I went to Washington Oaks Gardens State Park south of St. Augustine Florida three times on this trip to the Florida Birding and Photo Fest, looking primarily for the Great Horned Owl and chicks that are always seen this time of year around the Visitor’s Center. I saw the chick twice, but never could get a decent shot of it.

However, there were dragonflies! As you know if you follow these posts, about a year ago I got interested in Dragonflies and started taking pics of them when I encounter them. The Canon SX40HS works really well for this, as you can shoot at up to 1680mm equivalent from under 5 feet and get some excellent macro effects. This shot was taken using that combination. Considering the folds in the wings and the way this specimen was flying, I am thinking this might be a newly emerged dragon. I believe it is a Needham’s Skimmer.

Canon SX40HS as above. Program with iContrast and –1/3rd EV exposure compensation. f5.8 @ 1/200th @ ISO 800. That is another thing about the SX40HS. I can let the ISO go as high as it needs too…and in the deep morning shade, light was a challenge here…without worrying that the image is going to be too noisy.

Processed in Lightroom for intensity, clarity, and sharpness.

And a full body shot for reference.