Here’s what I found from reading my Sibley’s Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America.  The Red Shouldered Hawk has orange bars across its chest whereas the Red Tailed Hawk has more of a streaked chest and belly.  Sure the Red Tailed Hawk has a red tail, but sometimes it’s hard to see the tail of these hawks.

Red Shouldered Hawk

Here’s the same bird right before it flew off.

Red Shouldered Hawk Getting Ready To Fly

A Little Blue Heron goes hunting for food.  First the bird checks the left hand side.

Little Blue Heron Hunting For Food

Nothing on the left, how about behind?

Little Blue Heron Staring Intently

Whoa!  There’s something!

Little Blue Heron Dives For Food

Damn, didn’t catch a thing.

Little Blue Heron Catches Nothing

This was actually an accidental picture.  I was just trying to take a picture of a White Ibis.  It wasn’t until I got home and started reviewing the pictures that I noticed that this bird had caught a Crawfish.

In this first picture, you can just make out it’s a Crawfish in its mouth as you can see the see the pinchers.  In the foreground is a Common Moorhen.

White Ibis Eating Crawfish

In the second picture you can again see the Crawfish pinshers as well as its tail.

White Ibis Eating Crawfish2

The Crawfish is about to become a meal.  For the last time you can see the pinshers poking out of the Ibis’ bill.

White Ibis Eating Crawfish3

I started off seeing some gators swimming through the water.

Alligator Swimming

The gator below seemed content to warm up while in the water.

Gator Warming Up In Water

Then as I’m walking around 40 Acre Lake, I saw the biggest gator in the park.  I wonder how old this gator is?

Largest Gator At Brazos Bend

Walking around the corner I come upon yet another gator.  This one was resting on a log in the water.

Gator Resting On Log

Up until now, most of the gators were either in the water or a fair distance away.  Not so with this next gator.  He was only a few feet off the walking trail.

Gator Sleeping Covered In Duckweed

So much for the gators well off the trail.  This gator was laying on the grass and was absolutely huge!

Gator Closeup Shot

It’s over now.  Every gator was sleeping on the grass right next to the walking trails.

Two Gators Resting

I was reasonably comfortable walking on the trails despite the close proximity of the gators.  Not so with this guy.  All of the other gators had their head down and their eyes closed.  There was also a few feet between the gator and the trail.  This guy was head up, eyes open, and right next to the trail.  I was worried he was going to charge after me.  Thankfully he didn’t.

Young Gator Near Walking Trail

Last, but not least there was this big guy.

Gator Resting With Mouth Open

All in all it was a pretty good day.  I wish I would have seen more birds, but seeing so many gators was refreshing and new.

I wanted to get down some of my thoughts that have been through my head over the last week regarding bird photography, and maybe just bird photography in general.  I’ve started to inform the impressions that there are three type of bird photographers; the one who sets up everything in advance from the lighting to the background, to even the plants; the second photographer who takes pictures of the birds that may have the strongest colors, or wings, and shape.  These photographers will tend to de-emphasize the background of the bird because they are often focused on perhaps a particular part of the bird; and the third type are those who shoot pictures of birds, but it is equally important about the background of the bird, the composition of the photo, etc.

What I have found is that more hard core photographers are very free with their opinions on someone else’s photographs, what the mistakes were, why it doesn’t make a good photograph, etc.  Non hard core photographers or just causal “picture lookers” don’t really notice the greater details of the picture, just how it initially strikes them and how it may compare to anything they’ve ever seen before.

So where am I in all this mess?  I think I’m in a transition.  I’m predominately in the second camp, often neglecting the whole scene of the shot and focused just on one particular area, yet I’m wanting to move to the third type of photographer, while keeping a balance with the second photographer.  I am drawn more to close up pictures as I think it makes the bird more lifelike to me, it’s not just something sitting out in a tree or field, but almost something I can touch. I also tend to get very spastic when taking pictures and if I see a bird I want to take a picture of, more often than not I’m thinking about camera settings and that’s about it.  Once I see the actual picture, I think about all the composition or adjustments to the photograph that I didn’t apply.  I think if I can learn those two things so that they become a natural part of my photography, then my photos will really begin to improve.

Keep in mind, these are solely my opinions, they are in no way judgmental.  I also want to take a moment to comment on my class that I took at the Houston Arboretum.  The class was $80.00 for two nights worth of instruction, and 1 full day long field trip at Brazos Bend.  To me, $80.00 is quite a bargain for 3 days worth of classes lead by an expert in the subject matter.  Speaking of which, the instructor was Greg Lavaty.  I had never heard of Greg before last week.  I had posted a couple of bird pictures in a photography forum and I had two people mention to me that I should try and get in contact with Greg, or at the very least take a look at his website as he is one of the most knowledgeable bird people in this area.  After I did a brief search on his name, I noticed that he was leading this class at the Arboretum, so I instantly signed up.

Since I began photography I have relied on books and just raw experimentation.  I’ve never met someone who is considered an expert in their field prior to this.  I can now say honestly, if you have an interest in photography (regardless of the subject) and that person is offering a workshop or training class, it will likely well be worth the money.  I’m not talking about these worldwide experts who charge thousands of dollars to go on a trip with them to some exotic location.  Those may be just as good, if the instructor really has time to help you identify your subject matter, and really has an interest in helping you become a better photographer.  If you’re going to spend lots of money on something like this, I think it would be a worthwhile investment to hear other opinions from those who have been on these trips.

Enough about that, let me talk about my experience.  I probably learned more about photography, and even more about birds, in 3 days than the hundreds of dollars I spent on books.  What’s said in a book is fine, but for me, translating what was printed on paper versus actually be out in the field can be quite difficult.  In this class, whether Greg was intending to or not, as soon as a bird made a sound, even if we couldn’t see it, he could identify it.  If he could see it, then he could even identify it further, such as what gender, where you can expect to find these birds in a specific area of the park, etc.  More often that not, he could predict its behavior so that we could plan our shots.  There is not a single book that will ever do that for you, trust me, I own hundreds of books on birding already and I like to think I’ve researched some of the best ones out there.

One last thing that just crossed my mind that I think is important.  Does the instructor have passion about what they are doing?  To me that also makes a world of difference.  I can pretty quickly sense if an instructor is just teaching a class for the money or the line they can add to their resume.  It will be pretty obvious that they have no passion for what they are doing.  Maybe they did at one time, but the passion is gone now.  I can almost assure you that if you sign up for one of these classes with an instructor who has lost their passion you will leave the class with little more than you could have bought in a book.  On the other hand, if you can find someone who is truly passionate about what they are teaching, you will likely get the priceless information and knowledge, and I would argue you’ll get better pictures as well.

Greg also proposed some pretty far out ideas based on the reaction of the class, but he has the proof that he practices what he preaches.  Don’t use a tripod and get as low to the ground as you can really created some rumbling in our class.  I was probably the youngest person there behind Greg, but even I’m no spring chicken anymore, and didn’t think these ideas would work.  Almost everything I have read about the Canon 500mm lens (8.5 lbs) says you really can’t hand hold it, and should just use a tripod, yet here’s Greg saying he rarely uses a tripod. After hearing that, I assumed that Greg just must be crazy, or he’s one strong guy.  Fortunately, I can report from my experience at least, that Greg has some very valid points, and you can handhold a lens that big and take sharp shots.  However, you also have to be a bit strategic.  Lean against something if you can, if you get on the ground, lean back so you can balance the lens on your chest.  In other words, don’t make it harder than necessary.  And sure, this getting low to the ground thing sounds crazy to me if I were to just squat down and take pictures.  I’d never get back up, my knees are like spaghetti.  However, I can sit down and be okay,  I can lean back against a tree low to the ground and be okay.  Never tried (or thought) about those things before this class because most everything I ever read said just always use a tripod.

Just so it be known, I’m not doing an endorsement deal with Greg because I’m expecting some kind of deal to happen, rather, I think it’s rare to find someone in any field that you feel confident in their judgment and they have some knowledge that will be useful to you that you can’t get out of a book.  Even fewer are those that are willing to share that knowledge.  That being said, if you come across any opportunity like this, take advantage of it, you won’t regret it.

First up is the Little Blue Heron.  What I like about this shot is just the displayed open wings.  I love the long tips on the wings, and even how those flufts of feathers arise on its back shoulders.  It reminders me of an airplane about to land

Little Blue Heron Brazos Bend State Park

The next two birds were rather small and often skittish, so it was more of a challenge to get pictures of them.

Here’s a Blue Gray Gnatcather.  Leecy thinks it looks like a cottonball.  What I like about this bird, other than it’s cuteness, is how it’s staring up in the trees looking for its next meal.  To me, it has a rather inquisitive look in this shot.

Blue Gray Gnatcatcher Looking Up Brazos Bend State Park

The final bird is a Yellow Rumped Warbler.  All these small birds evoke a sense of playfulness and constant curiosity about them.

Yellow Rumped Warbler Brazos Bend State Park

To sum up this field trip, I really liked it on one hand, but on the other I feel I really missed a lot of opportunities and didn’t get a chance to explore near as much as I would have liked.  I’m going to have to go back there soon and try again.

3 Ducks In A Row

There’s so much to think about when taking pictures.  What’s the background look like, how in focus is the shot, how’s the lighting, are there any distractions, etc.  I’m really committed to taking better pictures, but so often I forget almost everything I intellectually know about photography and instead start snapping away at the first thing I see.  In any case, I do hope to improve, and if nothing else, I got some bird shots that I’ve never taken before.  I always welcome any constructive feedback, so fire away at will.

On thing I particularly enjoy about bird photography, is trying to take pictures of birds in flight.  Remember those Turkey Vultures I shared yesterday with their wings spread wide?  Here’s a picture of a Turkey Vulture coming in for a landing on a large tree.

Turkey Vulture Landing On Tree Wings Up Brazos Bend State Park

While the face of the Turkey Vulture is not one of the prettiest, they certainly are beautiful birds when flying, or in this case, landing.

Turkey Vulture Landing On Tree Brazos Bend State Park

Ducks are another common visitor to Brazos Bend, and the Blue Winged Teal was fairly common this past weekend. One thing that I’ve never really tried with my 100-400mm lens is trying to take pictures of birds in flight, without using a tripod.  In fact, I’ve never “not” used a tripod, but at the encouragement of Greg Lavaty (our instructor), I decided to give it a try.  Not surprisingly, the majority of my shots were out of focus. I did manage to get this shot of these Blue Winged Teals in flight.  Although I like this picture, that blue line in the background is distracting to me.  At first I thought it was something with my lens, but in fact it’s another part of the lake.  If I’m not mistaken, these are all females.

Blue Winged Teal Flock Brazos Bend State Park

I said I think the above shot is all females because I didn’t notice the distinctive white line running down the face as shown in the male Blue Winged Teal in the picture below.

Male Blue Winged Teal Brazos Bend State Park

Now that you’ve seen the male and female Blue Winged Teal separately, here’s a shot of them together.  I’m particularly drawn to the white line of the male and the patterns on its wing.

Blue Winged Teal Brazos Bend State Park

In this other shot of the male Blue Winged Teal you can see some of the blue and green colors towards the tail.  This bird was preening for quite a while, and once he finished doing that, he tucked his beak (bill) under his feathers and took a nap.

Male Blue Winged Teal Preening Brazos Bend State Park

This next photo is one of those “who would have thought” shots.  It’s a White Faced Ibis.  If you’re like me, or new to birding, you might ask why this bird is called “white face” when there is very little white on its face.  From what I understand, during the winter the “white” on the face is less noticeable, whereas in other months there would be a white outline around the face.  In birding I’ve noticed you learn something new every day, at least I do.

White Faced Ibis In Flight Brazos Bend State Park

Although this bird is called the White Faced Ibis, and it doesn’t appear to have any white around its face (not that I could see), it does have a variety of other colors.  I see some blue, green, and some brown on its feathers, and in the bright light the colors really shine.

White Faced Ibis Foraging Brazos Bend State Park

I don’t want to get too lengthy in this post, so I’ll conclude for the night.  I still have a few more photos of birds from the field trip that I will post tomorrow.

Probably one of the most common birds at Brazos Bend is the Black Bellied Whistling Duck.  These guys looked like they were pretty cold, as they didn’t move an inch despite how close I was.

Black Bellied Whistling Duck Brazos Bend State Park

Even some of the Vultures needed to take some time to warm up. Here’s two Black Vultures, one of them spreading their wings in full display.  The other vulture doesn’t seem that impressed:-).

In reading one of my books it mentions how Black Vultures have a less developed sense of smell compared to the Turkey Vultures (below) and instead rely on their eyesight.

Black Vulture Spreading Wings Brazos Bend State Park

The Turkey Vultures weren’t immune to the cold.  Almost in perfect synchronization, they spread their wings.  Notice how the Turkey Vulture with the red head has that gap between it’s nose?  I wonder if that helps with its sense of smell?

Turkey Vultures Spreading Wings Brazos Bend State Park

The birds weren’t the only ones warming up.  There was one American Alligator laying on a log soaking up the sun.  Brazos Bend is well known for the number of Alligators, but this is the only one we saw.

American Alligator Brazos Bend State Park

I have lots more bird pictures to post, but let me wind up tonight by sharing some photos of the Least Grebe.  One of the rangers at the park said these birds only recently started appearing.  In total, there was a group of three of these birds, all hunting for food.

Least Grebe Brazos Bend State Park

This is another one of the Least Grebes after emerging from under water.  It’s covered in a bunch of muck from the lake.

Least Grebe In Muck Brazos Bend State Park

I’ll continue posting more bird pictures from Brazos Bend over the next few days.  I’ve got many pictures to process, and some of the birds I can’t remember what their names are.

Feel free to leave any comments.

On Thursday, Leecy and I will be going to Brazos Bend State Park.  I’m really looking forward to visiting this place.

Haven’t planned further than that yet.  If anyone has any suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

The weather looks really nice at least until Sunday.

I’m off to bed.  I think I’ve got everything packed.

• Camera – Check
• Flash – Check
• Camouflage Shirt – Check
• Rubber Boots – Check
• Fresh Batteries for Flash – Check
• Mosquito Repellent – Check
• Some Bottled Water – Check
• Sunglasses – Check
• Bird Identification Books – Check
• Dirty Underwear – Check, Check:-)

I plan on arriving right at sunrise, so just before 7am.

I just had an interesting thought.  Since I do have my iPhone and a WordPress Application, I could perhaps send updates while out in the field.  Might be fun and new.  Hopefully somebody will check for the latest news story.  If I message something like found a gigantic alligator 1 foot in front me and I never finish the sentence, you can just imagine what may have happened.

Wish me luck!