Tag: wildlife photography

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #393 – Lucky Shot

Posted in Birds, Photography, WildlifeTagged , , , , , , , , , 26 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

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #342 – Going Wild

Posted in Birds, Butterflies, Photography, Wildflowers, WildlifeTagged , , , , , , 37 Comments

Let’s take a walk on the wild side with Egidio’s challenge “Going Wild”. I love being in wilderness areas and photographing the landscapes, wildlife, wildflowers, and birds I see there. For this challenge I chose images from my three favorite wilderness areas.

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia

The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is closer to my home than any of my other favorite wilderness areas. We have been there many times and always enjoy the wildlife and birds we see there. The butterflies on wild thistle in the header image was taken in the Okefenokee.

Young alligator in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
Great Egret in the Okefenokee Swamp

Everglades National Park, Florida

We have visited Everglades National Park in Florida many times through the years. There are several entrances to the park with Flamingo being the most remote area. The Everglades is a bird lovers dream with many varieties all throughout the park. No matter where you go in the Everglades you are likely to see alligators.

Egrets and Spoonbills gathering in a pond near the Flamingo Campground in Everglades National Park
This alligator ignores the human invaders of his territory at Shark Valley in Everglades National Park

Denali National Park, Alaska

Denali National Park is the most remote wilderness area I have ever visited. I loved the feeling of being miles away from civilization while we were there. The scenery is breathtaking and the wildlife abundant. Most of the wildlife we saw was too far away for a good photo even with my telephoto lens.

Polychrome Overlook, Denali National Park, Alaska
Moose in the Denali Wilderness

Celebrating 12 Years of Wandering Dawgs

I started the Wandering Dawgs blog in March, 2013 as a way to document our 4 month RV journey from Georgia to Alaska and back. In the beginning, the only people who read my posts were friends and family. Today, I have blogging friends from all around the world! I recently celebrated the 12th anniversary of Wandering Dawgs! Many thanks to everyone who reads my posts and leaves me comments.

Many thanks to Egidio for this challenge Lens-Artists #341 – It’s a Wild Life

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #340- Portraits

Posted in Birds, Photography, WildlifeTagged , , , 39 Comments

Ritva’s challenge is Portraits. She says “Whether you choose to ask a stranger, do a self-portrait, take the portrait of a friend, family member, or acquaintance, or photograph animals and birds, the goal is to connect with another person or subject and tell their story through your image.”

I enjoy nature and wildlife photography and am not comfortable asking strangers if I can take their picture. I didn’t have to ask this young man to pose for a portrait. I was holding up my phone taking pictures of a Junkanoo Band from the Bahamas performing as part of a St. Patrick’s weekend celebration when he walked over to me and posed. He liked having his picture made!

I’m much more comfortable capturing bird and other animal portraits.

This bear and the female elk seemed to pose for me.

I will end with my favorite portrait of Blondie, our beloved Yellow Lab who was part of our lives for many years. She’s been gone since 2017. I still miss her every day.

Many thanks to Ritva for this challenge Lens-Artists #340 – Portraits

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #339 – Life Changes

Posted in Photography, WildlifeTagged , , , 34 Comments

For this challenge Anne asks us to share what has enriched and/or changed our life.

I’ve had many changes in my life but what changed my life the most was surviving ovarian cancer. In July, 2010 I began a ten month battle with ovarian cancer. I am grateful that my cancer has not returned since I finished treatment.

Most cancer survivors I know say that the cancer changed them. I know it changed me. I look at the world differently now. I have learned that life can change in the blink of an eye and no one knows what tomorrow will bring. I have learned that life is too short to put things off. I have learned it is important to enjoy life every day. I know that every day is a gift.

Two of my passions are travel and photography. One of the things that kept me going during treatments was planning an RV trip to visit family and visit a few bucket list places. We began the trip two weeks after I received the good news that I was in remission.

The RV trip was just what we both needed. We called it the “Celebration Journey”. Every day was an adventure and I was never at a loss for something interesting to photograph. The header image of the two seahorses was taken at the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga near the end of our journey. The rest of the images are of some of the highlights from the trip.

We camped with a view of Cypress trees at Lake Bistineau State Park, Louisiana
We met some Texas Lounghorns at Copper Breaks State Park, Texas
We explored the Petroglyphs at Petroglyphs National Monument in New Mexico with my brother and his wife
We visited the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado
We saw lots of Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
We saw herds of Bison in Custer State Park, South Dakota
We went to the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Itasca State Park in Minnesota with our daughter’s family

After we returned home I continued to enjoy my photography and we have been on many more fun adventures since then.

Many thanks to Anne of Slow Shutter Speed for this challenge Lens-Artists #339 – Life’s Changes

Sunday Stills: Discovering Brown Shades in Wildlife

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, WildlifeTagged , , , , 19 Comments

Terri’s color challenge: “November’s color theme includes shades of brown and shades of auburn (a rich, brownish red). You are welcome to include images of both colors or pick one to highlight.”

When I first read Terri’s challenge I had no idea what kind of brown things to include. When I realizied that I’ve seen plenty of brown wildlife during our travels I knew what to do.

Wildlife photography is my favorite type of photography. Seeing wild creatures in their natural habitat is always a thrill. For this challenge I’m including some of my favorite brown animals and birds.

The first gallery features Brown Bears in Alaska and British Columbia, White Tailed deer in Virginia, Bison in South Dakota, and Elk in Canada.

I chose some of my favorite birds the bird gallery: an Osprey, an American Bald Eagle, Brown Pelicans, a hawk and a juvenile White Ibis. The Osprey is in Georgia, the Eagle in Alaska, and the rest of the birds are in Florida.

It’s not always easy to capture photos of wild animals when I spot them but it sure is fun to try. Sometimes it’s just pure luck to be in the right place at the right time with the right camera lens.

Shared with Terri’s Sunday Stills challenge Color Challenge – Shades of Auburn and Brown