselflies; they aren’t as common either and seem to have a shorter lifecycle. While the smaller damselflies begin to appear in May, the spreadwings appear later in the season. I took the first photograph in mid summer, the second in September as the landscape began to take on a a fall feel. As with most things, we tend to prize the less common, but in this case I believe it’s because time is limited for capturing these lovely insects.
Last year the ice began to form on the lake in November. The mallards were pretty firm footed although the duck in the first photo is looking as though she can’t believe what hit her. The angle of the sun and the reflection off the ice made for some tricky lighting on the ducks. Radial filters in Lightroom balanced the exposure quite nicely.
This little fly made me think of “Droopy”, the classic cartoon character created by Tex Avery. He was an endearing character that the hover fly reminds me of. The insect is tiny and the leaf it’s resting on gives an idea of scale. The photo was taken with my 105mm lens and flash but I should have moved closer to the fly to get even more detail. I liked the composition though and I believe this photo is as much about the flower as the insect. Next year once spring arrives, I am determined to get closer to my winged subjects as often you only get one chance at a shot.
I love these conspicuous birds. Cardinals are hard to miss and now that the trees are bare and there’s little snow cover to brighten things up, they add some colour to a flat, dull landscape. They are one of the few birds that don’t migrate so I hope to see more of them as winter progresses. A nice reward for tramping through the woods at -10 Celsius!
With the cold weather here the reserve is pretty quiet but the mallards are a constant presence and quite a few pairs remain throughout the winter months. These two photos were taken earlier in the fall. The lake now has a sheen of ice on it but even when it freezes solid a thin stretch by the shore remains open; luckily for the ducks and other animals who inhabit the forest year round. You often hear the the ducks before you see them these days, a cheering sound that slices through the cold December air.
The photograph above was taken in March of this year, we had a late spring and the squirrel stands out against the wintery backdrop. The other two photographs were taken in early October before the vegetation had taken on its fall appearance. We’ve had some cold weather the last few days so I haven’t been keen on heading out with my camera. As we’re supposed to get some sun in the next day or two, I’ll get myself fitted up and check on these little guys and see what else is going on in the woods.
This butterfly is another example of how something common is still quite appealing. It might not have the brilliant display of other butterflies but it has a delicate beauty that makes it stand out. It’s widespread in our area and I’ve seen it as early as May and well into August. It’s a good insect to photograph because it tends to perch a little longer than others, giving plenty of opportunity to take your shots. They’re also a nice addition to any flower!
We were coming to the end of our walk when I spotted this peregrine falcon perched on a log in the water. It’s a lucky spot as over the years a number of animals have stopped by it, from frogs and turtles to mink and birds. But that day the log belonged to this peregrine beauty. He stood there, walked around a bit and cooled off in the lake. I fired off as many shots as I could in the 15 minutes he stayed put. I have seen these birds flying overhead, or up in the tree canopy but never this close up. Have to say it was a bit of a thrill.
We had a number of egrets at the lake this summer and they remained well into October. When they first arrived they stayed just out of lens’ reach, in the middle of the lake. As the weeks moved on they came in closer to shore. An earlier post of mine has one perched on a beaver lodge within easy range. The egret in today’s post was fishing quite close by and when he caught a sushi-sized fish, I wondered if he was going to toss it back and look for something larger.
These photos were taken late in the summer when the bees were really stepping up production. They were everywhere you looked and though I had set out to take some bird photographs, I tend to try for whatever is at hand. The light was perfect that morning, and when I saw the bee against the flower. I took some shots. Taken with my 300mm lens and teleconverter, a bit of a challenge at such close range. I was able to get more insect photos well into September because the early fall was nice and mild.
There’s something about frogs I can’t help but like. There were a lot of them at our lake this year and by mid summer they didn’t startle too easily. A subject that stays put is always appreciated by this photographer. Frogs look composed and patient even when hunting for food. Their expression doesn’t change, they always seem to wear an enigmatic grin. I guess I like them warts and all!
As we crossed a small bridge looking for a heron that had landed nearby, I spotted a white- throated sparrow perched on a branch by the water. I liked the setting, the bird stayed put and I fired off some shots. The third photo is of another sparrow I saw further along the path. It was early fall when I took these photos but as this sparrow doesn’t migrate, I hope for more opportunities to photograph this attractive bird over the winter months. Though I didn’t spot the heron I can’t say I was disappointed with the way things worked out.
These photos were taken in July when the sun was warm and the lake was full of life. We saw painted turtles everywhere, basking in the sun or swimming in the water. Summer is long over and it’s been several months since we’ve seen any. They’re likely hibernating at the bottom of the lake waiting for winter to set in. The group in the first photo were making the most of the short summer and seemed to be admiring the water lily across the way.
The ring-billed gull is the most common of gulls and not a bird I often think of photographing. Someone by the waterfront had been feeding the ducks and the gulls were flying overhead hoping to benefit too. I took some photos as they circled around. The second shot was taken at a local park. I thought the red maple leaf added a bit of interest to the scene. It seems we often overlook the ordinary when we’re taking photographs. The more I take photos the more I appreciate the importance of composing in-camera and thinking about how I’m going to edit the photo. At this rate I’ll never run out of things to take!
These photographs were taken over the course of the year. Cardinals are one of several species in my area that don’t migrate, you are as likely to see them in spring as in the winter. I shot the male and the young female near the entrance to the park. There must have been a nest close by because over the the summer there were always cardinals in the area. I hope to get out more frequently with my camera this winter, the reward of doing so can almost make the minus double digit temperatures bearable!
The woods around us boast two species of squirrels: the red squirrel and the eastern grey squirrel, both grey and black varieties (pictured below). With the cold weather settling in it’s a busy time for them. They’re out in force collecting food for the long winter ahead. The sound of the squirrels scurrying through the woods can even muffle the birdsong that we’re straining to hear.
It was nice to see this woodpecker out in the open. Normally I see them darting along tree trunks or on the fly. The bird remained in the same area for quite a while looking for insects. The photos were taken in late May and if you look closely at the tree stump in the second photo you will see the skins (exuviae) shed by recently emerged dragonflies.
I often see this pair in the same spot on the lake. They don’t swim with the other ducks so they tend to stand out. They resemble mallards in shape and size but not in colouring so I assume they must be hybrid ducks. These photos were taken on an overcast day and I liked the way the water formed interesting patterns as the ducks swam towards me. The solitary duck looked like a good subject for a black and white treatment. I used Lumenzia in Photoshop to create the effect.
These are all very different flowers, what makes them similar is that they’re all found in the wild. The poppy was growing in a local wildlife garden, the white trillium (Ontario’s provincial flower) in a wooded area and the lily in a laneway. The trillium is one of our first spring flowers, reaching full bloom in May; the yellow and green contrasting nicely with the white of the petals. The other flowers were taken in July. Once the cold weather gives way to spring, I look forward to watching the cycle of new growth begin again.
This was one of several shots I took in mid October before the Great White Egrets headed south. We’ve seen them yearly at the reserve but never in such great numbers or so close by. In the past they would remain in the middle of the lake and I never managed to capture more than a stark white blur. This year was different and like the Great Blue Heron I featured a few posts back, this egret posed beautifully on a beaver lodge well within my sights. I have a few more shots of this bird wading in the shallows which I’ll be putting up in the next little while.
These photographs were taken in mid-October when the autumn leaves had reached their peak. The reflection in the water was spectacular. The lake was teeming with ducks, all I had to do was wait for some to swim through the water with the most pleasing reflections and these two did. The photos only needed modest post processing adjustments, mainly to compensate for exposure and brightness issues.
Damselflies are at their height in July but we have seen them earlier in the season and often well into August. These insects seem to symbolize summer and remind me of the warm sunny day when I took these photographs. I believe the damselfly in the first shot is a spreadwing, not as common as the bluets in the second photo. I think one of the bluets is having a snack, a bit distracted from the business at hand.
There are a couple of beaver lodges at the lake. We didn’t see any beavers that day but we did come across this Great Blue Heron making itself comfortable on top of the lodge. It was looking pretty sleepy, maybe it had just eaten and felt like a rest. We stood at the shoreline within 25 feet or so from the heron and with my 300 mm I was able to get some nice clear shots. When we left, the bird appeared to be completely asleep.
We had been running some errands and I brought a 50 mm lens with me, thinking if the opportunity arose… When we had finished, we weren’t far from a small woodland area and had a look around. The colours along the path were beautiful and I stopped for a few shots. I was particularly happy to see some mushrooms. They were the first ones I’d seen in decent shape after the hot dry summer. The rain has finally caught up with us now. I hope there’s still a bit of fall foliage remaining once the wet and wind taper off and that I have a wide angle lens with me next time.
The white breasted nuthatch is a very dextrous bird. They will often turn sideways and upside down on surfaces as they hunt for food. I have watched these birds and photographed them for quite a while now and have yet to see a bird pose as perfectly as in first photo. I thought I’d try it in b/w and was quite pleased with the results.
Another grey rainy day. It calls for some colour, so I thought I’d post some butterflies. A bit of summer therapy! Skippers have a short season here but when they make their appearance they’re everywhere. The three on a blade of grass were a perfect example of leading lines, they couldn’t have been more cooperative!
I took these photographs of wild flowers in mid-September. Although they were beginning to fade they were still beautiful. The flowers were growing in a garden bed on municipal land in the downtown core. They caught my eye not only for their beauty but because they were the same variety of wild flowers you’d see growing along a country road. Although planted with some thought for colour and form they replicated what you’d see in nature. When I got closer, I was also pleased to see that they attracted bees and other insects just like their country cousins.
In going through my catalogues of photos to decide on today’s post, I came across these photographs that I took in July. The air was thick with all kinds of dragonflies and damselflies then. Now in October, when the sun is at its warmest, there is still the odd one to be seen. The tail end of the season is always bittersweet but looking at these photos goes no small way in bringing back the pleasure and the warmth of the summer that has just ended.
The first photograph was taken late last Fall as the wigeons were migrating south. They remained at the lake until the first frost and returned briefly in the Spring before heading to their northern breeding grounds. When I set out earlier in the week I was hoping to see them once again and luckily I spotted this second pair. Their colouring is less striking than last year’s couple (post-breeding stage). As the season begins to wind down the wigeons are the most welcome of visitors.
The first two photographs were taken in May when the trees were just beginning to bud. The third photo was taken in late summer. Chickadees can move at incredible speeds so the bare trees in early spring made it easier to focus. As winter wasn’t that far in the past they would linger a little longer to see if I had any seed. We didn’t see them in great numbers over the summer as there were plenty of natural food sources for them. Luckily the plant in the last photo was in plain sight and I watched as first a warbler and then this chickadee stopped by for a bite. With the cooler weather here they’re following us along the path again, and I’ll be posting more photographs of them before too long.
BELINDA GROVER PHOTOGRAPHY 