Birds

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #393 – Lucky Shot

April 12, 2026Posted in Birds, Photography, WildlifeTagged American Bald Eagle, Big Horn Sheep, black bear, Elk, Green Sea Turtle, Lens-Artists, Lucky Shot, Photo Challenge, Roseate Spoonbill, wildlife photography34 Comments

Sofia’s challenge is to see how luck can play a big role in capturing some of our best shots.

Most of my lucky shots occurred because I was in the right place at the right time with my camera and the right lens. When we are traveling I always have my camera or my phone handy just in case we see something by the side of the road. When we are home I keep my camera close by so I can grab it if I see something interesting outside. Full disclosure: I have previously posted photos of all of these animals except for the Bald Eagle.

I would never have captured the birds in the following gallery without a little help from friends. Last week a neighbor called to let me know there was an American Bald Eagle perched on the power pole across from our house. I had to scramble to get my camera and telephoto lens ready. Lucky for me he stayed perched on the pole long enough for me to set my camera on burst and start shooting. I grabbed my camera on my way out the door one day last year after a friend texted me about a Roseate Spoonbill in a tree beside the road.

I captured the next three shots as we were riding along in our truck. For each of these shots Henry had to pull over on the side of the road so I could take a few photos. In each case the animal totally ignored us.

Black Bear in field of dandelions on the side of the road, Canada

Bull Elk beside the road in Banff National Park, Canada

Big Horn Sheep posing for the camera in Zion National Park, Utah

I was walking along a beach in Oahu when I came across this sea turtle on the sand. I was so glad I had my camera!

Green Sea Turtle on the beach, Oahu, Hawaii

I’ll finish with my favorite Lucky Shot. The look on this woman’s face is priceless.

Alligator with an attitude at Shark Valley, Everglades National Park

Patti’s challenge last week asked us to explore using the foreground, middle ground, and background when framing our shots. I enjoyed all of your creative responses.

Many thanks to Sofia for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #393: Lucky Shot.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, April 18 at noon eastern time when John will be hosting the challenge

You can keep up with all the challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Sunday Stills – Feed the Birds

February 5, 2026February 5, 2026Posted in Birds, Nature, PhotographyTagged Eastern Bluebird, Feed the birds in February, Georgia birds, House Finch, Photo Challenge, Sunday Stills, Winter Birds18 Comments

In Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge she reminds us that February is Feed the Bird month. Her challenge is Let’s Feed the Birds in February. For this challenge I am focusing on two birds I photographed in February earlier this week.

I went out in my back yard the first day of February to see the dusting of snow that had fallen overnight. A few small birds were searching for food on the ground and at the feeder. The featured image is a House Finch. The following bird is probably a female or juvenile Eastern Bluebird perched in the snow.

Many thanks to Terri for her Sunday Stills challenge Let’s Feed the birds in February

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #379 – Favorite Images of 2025

January 3, 2026January 3, 2026Posted in Birds, Nature, PhotographyTagged Favorite images 2025, Lens-Artists, Photo Challenge63 Comments

Happy New Year!

Once again the Lens-Artists team is starting the new year by asking our followers to share their favorite images of 2025. Your images can be from a previous post or ones you’ve never shared before but they must have been taken in 2025. There is no single host for this challenge. The entire team is sharing the challenge.

In 2025 we went on a Mississippi River cruise, took a few short road trips, and had fun in New Mexico at my nephew’s wedding. When we weren’t wandering we enjoyed being at home in Coastal Georgia. Here are a few of my favorite images from the year.

January

The year began with a rare coastal Georgia snow storm. The featured image of a cardinal in the snow is one my favorites from the year. Later in the month we made a short trip to Jekyll Island.

Sidney Lanier Bridge, Brunswick, Georgia

February

We flew to New Orleans to begin a Mississippi River cruise.

Twin bridges over the Mississippi River lit up for Mardi Gras

March, April and May at home

June

We celebrated my birthday with a boat trip to Daufuskie Island, South Carolina.

Bloody Point, Daufuskie Island, South Carolina

July

We celebrated our 55th anniversary in Darien, Georgia.

August and September in the Garden

October

We had a fun trip to New Mexico for my nephew’s wedding and enjoyed seeing the beautiful Sandia Mountains.

Sandia Mountains, Albuquerque, New Mexico

November

The November morning skies were amazing.

December

The holiday decorations always add to the fun of the season.

I hope you will join us in the challenge by sharing your favorite photos of 2025. I’m looking forward to seeing your responses. Be sure to use the Lens-Artists tag in your post and include a link to this post or any member of the Lens-Artists team.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, January 10 at noon eastern time when Anne will be hosting our next challenge.

You can learn more about how to join the Lens-Artists challenges here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #378 – Last Chance 2025

December 13, 2025December 13, 2025Posted in Birds, Butterflies, Flowers, PhotographyTagged Last Chance, Lens-Artists, Photo Challenge56 Comments

All of the members of the Lens-Artists team have joined together to host this final.challenge of the year. The challenge is to feature any of our favorite images that never made it into of the Lens-Artists challenge. The images can be of any subject but they must have been created in 2025. Here are a few of my favorites from this year.

One of my favorite images of the year never fit into any of the Lens-Artists challenges. In early May I discovered a female Diamond Back Terrapin laying her eggs in my garden. I kept a close watch on the nest but sadly none of the eggs ever hatched.

Butterflies, flowers and bees

I rushed out to the beach when I heard there was a marker buoy weighing around 13,900 pounds that had washed up on the beach at Tybee Island, Georgia. When I got there I found a mermaid, too!

Thanks for sharing lots of Holiday Fun last week for Ann-Christine’s challenge. I enjoyed all of the festive holiday images.

We hope you will join us in posting images from this year that never made it to a Lens-Artists challenge. Please remember to use the Lens-Artists tag and to include a link to this post or any of the Lens-Artists team member’s post.

Many thanks to everyone who participated in our Lens-Artists challenge this year. The Lens-Artists team will be taking a break until the end of the year so we can enjoy celebrating the holidays. We will return on January 3 with our annual end of the year Favorite Photos of 2025 challenge.

Wishing you a joyous holiday season and a very happy new year!

Every Day is a Gift

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #376 – Wings

November 29, 2025November 29, 2025Posted in Birds, Butterflies, PhotographyTagged Air craft, Airplanes, Angels, Butterflies, Lens-Artists, Photo Challenge, US Army Air Corps, US Navy Blue Angels, USAF Thunderbirds, Wings99 Comments

This week it’s my pleasure to host the Lens-Artists Challenge. I am challenging you to feature anything with wings. To give you a few ideas I am featuring some of my favorite things with wings.

Bird Wings

Butterflies and other insects

Angels

Military Aircraft

My final examples are of military aircraft. My father was a pilot in the Army Air Corps in World War II and later flew several other types of planes including the B52. The first three planes in this gallery were taken at recent air shows I attended. The images of the B24 and B52 are from my father’s photos.

U. S. Navy Blue Angels — U. S. Air Force Thunderbird

When you think of wings do you think of birds, insects, angels and airplanes? Maybe you think of art work featuring fantasy beings like dragons and fairies. Whatever you think of I hope you will join in for this week’s challenge. I can’t wait to see what you come up with. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to this post.

Last week you showed us some creative mysterious images in your responses to Patti’s challenge Mysterious.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, December 6 at noon eastern time when Ann-Christine will be hosting the challenge.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift