I took these photographs at this year’s Tulip Festival in Ottawa. Given our cold rainy spring the tulips are slow to bloom. The majority of them look like those pictured below. They’re in a holding pattern (like the rest of us) waiting for sunnier days. The upside is that when they do open up we’ll be able to enjoy them later into the month.
A few blocks from the Parliament Buildings and steel office towers are neighbourhoods like this one. We spend a lot of time exploring these streets; walking, shopping, trying out new places to eat and taking photographs. New places open up all the time but the atmosphere of these streets doesn’t change too much. Something to appreciate.
Not sure what caught the eye of these wood ducks but they certainly had my attention. They remained in this quiet cove for quite a while. This small lake in midsummer is a busy place full of noisy mallards. Perhaps the wood ducks were enjoying a momentary calm.
There are few things more pleasing than the colours of early summer. The ladybug was slowly making its way up the blade of grass. I watched it for a while before walking on. It’s a bit early yet for scenes like this but things are slowly coming into bloom; sunny days ahead.
Even though the tree looked like it had been picked pretty clean, this pileated woodpecker still found it worth investigating. Our largest woodpecker, the pileated is always a pleasure to see and hear, with it’s rattling, slightly maniacal call that announces its presence.
These mallards and wood ducks are my first duck photos of the spring. A good number of mallards over-winter here, the wood ducks migrate in fall and return when most traces of snow are gone. Due to severe flooding we have been unable to return to this reserve. We’ll have a lot of catching up to do when it reopens.
The first photo was taken a few weeks ago. Coneflowers are beautiful flowers and their seedheads are also quite beautiful. In this example they create a natural sculpture.
I’ve also included a little teaser of what’s to come…
Field mice or voles, there is something pretty endearing about these little rodents. I’ve only seen the one and have featured it before though in different poses. They have a tough time of it as they’re prey to raptors and other mammals.
I featured a grackle on my blog recently and thought I would again. This time the bird is gathering nesting material. I Iike these handsome curious birds that never remain idle for long.
Not as flamboyant as the male, the female wood duck has a more subtle beauty. As the summer moves on these rather shy birds become less apprehensive of people and will come quite close to shore, as this one did.
I saw a small flock of Canada Geese fly overhead the other day. No matter the temperature, they return here every spring. The grass has not begun to grow yet but with the rivers and lakes thawing I imagine geese are finding vegetation in the water to eat. I thought the bird in this photo struck a very swan-like pose.
Spring seems to be on hold in my part of the country. The nights are still below 0C although the daytime temperature is slowly rising. Until I see some spring flowers, I thought I’d feature some late season sunflowers. I appreciate their endurance and less than perfect beauty as the weather turns colder.
I’m not sure whether this is a bee or a wasp. If anyone can identify it, please let me know. It was not at all threatening in appearance so I took a photo. Another close-up shot with my 70-200mm lens.
Although my eye was drawn to the tall grass it was the field behind it, with its light and colour that completed the scene. All elements equally important. This photo was taken on a perfect fall day last year.
Frogs are part of the summer landscape. They arrive with the warm weather, sport summer colours and strike some classic poses on lily pads. Just add fly…
Spring is a busy time for downy woodpeckers. Food is becoming more plentiful as it warms up and more insects appear. I took the photos of this male downy with a 300 mm lens, the bird was very close by. Of the many photos I took, these were the only two where I managed to capture the entire length of the bird.
I have featured this photo before in colour but thought it would lend itself nicely to black and white. That and the fact that it’s too early for photo opportunities like this. We had a snowfall yesterday, a little early for April Fools’ Day and for the return of the herons.
At the reserve we go to most often, we’ve seen barred, great horned and eastern screech owls. We see eastern screech owls most often. We usually hear of their presence from other photographers and then we go in search of them. Given their terrific camouflage, I’m always amazed when we do spot one.
I’ve never seen a hybrid goose before. Its distinctive colouring and lone presence stood out on that March morning. It was still too early for the return of the Canada Geese but not for this bird and I was glad to spot him that day.
This wonderful wildflower was taken last spring. It’ll be a while before they pop through the soil this year. The ground is still pretty frozen but there are a few signs of spring – the sparrows chirping and rumours of the first crocus…
Following a trail down to the lake one year, I spotted an Iris growing right off the water. I was standing close to the water’s edge, looking for ducks and almost missed the flower tucked to the side. Every June, I follow the same trail down to the lake and continue to see the Iris return each year.
I like to hear the nuthatch’s nasal call, often alerting me to its presence in the woods. As they move along the tree trunks and branches so quickly, it’s often hit or miss to capture one in focus. Oh, but when you do😊.
It will be a few months before we see any damselflies or dragonflies, members of the Odonata species of insects. We begin to see the first dragonflies in May, followed by damselflies a little later. They are delicate looking insects and small, the leaves provide a good sense of scale. I took these photos with my 70-200mm f/2.8. I use it often for close up photography because I tend to walk around with only one lens (I don’t like to carry much gear). I had to crop but still managed to get nice detail.
The white-throated sparrow is a common visitor to backyard feeders but having neither a backyard or a feeder I spotted this bird in the woods. I usually see a few in season but no more than that. This little bird perched himself on a fallen tree and remained there long enough for me to take his photo.
When I was a kid at summer camp we used to call hawkweed (above) the devil’s paintbrush. Both are common names for this attractive flower although the latter appealed more to the imagination of ten year olds! I don’t think I really took notice of the yellow salsify before I picked up a camera. It was while composing in camera and in the editing that I began to appreciate the flower’s detail and form.
I featured a version of this photo several years ago. When I look back at some of my older photographs, I see what I might try differently. I converted the photo to black and white, reduced the clarity and saturation and removed a bit of vegetation that overlapped the mallard’s bill. I think it makes for a better photograph. My style and skill have developed over the years and it’s nice to see the progression. Of course when you have a subject like this you can’t go too far wrong 😊.
No one is indifferent to Canada Geese. Noisy, messy and gregarious; I like them best in photos like these, looking kind of smart. Fall reflections are a definite asset too.
It’s unusual to see an egret perched on a beaver lodge, normally we see them wading in the water or fishing. The bird stood there for quite a while and I managed to get him in several poses, the first of which is shown here. Most summers we see several egrets and herons in this one location, not last year. The lake was very high which must have made for challenging conditions. They likely found some easier spots to fish.
Another sign of spring is the return of cedar waxwings. We usually see them in a group or ear-full (as they’re known collectively) but I only saw this one bird. It was nice to get him out in the open before the leaves were out.
A bit late for a Groundhog Day post and too early to spot one out of its den. Groundhogs hibernate until March or April in our climate. No friend to farmers or gardeners as their burrowing can do serious damage and they like to feed off crops. They are cute rodents though and are funny when they freeze in plain sight as this one did.
I liked the way the frog was posed on the lily pad, rather prince-like. The frogs in this cove are very small. You get a sense of this from the plants that surround them.
This photo was taken a few years ago in Spring. The trees are not in bud yet. They’re still covered in snow but we’ve turned the corner on winter; the sun’s a little warmer and the temperatures not quite as cold. As I’ve mentioned before, chickadees remain here year round and they too must be anticipating the warmer days to come.
There are several kinds of turtles in our waterways. These photos feature two of them – the painted turtle and the Blanding’s turtle, which has a domed shaped shell and bright yellow throat. It’s on the threatened species list so it’s pretty exciting when we see one.
I liked the pattern in the water, so I centred the mallard. I broke the rule of thirds but I feel the photograph wouldn’t have been as good if I hadn’t.
At this point in the year (late fall), the trees are bare and on a cloudy day, the water takes on this sombre cast, relieved somewhat by the mallard and the ripples created as he moves through the water.
The Ring-billed gull is the most common gull in North America and like many birds migrates south in the winter. I took this photograph in November. It was nice to see the bird in a natural setting as they often congregate in city parking lots. It perched on the log for quite a while where I could appreciate its good looks, something I had never really noticed before.
It’ll be a while before we see goslings or any other signs of spring. Looking through my catalogues I came across this photo, I took it on a June day a few summers ago. This gosling strayed a little from its parent and gave me this measured look.
This young wood duck took her time before she glided back into the water. Most of the ducks remain together in groups, so it’s always nice to find one on it’s own enjoying a quiet moment. This lake has many fallen trees that provide comfortable perches for passing ducks and turtles along with great photo opportunities.
Although I took this photo in October the background suggests summer. The bird appears to be molting, another hint that the season was moving along. No matter the time of year, or less than perfect plumage, cardinals are always a delight.
Cottontails are known to come out at twilight or once it’s dark when it’s safer for them to feed, although I spot them during the day from time to time. Cottontails are solitary and territorial and I’ve never seen more than one at any one time. I approached this rabbit slowly. He was curious but didn’t seem wary of me. I took a quick photo and left him to the spring grass.
Before the snow arrived in mid-December there were still pine cones and seeds for the taking. Between storing food for the winter ahead, this eastern grey squirrel stopped for a bite. The trees were bare and provided little colour to warm the scene. I liked the way the black and white treatment brought out the detail and texture.
BELINDA GROVER PHOTOGRAPHY 