Drama In The Cove

by | May 23, 2021 | Uncategorized

Mill Cove in Maine and many more along the coast are inviting locations for the congregation of all sorts of birds — large and small.  I’ve seen Bald Eagles, Osprey, and Hawks, along with a variety of songbirds and ducks in or near the Cove for years.

Recently, I spent some time watching the interaction of a Blue Heron and five (5) Egrets vying for some food in a retreating tide. The scene reminded me some of the old “Saturday-Night Rumbles” on TV, when fighters would check each other out and then, would eventually start to physically engage in fisticuffs.  Surprisingly, the Heron and the Egrets were no different, despite their size differences.  Blue Herons can be up to 4.5′ tall with up to 5-6′ wingspans.  Egrets come in a variety of sizes, but the ones I saw appear to have been Snowy Egrets, which can get to 2.5’ tall with 3′ wingspans.  

Herons generally fish alone, and this Heron had been stoically standing on the shore watching the receding waters for food to eat.  There were some Egrets in the area, while others started flying in to also hunt for food.  The interactions between the Heron and Egrets were fascinating.  One by one the Egrets, walked back and forth past the Heron, getting closer and closer to the Heron’s fishing spot while checking out the opportunities.

As time went on, the Heron became more and more agitated by the Egrets’ movement.  At one point in a flash, the Heron decided enough was enough and took off after one of the smaller Egrets. Can you just imagine this huge, gangly bird swoop up at you in what seemed like a nano-second, readying to pounce?  The little Egret took off in a hurry to escape.  It was close, but he got away and the Heron settled in again.  It worked for awhile, but of course truces  are often temporary and the cycle began again. . . .

My Trip of a Lifetime — Grows into Preserving Memories from My Eyes to Yours

by | Jul 20, 2020 | Uncategorized

While I have been preserving memories of my travels and sharing them from my eyes to family and friends for years; Africa moved me to directly share those memories from my eyes to yours with the same passion.  You see, Africa and its wildlife has intrigued me since I was a kid.  As a result, my #1 trip of a lifetime was to travel there and I finally did in October 2018.  Not by just staying in hotels and running into prime locations and back out, again.   But in the bush itself on safari, where the wildlife roamed inches away – day and night.     

As such, every personal and photography trip I took leading up to when I left for Africa, I had a full complement of equipment to assess as what worked best.  I also took “photo walks” and “photo adventures” with fellow photographers, often sponsored by Hunt’s Photo & Video’s Education Department.  I needed to know unequivocally how to make my African trip successful.   

So, I focused primarily on the images that would push me the hardest to improve and be ready for the unexpected in the field.  One place I started was with portraits in natural light at a place few have seen close up — Fort Warren, in Boston Harbor — with a Hunt’s photo walk. We spent the day with two models, where we took image after image in changing light. Here are a couple of the final product.   

Next time, we meet here, I’ll take you to another place that made a big difference in being ready for the unexpected — Myopia Polo Grounds in South Hamilton, MA.