Ivyleaf Morning Glory

In the absence of a bear, bobcat, elegant trogon, or berylline hummingbird to photograph, I'll take most any animal or bird. But at some point, you become more particular. i.e. It's hard to get excited about photographing a house finch, house sparrow, mourning dove, or gambel's quail when you live in Southern Arizona. So, what do you do when the birds and animals are nowhere to be found? You open your mind to something new, something different. Nature, of course, has much more to offer. Butterflies are beautiful. Wildflowers are colorful. And, mushrooms can be interesting. Mushrooms and wildflowers can allow for creativity because they are stationary. Angles, composition, lighting, distances all provide the photographer an opportunity to be creative. So experiment. Take lots of photos and see which you like best ----------- and, why!   Show them to friends and see which they like best  -------------- and, why. It's a wonderful learning experience that happened only because the animals and birds were hiding.  Today, I thought I would share with you a photo that I really like, and as it turns out, so do others. 

Ivyleaf Morning-glory

Post Wedding

Life is not quite the same anymore. My youngest is married now. And realization takes place that you are getting old, when your children keep saying, "Let me carry that for you Dad," and "What else can I do to help?" These are the same children that 30 years ago you couldn't get to clean their room or help with the dishes.  

The Javalinas came by for a visit the morning of the wedding, although I was too busy with pre-wedding chores to take a photo. But, a couple days prior, a coyote seem very interested in something on the ground. He stayed there a couple minutes and allowed our guests to get a good look and some photographs. Unfortunately, I wasn't in my office where my camera was, and the Coyote was about 8 feet from the office door. I didn't want to scare him off so I waited until he decided to move on. Finally when I got to my camera this was the best I could do:

Coyote (click to enlarge)

Oh, how I wish he had just turn his had once to look at me. That would have been a nice photo.

Agua Calliente - Part VII

Still working on wedding, so a quick post today with some birds of Agua Caliente. I am thinking I might take the next ten days off to focus on the wedding. I'll try to be back by October 16th (maybe earlier).

Male and Female Cardinal

Male Vermillion Flycatcher

Western Tanager

Agua Caliente - Part VI

I have a moment's break, so I'll try to get in a quick post. 

We're getting ready for the wedding of our baby girl. Well, she's actually 36 but she's our youngest. The wedding is here at The Azure Gate, big affair with people flying in from Hawaii, Seattle, New Jersey, and New York among other places. We're working on a family history DVD to show at the reception. Included are photos of our daughter and new son's Great, and Great Great grandparents on their wedding days.  The oldest photo is from 1879:

On top of that, we're still taking guests until Monday. (Wedding's the 13th). So, very little time to go looking for wildlife to photograph. 

In the meantime, I'll continue with photos I already have of Agua Caliente. 

Osprey eating a fish taken from the lake.

Cooper's Hawk awaiting for the unsuspecting poultry meal.

Agua Caliente - Part V

Agua Caliente also has a full array of the usual ducks and coots. Nothing really unique. Lake Cochise is probably the best place to see sandpipers, curlews, godwits, avocets, stilts, etc. Coming from the Northwest where waterbirds are as plentiful as house sparrows, I sometimes overlook them here in Arizona. But, where there is water there is usually wildlife. Here are some of the ducks from Agua Caliente:

American Wigeon

Mallard Chicks

Ring Necked Duck

Northern Shoveler

Cinnamon Teal

Agua Caliente - Part IV

More from Agua Caliente. Now the great Egret. Like the similar sized Great Blue Heron, the Great Egret is a little easier to get close to when it resides at a busy municipal park. There is usually one at Christopher Columbus Lake on the west side of Tucson. I've taken many photos of Great Egrets throughout the western United States. These are three of my favorites from Agua Caliente. The last one is one of my favorite photos of all time.

Agua Caliente - Part III

Continuing with Agua Caliente, Great Blue Herons. The Great Blue is usually present at Agua Caliente. Occasionally, I see one flying over our B&B on the way to there. 

Now, one normally doesn't think of waterbirds in Arizona. Actually, one normally doesn't think of water in Arizona. Well, except for drinking water. Coming from the Northwest, I wasn't quite sure what to expect in "the desert". But, there are a few water holes where waterbirds collect. Admittedly, it's not the same in, say Padilla Bay near Anacortes, Washington where you might find several hundred Great Blue Herons when the tide goes out. However, where there is water in Arizona, there is usually a park, and people, as well as the waterbirds. And, over time they have gotten used to each other. The result for the photographer is that you can often get very close, as you will see in the following Great Blue Heron photos from Agua Caliente:

This Great Blue Heron was a little further away but I had to get a photo of him downing the  three or four pound fish.

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