Great! Egret
Great Egret: Kennebunk, Maine, USA — I almost rode right by this Great Egret feeding in the marsh along the access road to our local beach. I was at the end of my eTrike ride, headed for home, just checking the marsh for anything spectacular. So I guess it is safe to say I did not consider the Great Egret, well out in the marsh, spectacular. 🙂 Still, my theory is that if you do not take the easy shots when they are on offer, you might not get the chance of the “special” shots when they happen. And, with a bit of post processing magic to bring the Egret in closer, I managed satisfying, if not spectacular. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr, then enlarged in Pixelmator Pro Photo and recropped for the equivalent of at least a 2000mm field of view. Finished off in Apple Photos. ISO 100 @ f4 @ 1/800th. Assembled in FrameMagic.
Fall coming on nicely!
We had our first sunny day…or at least a few sunny hours, yesterday and I got out on my eTrike for photoprowl, to see how fall is coming along. It has been kind of stuttering after an early start. No worries. At least in the likely spots it is coming along fine. 🙂 This is one of two little ponds right next to Rt. 9 between Brown Street and the Wells Town line. I photograph it in all seasons, but fall is certainly the most striking. I got down just about at ground level with my iPhone and the Sirui 18mm ultra-wide lens. The sky was bright but the foreground was in cloud shadow already. Really an attractive combination that does well with the fall color. Apple Camera app with Smart HDR engaged. Processed in Apple Photos.
Hard not to love a chickadee :)
Black-capped Chickadee: Kennebunk, Maine, USA — The title says it all. It is indeed hard not to love a chickadee. They are so sprightly, and so bold. When all the other birds are being shy they are right there wherever you are, in close…often within your space. I have had them land on the feeder while I was filling it…and of course there are a gazillion photos of them sitting on people’s hands. And they have so much attitude! These shots are from a few moments before I headed out for a rainy day walk yesterday, when I pulled up a chair and sat in the open door leading out to our deck and the feeding station. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos and assembled in FrameMagic. ISO 2500 @ f4 @ 1/1000th.
More fascinating fungi from the pond edge
I found all of these mushrooms growing within 20 feet of Day Brook Pond in the sands of the Kennebunk Plains. I continue to be amazed at the numbers and variety of fungi I am finding this season. Top left is probably Laccaria laccata, or the “scurfy deceiver”, then possibly an Amanita, then maybe a Coltricia, and neither I or my AI assistants can come up with a likely name for the last one, but it might be some kind of “fieldcap”. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Apple Photos and assembled in FrameMagic.
Another pond of autumn…
I went out looking for a little more fall to fill my photo buffer the other day…fall seems to be still bashful here in Southern Maine…just peaking out here and there, generally near water where the cold air settles over night. This is the upper end of Day Brook Pond, often a spot for early color, but even so, not as much color as I expected the first days of October. We expect peak color by Columbus Day. We might not make it this year. 🙂 iPhone SE with Sirui 18mm ultra-wide lens. Apple Camera app with Smart HDR engaged. Processed in Apple Photos.
Frumpy Field Sparrow
Field Sparrow: Kennebunk Plains Preserve, Kennebunk, Maine, USA. — I went for a photoprowl on my eTrike yesterday, since my stock of photos or my Pic for today posts was running low, and had no more than parked the trike at the Kennebunk Plains, than this Field Sparrow hopped up to see what I was doing. It posed long enough for me to get a few portrait shots. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. In order to fill the frame at the distance, I relied on some extra processing. Processed as I normally would in Polarr for highlights and shadows, sharpness, etc. and then run through Pixelmator Pro Photo’s Machine Learning Maximum Resolution, and recropped for scale. The two shot were assembled in FrameMagic to give you a both sides view. ISO 100 @ f4 @ 1/640th.
Milkweed season
The Milkweed pods have begun to burst and the evidence is spreading through the fields. Considering the plight of the Monarch Butterfly populations I can only wish each and every Milkweed seed success. It seems to be that Monarchs are recovering somewhat from their low here in Southern Maine a few summers ago, but every milkweed plant is a step in the right direction. The first pod is on the Kennebunk Plains, and the scatter of seeds is at Laudholm Farms…miles apart. Sony Rx10iv at 424mm equivalent. ISO 100 @ f7.1 @ 1/1000th. And 580mm equivalent. ISO 100 @ f5 @ 1/1000th. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. Assembled in FrameMagic.
Downy at the sunflower seeds…
Downy Woodpecker: Kennebunk, Maine, USA — until this year, I had not noticed the Downy Woodpeckers at the feeders, other than the suet feeders, enough to realize that they are regular seed eaters. When I mentioned that discovery this spring, others assured me that “their downies” ate seed all the time, so I guess it was just me (or possibly “my downies”). It is still a treat to see them at the sunflowers. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent in only fair light. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos and assembled in FrameMagic. ISO 400 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Fresh Frog!
American Bullfrog: Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Preserve, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — I always have to look up the difference between the Bull and Green Frog, as we have both here, often in the same pond. This one is a Bullfrog since it lacks the dorsal ridges of the Green. I could not resist taking the photo as it sat so nicely on the bit of sand right at my feet at the edge of the pond. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. ISO 250 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Chickadee in low light
Black-capped Chickadee: Kennebunk, Maine, USA — While photographing the Red-breasted Nuthatch the other morning early, I could not resist this Chickadee using the same feeder. Nothing so bold as a chickadee. 🙂 Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. ISO 6400 @ f4 @ 1/500th.