The Elusive Great Blue Heron

When I first got into photography, I took pictures of ducks, geese and just about any other indigenous bird I could find that would let me. The heron was included in my quests, except that it was not so cooperative. I have driven by the great blue while it stood ten feet from a major road. It would stand regally, unmoved by the whizzing cars. I have parked, gathered my camera, approached slowly, snapping pictures from too far away as I lessened the distance. NONE of these pictures was good. As soon as I reached an ideal photo spot the great bird would have none of it. It would turn and look at me (once I thought it even stuck its tongue out at me) and fly away.

Funny story: I had a great opportunity one morning on a slow country road driving by a pond. A blue heron was fishing right next to a driveway. I figured I wouldn't even have to get out of the car, just roll down the window, stop the car and fire away. My plan worked perfectly except when I pressed the shutter button nothing happened... dead battery :( He looked at me, I groped for one of the spare batteries, and he was gone. Frustrating.

Monday evening I was driving through Phoenixville PA when I saw one proudly surveying the roadway from atop the dam of the Pickering Creek Reservoir. I parked and prepped the camera, including checking the battery. Maybe the distance away from the road lowered me to an acceptable threat level for the heron, but he held his ground. The 300mm Sigma f/2.8 lens was perfect for the job.

Nikon D800 Sigma 300mm f/2.8 @ 300mm f/4.5 ISO 400 1/1000 sec

Little League

I never played little league baseball when I was a kid. My friends and I would play baseball, but not in a structured / coached environment. I was asked recently if I would photograph a game for a friend of mine who was a coach for his son’s team. I agreed.

I’ve watched baseball on TV and have been to a few games, but I hadn’t realized how heady the game actually is, especially from a photographer’s position. Making sure I got pictures of all the players, was easy compared to predicting the action, and I’m sure that the logical conclusions arising from every intricacy on the field are plain to see for someone deeply immersed in the sport.

For instance... players are on first and second bases and there are two outs. If the batter hits the ball, an out at any base (except home) would end the inning. The best odds are at first base because the runners at first and second have taken leads and have closed the gap to the next base by a few yards. Meanwhile the batter has to redirect his concentration and energy from hitting to running to first. If the runners are equally fast this should take longer and therefore be the best place for the final out. Unless of course the hit ball is a grounder to the second base man who would then tag second for the out, or the third base man could do the same if the ball came to him, especially because the throw from third to first would burn away tenths of seconds that a speedy runner could take advantage of. The possibilities seem finite, and yet grow exponentially with every nuance of change.

I have a new respect for not only the kids of little league, but also for the sport of Baseball, and if that’s one of the goals of children's athletics, I admire it.

Nikon D4 Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8@ 160mm f/4 ISO 100 1/1000

June 2013 Calendar

Here's your downloadable desktop calendar for June 2013. This picture was taken just before dawn on the beach in Ocean City Maryland. It was a struggle to get up and moving at 5:30AM on vacation, but approaching the beach I knew it was in the right move. Best wishes for a great June.

​Nikon D5100 Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 @ 16mm f/13 ISO 100 5 image HDR

#TravelTuesday Eiffel Tower

Finishing the pictures from our recent trip to Paris, I thought I would end with a piece of architecture that universally symbolizes France, and especially Paris. This structure is adored by visitors and shunned, like an ostentatious painting hung in the guest bedroom, by Parisians. Debate over whether or not the tower is a work of art, or a gaudy iron monstrosity, has gone on for decades.

Originally the tower was built for the 1889 World’s Fair by the engineer Gustave Eiffel. Its permit was for twenty years, after which it was to be gifted to the city and dismantled. During the years it stood, it became an integral part of the growth of broadcasting. Antennas worked very well high up on the tower. I could also imagine that it brought in quite a pretty penny seeing how popular it had become. Over 200 million people have visited the Eiffel Tower, and that milestone was set back in 2002. Obviously, since it is such a tall building, you can see it from almost anywhere in the city of Paris. But to experience it like so many people have, you have to see it up close.

From the base one feels like an ant. I remember looking around to make sure I wasn’t shrinking, and was just as tall as the other tourists, so I could regain my sense of scale. Strangely though, just as the giant erector set seems massive, it also gives the appearance of fragility because of all the space between the giant girders. If you visit Paris, spend an afternoon there if you want to ascend it, or climb to one of the bottom tires for a meal, but I think what makes Paris great is elsewhere. It’s in the art, the culture, the food, the very style of Paris. Paris means so much to the world in so many ways. Enjoy an adventure in France’s capital and savor the memories for years, but don’t think you’ve seen Paris because you took a picture of the Eiffel Tower.

​The Eiffle Tower at night from the Seine River

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 32mm f/3.8 ISO 3200 1/60 sec