Critter Cam

It seems whereever we travel, we always find an array of critters to amuse and entertain. Now, central Florida doesn’t have any chipmunks (sad, yes) but they do have plenty of small lizards! You can’t go anywhere without seeing these little guys!

“Larry” (Brown Anole, Male, Anolis sagrei, Common Florida Reptile) Canon PowerShot SX40 HS, 100mm, F/5.8, 1/640s, ISO 100, Nik Color Efex Pro ‘Vignette’ Filter

They are full of personality but very skittish. Just when I would get close enough, they would scurry away, only to return moments later. Perhaps it is some sort of lizard game??

They particularly liked hanging around the pool ledge, basking in the hot sun. This female was certainly gettin’ her ‘tan on’ while making sure the other reptiles weren’t invading her territory.

“Lounge Lizard” (Brown Anole, Female, Anolis sagrei, Common Florida Reptile) Canon PowerShot SX40 HS, 34.3mm, F/4.5, 1/800s, ISO 100, Cropped and Nik Silver Efex Pro ‘Vignette’ Filter applied

During our visit, we also saw many birds wandering about, most likely looking to make a nice meal out of the small lizards. 🙂

“Little Blue” (Little Blue Heron, Egretta caerulea) Canon PowerShot SX40 HS, 20.3mm, F/4.5, 1/200s, -0.7EV, ISO 100

Mostly, we saw white egrets, cormorants and ducks, so it was a nice change of pace to come across this colorful fellow. I wish it wasn’t just as we were leaving for the airport! Isn’t that the way it is with critters? When you have all the time in the world, none can be found but as soon as you are in a hurry or ill-prepared, boom! They appear out of nowhere, posing all nice.

Until next time, my friends. 🙂

A very good year

I don’t typically post a yearly wrap-up but, Scott Thomas’ latest photo assignment, “Best Photos of 2011” had me looking back today. Hmmmm, was a pretty lean year for posting… I must do better in 2012! 🙂

To make it easier, I approached this task with the desire to select the best photo for each month starting with November 2010 through October 2011. Three months proved more difficult and I allowed myself to select more than one image.

Here we go! 😀

Back in November 2010, fresh from a trip to Disney, I had posted a series of photos from Hollywood Studios. The giant scrabble board complete with green army man was my favorite:

“You’ve Got a Friend in Me” (Oversized Scrabble Board with Green Army Man, Pixar Place, Disney’s Hollywood Studios) Nikon D300, 34mm, F/5.6, 1/125s, ISO 200, ‘Poster Edges’ CS3 Photo Filter

In late December, we were hit with the first of many Nor’easters. Even so, the abundance of heavy, wet snow couldn’t put a damper on our holiday spirit!

“Frosty” (Snow-covered Holiday Wreath) Nikon D300, 82mm, F/5, 1/60s, +0.7EV, IS0 200

I couldn’t pick a favorite from January. Both images hail from our October Disney trip since by then, I simply had HAD it with winter! (Molten Mickey post is here).

“Coquettish” (Lesser Flamingo, Disney’s Animal Kingdom) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/7.1, 1/200s, -0.3EV, ISO 400, Nik Color Efex Pro Bi-color Filter

“Molten Mickey” (Turn-style Gates at Disney’s Hollywood Studios) Nikon D300, 52mm, F/7.1, 1/200s, ISO 250, Nik Color Efex Pro Detail Stylizer & Bi-Color Filters

February brought some fun with my 105mm macro lens and 3-ring extension tube set. I wanted to see just how ‘up close and personal’ I could really get!

“Missing You” (Dianthus Stamen & Petals) Nikon D300, 105mm F/2.8G Macro w/3-ring Extension Tube Set, F/11, 1/30s, -1.0EV, ISO 640

The macro fun continued well into March…

“C is for Carousel” (Stargazer Lily Stamens, Lilium Oriental Stargazer) Nikon D30, VR 105mm F/2.8G Macro, F/4.5, 1/8s, ISO 1000

After a visit to the doctor in February got me back into a fitness routine, I was in serious need of motivation to ‘stick with it’. I found exactly that in April! 🙂

“Motivation” (Marc Jacobs Swimsuit) Nikon D300, 36mm, F/4.2, 1/20s, ISO 640

Critters are often featured in my photos and this adorable little chipmunk stole my heart in May:

“Home is Where you Make it” (Eastern Chipmunk in Birdhouse) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 640, Built-in Front Curtain i-TTL Fill Flash, -1.0 EV

June turned out to be all about flowers. I couldn’t decide between these three beauties:

“Yamaboushi” (White Kousa Dogwood, Cornus kousa) Nikon D300, VR 105mm F/2.8G Macro, F/4.5, 1/200s, ISO 320, Built-in i-TTL Fill Flash w/Gary Fong ‘Puffer’ Diffuser, +1.0 EV

“Love” (Dicentra spectabilis, Pink Bleeding Heart) Nikon D300, 260mm, F/5, 1/640s, -1.0EV, ISO 200

“Hope” (Pink Herbaceous Peony) Nikon D300, VR 105mm F/2.8G, F/4.5, 1/320s, -0.3EV, Built-in Front Curtain i-TTL Fill Flash w/Gary Fong ‘Puffer’ Diffuser

As a die-hard foodie, I love to cook and sometimes, I actually remember to take a photograph of my creations! We chomped on these delights all throughout July:

“Summer Cubed” (Watermelon, Mozzerella & Procuitto Bites) Nikon D300, VR 105mm F/2.8G Macro, F/4.5, 1/30s, ISO 1000, Built-in i-TTL Flash w/Gary Fong ‘Puffer’ Diffuser

Feeling very proud of myself for not only sticking to my fitness committment but also exceeding my expectations despite breaking my left foot, I decided to show off the results of my hard work in August!

“Good Form’ (Female Fitness Portrait) Nikon D300, 28mm, F/4.5, 1/10s, ISO 640, Built-in i-TTL Fill Flash w/Gary Fong ‘Puffer’ Diffuser, -1.3EV, Nik Silver Efex Pro ‘Silhouette II’ Filter

Another entry for August… when I wasn’t sweating on the elliptical, I made sure to enjoy the summer sunshine and was rewarded with a unique photo of a bee in flight:

“Flight of the Bee” (Carpenter Bee in Flight) Nikon D300, 280mm (VR 200-400mm F/4G w/1.4x teleconverter), F/5.6, 1/640s, ISO 640

I got all ‘artsy’ in September with a series of cucumber tendrills…

“Undulation” (Abstract Cucumber Tendrils) Nikon D300, VR 105mm F/2.8G, F/4, 1/320s, -1.0EV, Built-in i-TTL Flash w/Gary Fong ‘Puffer’ Diffuser, -1.3EV

…and finally was able to say a proper Au voir to summer in October.

“And the Sun Sets on Summer” (Rudbeckia ‘Gloriosa’ aka Black-eyed Susan) Nikon D300, VR 105mm F/2.8G, F/7.1, 1/125s, ISO 400, Nik Color Efex Pro ‘Photo Stylizer’ Filter

So, that’s it folks…a small photographic slice of 2010.

Yes, it was a VERY good year! 😀

It’s a hot one

With higher than normal temps for spring, it feels more like August than early June. Stepping outside today is like entering a sauna FULLY CLOTHED. Yuck.

“Momma Told Me There’d Be Days Like This” (American Red Squirrel, Juvenile) Nikon D300, 340mm, F/6.7, 1/50s, ISO 640

Now, I like the heat and all but it is just too soon to be in the 90’s. I broke a sweat just doing the morning chores! The air is so hot and thick, it is difficult to even breathe let alone move. And it isn’t just me who is feeling this way. I spotted many yard residents acting very lethargically.

“Just Resting My Eyes” (Adult Female American Red Squirrel) Nikon D300, 650mm (200-400mm F/4G w/1.7x Teleconverter), F/6.7, 1/25s, ISO 640

Can’t say I blame them. The heat is tough enough to take without sporting a fur coat! I felt bad for the furry beasts knowing I could escape back into the AC when it simply got to be too much. Sadly, they do not have any other option but to grin and bear it. Sigh.

“Takin’ It Easy” (American Red Squirrel, Juvenile) Nikon D300, 370mm (200-400mm F/4G w/1.7x Teleconverter), F/6.7, 1/50s, ISO 640

Hang in there, my little critters. Relief is coming! 🙂

Bye, bye Birdie

Stickin’ with the critter photography today (as they do so crack me up!) 🙂 

A start of a good day involves sunshine and any amount of time spent outside interacting with the local wildlife. Some of the morning chores include dumping and filling birdbaths, setting out corn and filling the feeders. The best time for me (and the part I look the most forward to) is feeding the chipmunks and squirrels their favorite treat (peanuts in the shell). All the resident furries literally come a-runnin’ when they see me walk across the lawn with the ‘peanut’ cup and take a seat on the large rock at the edge of the pool deck. 

And so the frenzy begins… 

“Hi there, King!” (as in ‘King of the Hill’ since that is where this ‘munk’s home is) and “Good Morning, Chippy!” (s/he lives under our grey shed). “Nice to see you, Squishy!” (lives near the rock waterfall), and so on. Not all of them have names, but we do the best we can and have come to learn how to identify each and every one. Here is a very familiar sight:

“Chipmunk Cheeks” (Eastern Chipmunk) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/5.6, 1/400s, -0.3EV, ISO 640

And if I am not quite quick enough in my peanut tossing, many will come right up to my feet or even, jump up next to me on the rock. I never tire of it.

“Sign? What Sign?” (Eastern Chipmunk in Birdhouse) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/5, 1/200s, +0.3EV, ISO 400

During the chaos last Thursday morning I was very surprised to see a couple of young chipmunks crawling all over our enormous condo-style birdhouse. From what I could deduce, the little ones were emerging from the nest to now be on their own.

The ‘alpha’ baby left pretty quickly (before I could even get the camera in place) but the second baby was much more cautious. S/he didn’t quite seem to know what to make of me or the camera, but quickly realized I meant no harm. (Surely, Momma must have told the wee thing to keep an eye out for the very ‘nice humans’, dontchathink?) 😉

I watched him/her for quite

“Home is Where you Make it” (Eastern Chipmunk in Birdhouse) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 640, Built-in Front Curtain i-TTL Fill Flash, -1.0 EV

some time as s/he went between episodes of thoroughly checking out the strange new world around him/her and then retreating back to the safety of one of the compartments. 

Of course, I have no idea if the little beast is male or female. The only name I could come up with is ‘Birdie’. It just seems to fit.

Check out that dark spot on the left chest… it will certainly help us to identify Birdie if/when s/he joins in the morning  feeding ritual (fingers crossed!) When s/he left  for the last time, I wished the little one well and walked back to the house.  

Afterall, I was already off to a great day. 🙂

“Hole New World” (Eastern Chipmunk in Birdhouse) Nikon D300, 200mm, F/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 640