I have a 13″ MacBook but not the Pro. I wanted the mobility due to my work but it is such a hassle I no longer take it. I’m thinking of purchasing an iMac with a larger screen and more computing power. I would like to know what people think about laptops versus desktop systems, what you are using and why.
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Red-winged Blackbird -
Common Golden-eye
Golden-eye Since we had open water on our lake throughout this winter season there have hen several Common Goldeneye. Crustaceans as their predominant prey during migration and winter so the open water supplies that. They are one of the prettiest ducks so I have enjoyed watching them feed and hope to see more of them this summer.
In contrast to the mallards I wrote about yesterday, both the breeding and winter habitat of these birds has been degraded by clearance and pollution. However, this is the only duck in North America known to derive short-term benefits from lake acidification. Information courtesy of Wikipedia.
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That Time of Year
Mallards at my Lake The mallard, or sometimes known as a “wild duck”, lives in wetlands, chowing down on water plants, and is gregarious, meaning it lives in flocks. You can always tell the male because of the bright green or blue head, while the female is a light brown. They form pairs in the fall but once eggs are in the nest the male will join up with the guys until molting season at which time his imperious urge rises for other females, even other species. Mallards are one of the few waterfowl who have adjusted to intrusion of mans elimination of their original habitat. Which means it will still be around long after man has disappeared. 🙂
As an interesting fact, the Peabody Hotel in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee has maintained a long tradition of keeping one Mallard drake and four Mallard hens, called The Peabody Ducks, as a popular hotel attraction and as guests of honor. The Mallards are provided by a local farmer and friend of the Peabody Hotel and are rotated out and returned to the farm for a new team of Mallards every three months. This tradition has also been maintained and observed at the other Peabody Hotels in Little Rock, Arkansas and Orlando, Florida. These are not the Peabody Ducks but a pair hanging around my lake.
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Two Hawks
Buddies I apologize for the quality of this image but it was taken at 300 mm, hand held and cropped. How’s that for excuses? I just pulled off to the side of the road and shot from the car window, across traffic. It’s not very often I see two hawks sharing the same tree or branch, so I had to stop. They alway seem to be a solitary creature. The other reason for posting this image is to demonstrate the affect a telephoto lens has on distant objects, bringing them closer. The mountains in the distance are several miles away. Below is the same group of trees taken from the approximate same location and at 24 mm. Just a bit of difference.
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Ya Never Know
A Surprise This is the same fence as the one with the meadowlark images I posted yesterday. I was drawn to the leading line and repeating pattern as well as the late afternoon light. I took three images. After loading them in Lightroom and adding keywords I pretty much just left them alone. I revisited the images a couple days later to determine if I wanted to keep them or not. Their color was off, looks like I may have had it set on AWB rather than daylight. In Lightroom I changed the white balance to daylight and liked it much better. However, I found a surprise I hadn’t seen before. At the top of the hill you will see a hawk perched on the fence post. I totally missed it when I took the image as I was focused on the fence and the meadowlarks. The photos of the fence was a last minute thing. Ya, just never know.
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Meadowlark Concert
Perched One afternoon as I drove east on 120th I found three meadowlarks perched on a fence. Since they have one of the most pleasing songs to me, I pulled the car over and rolled down the window to listen to the that wonderful song they gladly share with us. I just happen to have my camera with me so I also made a few images. The bright sunny day allowed their beautiful color to show. Just before I left I happen to catch one of them at liftoff.
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Perched
Perched As I took a few images of this tree a hawk decided to enter the scene. I have a couple of images of it as it flew in from the left side and perched on one of the branches. I like the ones of him coming in but this one of him perched spoke to me me. So, here it is!
I start another trip today then head for Phoenix on Sunday morning to visit family. Enjoy the weekend!
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Thousands of Them
We had a 6″ dusting of snow during the night with more still falling. When you add a bit of wind we have some foot and a half snow drifts. Not sure but it may be a snow day for the school kids, so a few moms will be stressed out. It really is looking like Christmas.
I was up early and in fact had a restless night. Way too active of a mind to sleep well. After bundling up I ventured out to the lake where we have thousands of geese who overnight on the open waters. What a racket they can make. During the summer I was a bit envious of those apartments backing up to the lake but after listening to the geese this winter, I’m glad I’m in the central portion of the complex. It amazes me how many there are, definitely in the thousands. It’s also amazing to see them lift off as they head for the fields for a feeding frenzy or coming in for a landing. Their diet consists of grasses, clover, cultivated grains, such as corn, wheat, barley and soybean and includes seeds, berries, sedges, aquatic vegetation, legumes and succulents, as well. some reports suggest they can eat up to 1/2 pound a day. And they are sure wary. I tried to sneak up on them this morning but they spotted me started raising an even louder ruckus. It is also reported they are not migrating as far south in the winter as in the past which is attributed to farming hunting practices and even weather changes. I’ve lived here most of my life and it seems we sure do see more than in the past. Well that’s the end of class! You can now go out and play in the snow.
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Everything Changes
Flying Around I love nature. I love being in nature, listening to it, smelling it, learning from it. Yet, I spend a lot of time venturing the streets of the city with a camera. Light is what gives our images power. The direction and reflection of light will show us the lines and curves of a building. These lines will hopefully direct the viewer to see, and feel, what we felt at the moment of capture or bring forth whatever feelings from their life’s experiences. Now add a bird against the blue sky and everything changes. But it’s still all about the light.
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Morning Walks
Morning Walk I only know how to approach a place by walking. For what does a street photographer do but walk and watch and wait and talk, and then watch and wait some more, trying to remain confident that the unexpected, the unknown, or the secret heart of the known awaits just around the corner. – Alex Webb
Morning walks are good exercise for us, plus they get us out of our four walls. We then have the opportunity to see, smell, feel, hear the natural world we really live in. Each time I put my belt on I’m reminded of the need to get there. Each time I feel like something is amiss in my life, I need to be out there. Morning walks are good.
