Maine! Marsh with marching clouds
September 1st sky over the marsh at Parson’s Beach. Sony a5100 with Sony E 10-18 f4 zoom at 15mm equivalent. Superior Auto with Landscape Scene Mode. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Eye to eye
Semi-palmated Plover: York County, Maine, USA, September 2024 — I went to the beach yesterday to see if the shorebird migration has reached us. Lots of Semi-palmated Plovers and Sandpipers but no Sanderlings yet. Still on their way I guess or they hopped over us. I sat on the sand for a while to see how close the plovers and sandpipers would come to me in my bright yellow triking shirt and hat. They came close. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my (momentarily messed up) bird and wildlife modifications (I had been researching a setting for a follower and did not get my modifications set back correctly, so this was taken at an uncharacteristically slow shutter speed of 1/160th.) Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Ghost Flower, the inside view
Occasionally you find a Ghost Flower or Indian Pipe plant with the blossom still pointing up so you can see what is inside. And here it is. The inside view of the Ghost Flower. Who would suspect that all the pigment in the plant is mostly hidden. Even viewed on phone you are seeing the flower at life-size or more. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 106mm equivalent. Program mode with my macro modifications. Program shift to f10 at 1/30th for depth of field. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Standoffish
Snowy Egrets: (and two Greater Yellowlegs) York County Maine, USA, August 2024 — A small pool and lots of birds so, of course, there were a lot of squabbles as they hunted. Here two Snowy Egrets face off while another strolls by. And of course the Yellowlegs, are variously concerned. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Highlight metering. (Not easy light!) Processed in Photomator.
Maine! More Ghost Plant
Ghost Plant or Indian Pipe is in full bloom these last days of August here in Southern Maine. This stand is just off the Bridle Path in Kennebunk and is among the largest clumps I have seen and one of the healthiest. I actually went back to photography it a second. I find the range of tones from pink to pure white to be interesting. I assume it is something to do with the soil as many clumps, even nearby, were plain white. Sony a5100 with Sony E 10-18 f4 zoom at 22mm equivalent. Aperture Program mode at f10 for depth of field…and clearly the camera was just above ground level for this shot. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Greater Egret Action
Great Egrets: York County Maine, USA, August 2024 — More of the Egret action from the other day in the marsh. This time two Great Egrets, but again, disputing the fishing rights. My pool! These two actually got along okay as long as they were separated by the width or the length of pool. As soon as they close there was trouble. The wings on these birds never cease to amaze and delight me. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Highlight metering. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Merriland River
One of my favorite views at Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters, looking out over the Merriland River to its junction with the Little River and the sea beyond. Sony a5100 with Sony E 10-18mm f4 zoom at 15mm equivalent. Superior Auto with Landscape Scene mode. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Snowy action
Snowy Egrets: York County, Maine, USA, August 2024 — I found a group of more than dozen Great and Snowy Egrets feeding in the marsh quite close to a trail I use, and was able to work my way through the woods to the edge of the marsh to watch them as they actively hunted a small pool for 30 minutes or so. If I had had a chair I would have watched longer 🙂 There was a lot of interaction as they squabbled for fishing rights. As I have mentioned in recent Egret posts, these kinds of concentrations of Egrets are, I think, new to our area marshes in the past few years. Previously I would see an Egret here or there, always a special treat. The past two years they have been here in large numbers and often congregated in mixed feeding groups like the one I saw yesterday, the second half of summer and through early fall. I can’t testify to anything beyond the past 20 years, or to any other marshes in Maine (if memory serves there have always been larger numbers in the bigger marshes north of us). These two Snowys were playing dominance games. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Highlight metering. Processed in Photomator and framed in FrameMagic.
Maine! August afternoon at Rachel Carson
It was an intense August afternoon yesterday on the loop trail at the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in Wells, Maine. The last of our hot days for a while with a strong front moving through and building great clouds over the ocean. Sony a5100 with Sony E 10-18 f4 at 15mm equivalent. Superior Auto with Landscape Scene Mode and brightness dialed down a bit to preserve details in the clouds. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse: York County, Maine, USA, August 2024 — I never realized just how close we are to the northern edge of the Tufted Titmouse range. They are so common in our backyard and in the forests around us. This one is “tuft challenged” or at least worn from the nesting season. Actually it is kind of disheveled looking overall. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.