Monthly Archives: August 2016
Teneral Dragon
Teneral Meadowhawk? Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Wildlife Management Area, W. Kennbunk Maine
Sometimes a Dragonfly is just too freshly emerged to id…which, at least at my level of experience, is the case here. I think it is one of the Meadowhawks, but it was on its maiden flight and I just can’t be sure which one, or even that it is a meadowhawk. It was very patient with me as I worked my way closer and fiddled with the Program Shift for this macro. I hope it woke up and moved on before the hunting Cedar Waxwings found it. 🙂
Sony RX10iii at 1200mm equivalent field of view (2x Clear Image Zoom). Program shift for greater depth of field. f9 @ 1/60th @ ISO 100. I could not really stop down any more, as there was some wind, and the position was awkward to hold the camera steady. Processed in Lightroom.
Curiosity, thy name is Cedar Waxwing :)
Cedar Waxwing, Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, W. Kennebunk Maine
Curiosity, thy name is Cedar Waxwing (to paraphrase (or misquote) Shakespeare), but honestly, I can think of few birds that look as continuously curious as the Cedar Waxwing. It might be the hairdo, or the angle of black mask, but Cedar Waxwings always seem intently interested in whatever has their attention. This one was hunting teneral dragon and damselflies along the shore of Day Brook Pond on the Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area near our home in Kennebunk Maine. Freshly emerged odonata seem to make up a good portion of a Cedar Waxwing’s diet, at least this time of year.
Though you have to enlarge the image to see it, this shot has an impressive amount of feather detail. The superfine feathers of Cedar Waxwings make a really good test of a camera’s resolution. Sony RX10iii at 600mm equivalent field of view. 1/250th @ ISO 125 @ f4. Processed and cropped slightly for scale and composition in Lightroom.
Northern Blazing Star
Northern Blazing Star, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, W. Kennebunk Maine.
It is an amazing show when the Northern Blazing Star are in full bloom on the Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area…as they will be in a few weeks…but this early, when there are only a few plants in bloom, I generally take better, closer, looks at this beautiful flower. And, of course, not so much a flower as a cluster of tiny flowers making up a thistle like head. In this shot you can appreciate the beauty of the individual flowers.
Sony RX10iii at 600mm equivalent field of view. 1/640th @ ISO 100 @ f4. Processed and cropped slightly for composition in Lightroom.