Little Blue Heron Catching Crawfish
Made a trip to Brazos Bend State Park this weekend. The best area to shoot at was the spillway bridge where there were a couple of Little Blue Herons feeding. They would fly off when someone walked across the bridge but they always came back. Patience pays in wildlife photography. The reflections from the trees helped to make a pleasing background. My rule of thumb is to start shooting when their heads start to go down towards the water, which can lead to some interesting splash shots. Every once in a while they would come up with a crawfish. It was a good time while hanging out with David and Fred.
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 lens mounted on tripod with Sidekick gimbal mount. No flash.
Roseate Spoonbill
Here is an early morning shot of a Roseate Spoonbill from the High Island, TX rookery. There appears to be more of them around this year. Most of the nesting is being done by the Great Egrets but the Spoonbills are always fun to watch and shoot. This guy was taking off and I was able to catch some wing blur and decent light in his eye.
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 lens on tripod with Sidekick gimbal mount.
Aperture priority, 1/160 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, spot metering + 2/3 exposure compensation, no flash
Won “Best in Show” at Migration Celebration Photo Contest
Got some good news from the Migration Celebration photo contest this weekend. My Wilson’s Phalarope won the “Best in Show” as well as first place in the “Birds of Texas Mid-Coast” category. I knew about the first place but had not heard about winning the grand prize until I went there on Sat. so it was a very pleasant surprise. I’ve been on a roll lately and hope that it continues.
Successful Classes at Galveston FeatherFest
Just wanted to say thanks to everyone that attended my photography classes at Galveston’s FeatherFest this year. I had fun doing it and hope that you picked up some good info along the way. Feel free to contact me if you have any more questions about any of the topics that we covered.
Although it was my first year teaching classes at this event, I received very positive feedback from the participants with some comments blowing me away. I had a blast and really appreciate the opportunity. Thanks to Barbara Rabek, Kathy Adams Clark, Scott Buckel and the rest of the team for their support and letting me participate this year. Looking forward to next year already. Thanks again everyone.
Great Egret Breeding Plumage
This great egret was showing off its breeding plumage at the High Island, TX rookery last weekend. While preening, the plumage was is full display for everyone to see. I’m thinking that she was showing off, just a little. Worked for me.
Taken about an hour after sunrise with the light getting a little harsh but still usable. Used spot metering on the bright backlit area of the plumage to properly expose the bright areas and darken the background.
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 lens mounted on tripod with Sidekick gimbal mount.
1/1250 sec @ F7.1, ISO 250, spot metering
Published in Texas Explorer Magazine
I’ve been published in Texas Explorer magazine. Thanks to George Hosek for the invitation and the great job with the publishing. I really like how it came out. Got a chance to show off some of my favorite photos and do a little writing along the way. I definitely need to try this more often.
http://www.texasexplorer.com/Tim-Timmis-Bird-Photography.htm
Great Egret Mating Dance from High Island
Made another road trip yesterday to the High Island rookery. Just can’t get enough except for the mosquitos. They are very intense before the sun comes up. Hosed myself down 5 times with bug spray and still got several bites. Not for the faint of heart but worth the reward of seeing the morning light shine through the breeding plumage.
Tried shooting from the upper level on the last platform this time and liked it better than the lower platform. On the upper platform you can get the distant trees in the background which allows for a dark background with the white birds. Had better luck this day with some mating dance action. This Great Egret spent about an hour strutting her stuff but didn’t have any takers except for a few photographers. She flew away rejected and dissatisfied. I left with a smile on my face and craving a cigarette for some odd reason…
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 lens on tripod with Sidekick gimbal mount.
1/640 sec @ F5.6, – 1/3 exposure compensation, ISO 400
1/1000 sec @ F5.6, spot metering, – 1/3 exposure compensation, ISO 400
Backlit Great Egret from High Island
It felt fantastic this morning to get the chance again to take photos at High Island’s rookery. It was like going home again. It’s a long drive but well worth it. Got there about 45 minutes before the sun came up and had to use a flash light to walk down the trail. Used to fumble my way in the dark but stopped doing that after finding a gator on the trail a few years ago. Got set up and had a blast taking blurred flight shots in the pre-dawn hour. At sunrise, the sun comes up in your face which I love as you can get a chance to play in the light and get great opportunities for some unique backlit photos. Below is one of my favorites from today.
Stats for the day: 3 hours of driving, 2 hours of shooting, too many mosquitos to count, 3316 photos taken, 900 photos saved, photos processed = 1 (so far)
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 on tripod with Sidekick gimbal mount
1/800 sec @ F5.6, partial metering, -2/3 exposure compensation, ISO 250, no flash
Great Blue Landing in Silhouette
Spent about 1.5 hrs lying around at Bolivar Flats yesterday taking shorebird photos. Go figure. As I was concentrating on a group of Willets, this Great Blue Heron started squawking above me as he circled twice and then finally landed fairly close to me. I tracked him as he was coming in for a landing, which was a challenge while laying down with a ground pod. Got my sweatshirt all twisted up while spinning myself around on my stomach. Luckily for me, he landing into the sun which produced a nice series of silhouette shots. This one came out the best with his wings outstreatched and feet just starting to enter the water.
Taken with Canon 7D and 100-400 lens on Skimmer ground pod.
1/2000 sec @ F6.3, evaluative metering, + 2/3 exposure compensation, ISO 250
Tim Timmis Photography 