Posts in Category: yard
Lily
Lily: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, June 2025 — We have a few of these Lilies in the yard. This is the first to bloom. We call them “oriental lilies” to differentiate them from the Day Lilies we also have. The flowers are very similar but the plants are considerably different. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 75mm equivalent. Aperture preferred (my macro modifications) at f5.6 and 1/30th. Processed in Photomator.
Backyard Turkey
Wild Turkey: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, June 2025 — The past few days we have had Turkeys in our yard in the morning and sometimes in the afternoon. I am sure they live in the patch of forest across the street, but come out to hunt insects and invertebrates in the relatively short grass of the neighborhood yards. That’s okay by me. I like to see them, and as far as I can see they are doing no harm. Adds a bit of wild to the neighborhood. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maple blossoms
Maple Blossoms: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, April 2025 — I am always eager for the Maples in our yard and our neighborhood to blossom. The flowers often go unnoticed, and under appreciated…just a red haze in the tall maple trees. But up close they are quite beautiful. If you can find a low hanging branch, take a look. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at various focal lengths for framing. Program mode.
Crocus Spring
We had one mild, sunny spring day this week, and the Crocus buds opened for a few hours. They have been tight closed since, but they might peek out again today. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at various focal lengths for macro and framing. Aperture preferred for depth of field control (my standard macro settings). Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Winter Pine
Pine Warbler: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, January 2024 — I was surprised to see not one, but two Pine Warblers, a male and a female, in our yard over the past two days. According to the field guide range maps these guys should be in the deep south in January. So of course I did some research and found that there have been half a dozen e-bird sightings of Pine Warblers in Maine this January so far, as far north as Darmiscotta, and in the past 10 years there have been several hundred winter sightings. So not all that uncommon. I was thinking these were birds displaced by the unusual deep freeze and snow hitting the south right now…but maybe not. If any warbler can survive a Maine winter it is the chunky, seed-eating Pine. There were several reports of Pine Warblers hanging out with Bluebirds, and the ones in our yard are doing exactly that. They like the mealworms, but they are also attracted to suet and don’t seem adverse to picking up sunflower fragments the finches and nuthatches drop. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator. Taken through double-glazed deck doors.
Maine! The backside of the bluebird of happiness (during a snowstorm)
Eastern Bluebird: York County, Maine, USA, December 2024 — We had our first snow in the yard yesterday. It is all gone by now, but the Bluebirds had to learn about snow all over again, and they were not thrilled to say the least. This one had found a branch to shelter under. The snow may not have made the Bluebird smile, but this Bluebird shot puts a smile on my face. Sony a6700 with Tamron 50-400Di3 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Chickadee on the rail
Black-capped Chickadee: York County Maine, USA, September 2024 — Just a simple portrait of a common backyard bird. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Turtlehead and bumblebees
We have good sized stands of Turtlehead in our yard, all descended from a few plants donated by one of my wife’s friends. They are in bloom right now and being tended by a host of bumblebees. I find it interesting that I have only ever seen this particular species of bumblebee around the Turtleheads. They are just the right size, and apparently have enough strength (and determination) to force their way into the open mouths of the blossoms to gather the pollen inside, and to pollinate other flowers as they gather. It is not easy. It sometimes takes them several tries before they find just the right angle to wriggle inside…where they completely disappear for severe seconds before managing to get back out to move on to another flower. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii zoom at 105mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird and wildlife modifications. Insect recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Blue Jay
Blue Jay: York County, Maine, USA — I was photographing Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at the feeder on our back deck when this Blue Jay flew in and landed on one of the feeder supports. It is relatively rare for us to have Blue Jays in the yard, only a few times each summer, and very rare for us to have one on the deck. I suspect this is a juvenile bird, mostly due to the pale forehead and crown. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. ISO 5000 @ f6.3 @ 1/640th.
Maine! Day Lilies
Day Lilies from our yard. The “wild-ish” Day Lilies that grow in our front yard are all “double blossom” lilies, with two flowers on top of each other. The Day Lilies that grow in our back yard are single blossom??? These are from the front yard. Both images are in-camera focus stacked (hand held) with the OM Systems OM-1 and the 100-400mm zoom at 300mm equivalent. It is still pretty amazing to me that the camera can do this. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. Nominal exposure ISO 2500 @ f5.7 and f6.3 @ 1/500th.