Hawk 2, Larry 0

That darn hawk!

I spotted him again yesterday afternoon while waiting for a stop light. This time he was cleverly camouflaged siting on a branch in a small batch of trees alongside Route 896 and Dennie Road, or so he thought! Ah ha! There were cars behind me. Acting nonchalantly and as to not raise his suspicion, I cleverly pretended like I was just a passing motorist and went with the flow of traffic. But without him suspecting anything, and me now in full sleuth mode, circled back around four traffic lights and pulled up alongside him. Doh! He took flight and I momentarily lost sight of him.

I decided to make another full circle. Ah ha! There he was a little further back, but I think I can still get a shot off. Doh! The trees are blocking me ....

I am going to go around again. This time I park the car a few hundred feet past where I spotted him and walk back to my elusive prey. The setting sun is in an awkward spot, so I have to walk past him and then circle back. With cat-like prowess I creep through the brush and come up on his blind side, raise the camera to my eye and ..... you guessed it, he took off!

With head hung low, I dejectedly walk back to the car .... just wait .... there will be a next time, Mr. Hawk!

Where Am I?

"da do roam, roam"
1/500 sec at f/4.3 ISO 200

Any guesses? +/- 100 miles

Answer: The Bison Corral, Schellsburg PA

What Am I?

1/160 sec at f/5.6 ISO 100

Any guesses?

Nightfall

"Nightfall is Upon Us"
1/160 sec at f/7.1 ISO 100

Just beyond the sunset
Someone waits for me
Just beyond the sunset
Lies my destiny
Where the purple mountains
Lie in deep tranquility
There I’ll find the treasure
Of love eternally

"Just Beyond the Sunset" Poem
by David Harris (1966)

What's New Pussycat?

"Buzzard Buffet"

1/250 sec at f/4.5 ISO 200

Three cats (one of out camera view) nonchalantly share their side porch with turkey buzzards during a scheduled break. Not really sure who the predator would be in this situation. Cat over bird? Vulture over anything?

What's It All About, Appy?

Here is an interesting article explaining aperture, f/stops and depth of field, courtesy of a great resource, Digital Photography School (DPS):

Welcome to the fifth lesson in Photography 101 - A Basic Course on the Camera. In this series, we cover all the basics of camera design and use. We talk about the ‘exposure triangle’: shutter speed, aperture and ISO. We talk about focus, depth of field and sharpness, as well as how lenses work, what focal lengths mean and how they put light on the sensor. We also look at the camera itself, how it works, what all the options mean and how they affect your photos. Read on

Each Evening a New Canvas Awaits

"Thankfulness"
1/500 sec at f/7.1 ISO 100

It's A Shame

"Sundown"

1/640 sec at f/8.0 ISO 100

I can see her lyin' back in her satin dress
In a room where ya do what ya don't confess
Sundown ya better take care
If I find you been creepin' round my back stairs
Shes been lookin' like a queen in a sailors dream
And she don't always say what she really means
Sometimes I think its a shame
When I get feelin' better when I'm feelin no pain

- Lyrics by Gordon Lightfoot

All right, somebody's got me hooked on song titles and lyrics from the 70's. Any idea who that might be, Ralynn???

Clap for the Wolfman

1/125 sec at f/4.5 ISO 400

1/250 sec at f/5.6 ISO 400

1/160 sec at f/18.0 ISO 100

From 2009-02-08 Bombay Hook Wolf

1/160 sec f/4.3 ISO 400

My wife and I made an impromptu visit to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge this evening just before dusk. Boy! ... am I glad we did! What a great night for photos. The setting sun was brilliant, the bad moon was a rising, the snow geese were coming for dinner and I got up close and personal with a red fox.

My personal highlight was the encounter with the fox. Jan spotted him first and tried her best to point him out to me, but I couldn't see him for the life of me. When I did finally recognize him, he headed down the shoulder of the road away from us, so I put the car in reverse and backed up to get in front of him. He was enjoying a light night snack when I found him along side the water. I took a chance and got out of the car; he looked up, but he didn't move. I took a couple more steps toward him and he wandered a few yards to the side, but I asked to him come back, because I hadn't got my shot yet and he obliged. I was maybe 10-12 feet from him. But it was getting dark and, although I went to manual focus, I couldn't get the camera to focus properly on him. He patiently waited for me to get my act together and I was able to get a few great shots before he wanted to be on his way home for the night. Thank you, Red.

Moonlight Feels Right

"Moonlight Feels Right"
1/500 sec at f/7.1 ISO 200

The wind blew some luck in my direction
I caught it in my hands today
I finally made a tricky french connection
You winked and gave me your ok
I'll take you on a trip beside the ocean
And drop the top at Chesapeake Bay
Ain't nothing like the sky to dose a potion
The moon'll send you on your way, ha, ha
Moonlight feels right, moonlight feels right

- circa 1976 Lyrics by Bruce Blackman of Starbuck

'Round and 'Round You Go

"Elusive"
1/50 sec at f/4.5 ISO 400

My workplace is located off a busy, divided highway. My wife and I were leaving last night, and heading north, when she spotted a hawk sitting atop a small tree in the median. So, at the next available crossing, we paused momentarily to get the camera ready and then U-turned southbound. Traffic was uncharacteristically sparse at that moment, so I slowed down and went to the left shoulder to get my shot at him. I no sooner pulled up in to what I thought would be a great spot when Mr. Hawk took off. Doh!

It was nearing dusk, but I wanted another shot at him. I am going southbound and at the next opportunity I do a U-turn and head northward again hoping to find him still somewhere in the median. Sure enough, there he is a few hundred yards down from the first place we spotted him. This time I would shoot from the right shoulder. I got into position, rattled off a few frames, however now his back is to me. As I creep ahead for a better angle, doesn't he take flight again. I am not done yet!

I now drive up to that same place I made my first turn around and head south again. I find him. I "try" to shoot, he flies. Doh! He's not getting the best of me! I U-turn one more time. I find him. I shoot, he flies! Okay, by this time I should realize he's not going to cooperate, but I have one more U-turn left in me. I find him. I shoot, he flies.

I give up. I'm dizzy. I've been out-smarted by an accipiter cooperii! Score one for the hawk. I go home to review my pics. Not one usable one out of 72 frames taken. What you see above is the best of the worst. You win some, you lose some.

What Am I?

From Misc

"Don't Tread on Me"
1/160 sec at f/4.5 ISO 100

Any guesses?

(UPDATE) - Ooops! way too easy.

Racial Harmony

"Black and White"
1/320 sec at f/6.3 ISO 400

Winter Wonders

"Reflected Warmth"
1/250 sec at f/9.0 ISO 100

"Whiffs of White"

1/100 sec at f/5.6 ISO 100

Don't Always Do As I Do ...

Well, I thought I'd try something a little different, so I put one of my photos up for sale on that very popular, online auction. Well, guess what? It sold!

I've bought online before, but never sold anything. It was easy enough. Upload a thumbnail, set some boundaries and do your best to make it sound like no one can do without it. I opted to pay the shipping costs out of my pocket, so even that would sound more appealing. You list initially for seven days and I had no interest the first six. Then it happened .... someone starting pulling on the hook. "Let the bidding wars begin," I screamed.

What followed was .... nothing. Complete silence.

The auction ended and I had a winner. Yep, I sold my first 8"x10" mounted print ... woo hoo! Problem is I didn't set a minimum, so I sold my first print for a whopping 99 cents! Now, not only do I shell out for the color enlargement, the mounting board, the packing material, the postage, time to assemble and mail, but I have to give a percentage of the three quarters, two dimes and four pennies to PayPal for using their convenient pay system.

Bottom line ... when you venture out on the icy pond, know that sometimes you're going to fall in the chilly waters. Take note, I said "when you do" and not "if you do." Mind you, I'm not complaining, I'm just saying next time I'm going to wear hip waders!

Time to Pay the Fifer

"Fife and Dime"

1/250 sec at f/8.0 ISO 100

Digging through the archives I found this from last summer's Peach Festival in Middletown. Every so often, take time to look back at your collection, there just might be some rough gems hiding in there that deserve a second chance.