Posts in Category: Orlando Wetlands

Egret in the gloom

Great Egret: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Still from the gloom, wet, damp, dank, dark Thursday of the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival at Orlando Wetlands. Leading a Point’nShootNature Photography workshop. Not bad light for an Egret…you get to see the full range of feather detail. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 489mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Parking lot cranes

Sandhill Crane: Orlando Wetlands Park. Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Florida Sandhill Cranes, as I have observed in the past, seem like a totally different bird than western Sandhills. Florida Sandhills have no fear of man. If you stand still, they will walk right up to you, paying you not the least attention. Western Sandhills are off and away at any close approach, and by close I mean 30 yards. These two Florida specimens wandered into the parking lot at Orlando Wetlands and calmly fed along the back edge with cars in the lot and people milling about. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Lady lady!

Anhinga: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — The Anhingas at Orlando Wetlands are just coming into breeding plumage and this lady had found a perch right next to the boardwalk on a cold, dark, dank morning. She will be happier when the sun comes out. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent…one from further away than the other). Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! pink on grey

Roseate Spoonbill: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Still a damp cold Thursday morning at Orlando Wetlands, but actually quite nice light for the Spoonbills in flight. A composite of three images. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in Pixomatic. Frame added in LikeAFrame.

Florida! Special delivery

Roseate Spoonbill: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — On a cold dark dank Thursday morning at Orlando Wetlands this Roseate Spoonbill was flying back and forth between a little one tree hummock right by the boardwalk and his nest in the larger hammock, further out, diligently gathering nesting materials. Slim pickings, and already well picked over, but he was finding enough to keep him busy. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! Red-shouldered

Red-shouldered Hawk: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — After we got all the cameras set up for Point and Shoot Nature Photography yesterday morning we headed out toward the Spoonbill and Egret (and Vulture) rookery along the boardwalk…but came up on this Red-shouldered Hawk hunting from high in a tree right along the berm. We were slowly working around it for better light when it suddenly took wing, and I thought, “oh no, we spooked it,” but instead of flying off, it dropped down right in front of us, practically in front of our feet, and took some kind of lizard. It sat there while it managed to swallow it, and then just flipped up into a tree not far away for some more photography. Such a treat. I knew right then it was going to be a good morning at the wetlands. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! Gift outright!

Purple Gallinule: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — It was cold and damp at Orlando Wetlands yesterday morning for my first Point and Shoot for Wildlife workshop. Low 40s and rain threatening, and I should have had another layer on, but we were rewarded, after we had already decided we were cold enough to head back, with this lone Purple Gallinule so close to the boardwalk that it was almost under our feet. It was working along a floating branch, picking at whatever it cold find while staying on the branch as was so busy it paid no attention to us as we worked around it on the boardwalk. To get anything but a top of its head view you hand to get down and shoot between the rail supports…which made me very thankful for the flip-out screen on my camera. 🙂 Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii at 348 and 436mm equivalents. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! Preening

Blue-winged Teal: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2024 — Blue-winged Teal seem to be the most common duck at Orlando Wetlands in January. This is just a study in feather detail as this female gets all the feathers in the right place. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! More purple

Purple Gallinule: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2024 — I spent two mornings at Orlando Wetlands as I had workshops scheduled there, and, of course, both times I went looking for Purple Gallinule, of the stars of the show at the wetlands. Both mornings were overcast, but that is not bad light for the irredentist purples and blues of the Gallinule. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Florida! Purple

Purple Gallinule: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2024 — Certainly one of the primary target birds at Orlando Wetlands is the Purple Gallinule. I had to walk a long way to find one. 🙂 Worth it though. Check out that foot! It enables the bird to walk on the lily pads without sinking them as it hunts. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.