Grass Pink Orchid, Laudholm Farms, Wells Maine

I hiked around the external loop at the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve at Laudholm Farms in Wells, Maine yesterday, looking, in part, for Grass Pink Orchids in the little remnant bog there. I only found a few…much less than last year’s show, and only one close enough to the boardwalk to photograph. The Grass Pink is one of the few orchids that hang upside down…with the tongue on top. It is actually a normal orchid, but the stem twists as the flower develops. It is certainly one of the beauties of July in Southern Maine. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent from about 4 feet. Program mode with Program shift for greater depth of field. f11 @ 1/200th @ ISO 100. Processed in Polarr.

12 Spotted Skimmer, SMHC Ponds, Kennebunk Maine

There have been 12 Spotted Skimmer Dragonflies around the drainage ponds at the Southern Maine Health Care center in Kennebunk for a week now, but yesterday was the first day I caught them sitting long enough for photos. The 12 Spot has to be one of the more striking dragonflies, but it also one of the most common, at least here in Southern Maine, so we often pass it by without a second look. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. 1/800th @ f4 @ ISO 100. Processed in Polarr.

Rachel Carson NWR Headquarters, Wells, Maine

It does not happen often, but occasionally I will find myself seeing in Black and White…not literally, of course, but seeing the possibility of a Black and White image in the world of color. And once I see my first potential B&W, generally I see several. And then it is gone. I may not take another image for intentional B&W treatment for months. 🙂 It happened yesterday while walking the trail at the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge in Wells, Maine. These are “extreme HDR” images from the Sony RX10iv…taken with HDR set to a +/- 6 EV difference. I applied 1930s B&W film filters in Polarr and then tweaked the results to taste with the “light” controls. Borders were added in PhotoShop Express. And the panel was assembled in FrameMagic. I find the B&W images only really pop when displayed on a black background…hence the borders…but even the panel looks best in full screen mode with a dark background.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Butterfly Weed, Kancamagus Highway, NH

This is another shot of the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly on Butterfly Weed from the South Falls Recreation Area on the Kancamagus Highway between Conway and Lincoln, New Hampshire. The Swallowtail is certainly as attractive from the underside as it is from the upper, and this shot emphasizes the length and grace of the wings. Not to mention the attractive setting of the two colors of Butterfly Weed. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. 1/1000th @ f5 @ ISO 100. Processed in Polarr.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Butterfly Weed, Lower Falls Recreation Site, Kancamagus Highway, NH

We drove the Kancamagus Highway from Conway to Lincoln, New Hampshire yesterday, on our way to the Flume Gorge, and stopped at the Lower Falls Recreation Area just to see what that was all about. There are Butterfly Weed plantings by the fee station, and the flowers were attracting a half dozen Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterflies. Most of them were well worn this late in the Swallowtail season, but there was at least one nice fresh specimen…caught here for your pleasure (and mine). Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. 1/800th @ f4 @ ISO 100. Processed in Polarr.

Ebony Jewelwing Damselfly, Emmon’s Preserve, Kennebunkport Maine

It is Ebony Jewelwing season along the Baston River at Emmon’s Preserve (Kennebunkport Conservation Trust), and many of the streams in Southern Maine, right now. There is nothing quite like their green metallic bodies (blue in some lights) and velvet black wings. Two males in mock battle over a little ripple in a stream, flashing in out of dappled sun, is always a treat to see. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 400 and 250. Processed in Polarr and assembled in FrameMagic.

Pic for today: Scarlet Macaws in flight…As I have mentioned before, one of the highlights of my tour of the Honduran Highlands in May with Alex Alvarado and Honduran Birds was our visit to Copan Ruins and the time we spent with the Scarlet Macaws around the feeders at feeding time. These are free-flying, wild Macaws…part of a successful reintroduction program that has been going on for many years at the Ruins in an attempt to reestablish the once common Macaw, which was important in Mayan culture in the area. Catching them in flight is a real challenge. They are big and fast and close. There was no way I could track them through the viewfinder. I had to resort to extreme point and shoot methods…simply pointing the camera at the birds, swiveling to follow them in flight with the shutter going at 10 frames per second…and hoping for the best. These are some of the best. Sony RX10iv at various focal lengths between 300 and 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my inflight modifications (tracking auto focus and auto ISO set to maintain a minimum 1/1000th shutter speed, 10 fps continuous shooting). Processed in Polarr.

Tawny-throated Leaftosser, La Tigra National Park, Honduras

When we saw this bird along the trail in La Tigra National Park, walking in to find the Wine-throated Hummingbird, Alex Alvarado of Honduran Birds and Older (a young guide from Pico Bonito who was along for the birding) did not make a big deal out of it, so, despite it being listed as “uncommon” in the Peterson North Central American Field Guide, it must not be all that uncommon at La Tigra. Gotta love the name. There are actually a few Leaftossers. They make their living on the ground, well, tossing leaves to find bugs. These were not easy shots to get, as it was way dark under the canopy at the edge of the cloud-forest. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. 1/25th and 1/50th @ f4 @ ISO 6400. (You have to admire the image stabilization in today’s best P&S cameras, though I did have my bean-bag topped mono-pod under the camera.) Processed in Polarr, including some noise control. They are not the kind of images I would make a big print from, but they are certainly fine as a record of a good bird. 🙂

Honduran Emerald Hummingbird, El Cajon Area, Honduras

A while ago I posted a single shot of the Honduran Emerald Hummingbird from my tour of the Honduran highlands in May, hosted by Alex Alvarado and Honduran Birds. Several years ago Alex discovered an isolated population of the Honduran Emerald, the only endemic bird in Honduras, in the area around the El Cajon hydroelectric project, where, honestly, no one expected to see it. Most people who see the Emerald, see it in or around the Honduran Emerald Reserve in the Aguan Valley…which is a long ways from El Cajon and, to be frank, a long drive from everywhere. About the same time, Alex Martinez Matute moved to the El Cajon area to start a restaurant / hotel, and got interested in birds. He contacted Alex for directions to the spot where he and seen the Honduran Emerald, and eventually relocated it. Since then Alex Martinez Matute has scoured the El Cajon region for birds and located at least two reliable populations if the hummingbird, as well as quite a number of other hard to see Honduran birds. He is the expert on the area, and a visit to his El Rancho restaurant in El Cajon is rewarding for any birder. The big deal here is that the El Cajon region is within an hour of the airport in San Pedro Sula, and practically right next door to the well known birding destination of Panacam Lodge. Anyone who has ridden in a transport van the three and a half hours from the Lodge at Pico Bonito to Honduran Emerald preserve (and three and a half hours back), will appreciate how much more accessible the Emeralds are around El Cajon. When we visited in May, we had difficult lighting, but I still managed some memorable shots. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode. +2 EV for the backlight. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 320. Processed in Polarr and assembled in FrameMagic.