Blackbird Fly

Day 15/Year 2

I hit the wildlife jackpot this afternoon. This was after taking my mother to the Dr. She had a good appointment and she's doing well. Okay, back to the jackpot. After I drove the folks home, I stopped at Whitmans Pond in Weymouth to see if there was any action going on. Not too much. A swan was diving for food and there were lots of seagulls and crows. I'm getting kind of sick of the seagulls and I just posted a crow photo the other day. I needed more. So, I went across the street, behind the cemetery, to the back side of Whitmans Pond. This is where the jackpot was hit. It was so peaceful. There were a pair of swans, many Mallard Ducks, a few Canada Geese, and across the water from where I was, there were 2 White Egrets. I took many shots of the Egrets and waited patiently for one or both of them to take flight. And I waited. And I waited. Guess they weren't in the flying mood. So, I walked further along where there were lots of reeds. I knew the Red Winged Blackbirds like the reeds, and sure enough, I found a few. I waited for this one to take flight, and my persitence paid off. Granted, I could have used more reach than the 200 mm lens I have, but I was happy to catch it in flight nonetheless.

The Specs:

Nikon D90, 18-200 mm lens, ISO 200, 1/800, f5.6, -1/3 ev

Kalanchoe

Day 14/Year 2

I love this pretty little plant! It was a gift from N's gf (aka my oldest son's girlfriend.....how did the world get by for all of those years without all of these abbreviations I'll never know!) It's such a pretty houseplant with the tiniest white flowers with little golden yellow stamens inside each flower.

I used the Nikon 4T closeup filter again today while shooting this plant and I also used Live View. It's so much fun!

The Specs:

Nikon D90, 50 mm lens with 4T closeup filter, ISO 200, 1/60, f3.2

Deja Brew

Day 13/Year 2

Today was a good day! I met my friend Kathy (who I haven't spent time with in a long time....too long) at Deja Brew in Abington for breakfast. That's the first of the good part......spending time with her chatting away. It was so good to catch up. Now here's the second good part of today. She brought me gifts! Lots of gifts! A whole big gift bag full of gifts for my birthday (which was in November.......I told you I haven't seen her for a while) These weren't just any old gifts. They were so much more. Each gift had a special meaning  and they each represented special things that I like in my life......soooooo thoughtful!!!!

Here's the third good part about today. The food. And the atmosphere. At Deja Brew. It's so much more than a little coffee shop. The food is amazing. Everything is fresh and home-made. The decor is so country and homey and the workers are so friendly with a welcoming smile on their faces. If you are in the Abington area, please stop at Deja Brew for breakfast or lunch. You will not be disappointed.They are located on Rte18 across from the fire station. Please support our local small businesses!!!!

Here's the fourth and final good part about today. The workers were talking about taking a picture of the restaurant for a brochure. I overheard them. I told them I just happened to have a few pictures of the interior that I had taken while sitting there. Honestly, it is so cool how this whole thing came about. They LOVED my pictures and want to use one of them on the brochure and possibly on their website......giving me credit for the photos of course.

So, that was my good day. Not bad, huh? :-)

The Specs:

Panasonic LX3, ISO 250, 1/30, f2

Don't Squawk!

Day 12/Year 2

I know it.....I know it.......I didn't take this photo today.......please stop squawking!!! I worked today, and well, it's raining out, and with the new rules, I am allowed to post an older photo. Right? Right! Besides, this one isn't that old at all. I just took it the other day. :-)

This shot is blog-worthy IMO. It's sharp, the eye is tack sharp (a very important thing I have learned in wildlife photography is to get the eye nice and sharp) I like the characteristic of the gull squawking that I captured. It was very windy. I like the feathers being ruffled by the wind.So there we have it. Todays photo. Taken on another day. But today's photo nonetheless.

The Specs:

Nikon D90, 18-200 mm lens, ISO 200, 1/2000, f5.6, -1/3 ev

Happy Birthday N!

Day 11/Year 2

It seems like just yesterday I was blogging about N's birthday. Here we are one year later. It's scary how fast time flies. What a year it's been for him! He is happy in his career and things couldn't be going much better for him than they are right now.

You deserve all the good things coming your way........and we love you and are so proud of you!!! xxoo

The Specs:

Nikon D90, 18-200 mm lens, ISO 400, 1/25, f4.5

Birds do it, bees do it, and ducks do it too

Day 10/Year 2

A pair of Mallard Duck's mating in a pond in Plymouth today. The female didn't seem interested, and the male at one point held her head down under the water with his beak.

Nature. It's not very romantic.

The Specs:

Nikon D90, 18-200 mm lens, ISO 200, 1/500, f5.6

This ain't no April Fool's!!!!!!!

Day 9/Year 2

As I was driving to work this morning, (at 5am),  the following song by The Doors kept repeating in my head. You must know the lyrics......."Keep your eyes on the road and your camera upon the wheel"......oops, I mean hands upon the wheel. Especially when it's icy on the roads.

Yup, it's April 1st. Springtime in New England. You gotta love it.

On another note, there is a real true sign of Spring today. Opening Day for the Red Sox!!!!!! Let's just hope the Sox have their act together better than the people at work did today. I was supposed  to take a picture of everyone who wore their Sox apparel to work today, in honor of opening day. They alll wanted a group shot. How hard could it be to get a group of people together for a 1 minute photo op?????? Jeezum crow! :-) Well, I ended up with 2 available subjects at 2 pm, just as I was heading out the door to go home.

Here's Kathy and Danielle:

Go Sox!!!!!! This is predicted to be a GREAT year. Looking forward to it.

PLAY BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Specs:

Photo one and two: Panasonic LX3, ISO 800, 1/8, f2.3

Photo three: Panasonic LX3, ISO 80, 1/13, f2.1