Ramblings

At the craft shows I attended recently I was often asked, "What camera do you use?" As if cameras take photos by themselves. It would make more sense to ask what lens I'm using. While it's true that a certain focal lens is necessary for bird photography, I can take good travel photos with an advanced digital camera. A person who always cuts off his subject's feet or shoots trees growing out of people's heads can't take a good photo even if he owns the most expensive pro camera. It's the photographer, not the camera, who takes the picture.
Many people think that digital photograph is automatically manipulated. The only time I "manipulate" a photo is when I decide that cropping will enhance the photo or I'll remove a disturbing branch or flare in the background. Sometimes, the background itself is the problem. Most often, though, I decide beforehand which background will work best and move around my subject to get the best possible photo. For me, digital photography is a great way to organize and distribute my photos and saving big bucks along the way. Happy shooting!

Successes

After attending some craft shows with dismal results I was pretty disappointed. An art show at Sweetwater Center for the Arts in Sewickley proved to be more successful. I sold three out of the five images I was allowed to submit. That alone would have been great news, but it got better. I had offered my images at two stock photo agencies in England without any sales so far when I checked my account and found that I had made a sale. Before I recovered from the excitement, I checked again a few days later and learned that I had made another sale! This time, my image will be on the cover and the inside of the publication. I just wish I knew the names of these publications so I could brag about it. Naturally, I submitted more images to this agency.
I also wanted to have a presence in an agency here in the U.S. that specializes in outdoor activities and am happy to report that they accepted me. Such good news brighten up the gray, dreary days of December. I can't wait to get out there again and take more bird photos, but I'm using the indoor time wisely to get my images out into the public.

Taking Stock

I recently put together a selection of images for a stock agency to consider for their library. When going over the images, I realized that this wasn't a very good year for adding new species to my bird stock photo list. However, it was a good year for frogs. Everytime I went to the nature center to photograph birds I ended up taking photo after photo of the countless bullfrogs that populate the pond in the summer. I'm hoping that next year will be better for my bird photography.
Our bird feeders are very busy this time of year. This is the first time that some robins are staying here well into December. They are joined by the usual suspects, such as diverse woodpeckers, cardinals, tufted titmice, chickadees, goldfinches, and juncos. Occasionally, a flock of starlings or red-winged blackbirds will decend on our trees. The squirrels, of course, take great advantage of our generosity. Oh well, they are darn cute.

Birding

Yesterday may not have been a great day for hunters weatherwise, but it was a good day for birders - from the safety of our house. It rained buckets yesterday but the worse the weather, the more birds show up in our neighborhood. For the past few weeks, I've noticed flocks of Cedar Waxwings perching on a couple of tall trees on the hillside that belongs to our yard. They never visited our feeders and I wondered what they were doing here until I realized that one of the trees back there is covered with a vine that's full of berries. Aha! I thought I could finally get a photo of a waxwing eating a berry but it's not that easy. For one, these birds prefer lofty heights, and another, the weather is always gray and dark when they descend on our trees.
These aren't the only birds around here lately. The robins are still around and the juncos and White-throated Sparrows have arrived from Canada already. Flocks of starlings and crows show up from time to time, swooping down on lawns like locusts. Add to that the usual suspects that visit our feeders this time of year and we have a virtual aviary in our neighborhood.

Birding

Fall has been pretty boring for birders but that is changing now. Last weekend we saw a mockingbird in our backyard, a bird that had never visited here before. This morning, we spotted a large flock of Cedar Waxwings in two of our trees. The weather change must have driven them through our area because we had never seen any around here. A couple of robins were also stopping over. When the lighting was sufficiently bright for photography, I ventured out to photograph the birds that visit our feeders. Alas, only the usual suspects showed up. I did get a great close-up shot of a Downy Woodpecker. Well, tomorrow is another day and I am still hopeful to see some Rose-breasted Grosbeaks or more Cedar Waxwings passing through.

The Days Are Packed

A week ago, I received a call from Allegheny West Magazine. They wanted to interview me because of my talk at the Robinson library back in July. I was thrilled. The article will be in the November issue and I can't wait to see it. The publicity comes at a perfect time since I'll be participating in four arts and craft shows this month. The first one is tomorrow at John McMillan Presbyterian Church in Bethel Park.

Autumn Splendor

To say that I've been busy lately is an understatement. Not only have I been helping during my sister-in-law's move to Pittsburgh and settling in, I am also preparing for several holiday arts and craft shows. The first show, at Bedner’s Greenhouse in Cecil, was a moderate success. The next show will be at John McMillan Presbyterian Church in Bethel Park on November 3. I have also just been accepted for the Holiday Mart at Sweetwater Center for the Arts in Sewickley. This show runs from November 25 - December 2, but I don't have to be present. Now I'm trying to figure out what other shows I can squeeze in. Did I mention that we are also painting our basement?
Sunday was such a beautiful autumn day with the trees dressed in their best reds and oranges that my husband and I decided to take a ride up to Moraine State Park. My hopes for some photogenic reflection shots were fulfilled when we discovered not one, but two little coves where the autumn trees reflected perfectly in the water. After a picnic lunch, however, our luck ran out and the lighting was just too bright to catch any of the sailboats on the lake with a decent background. Better luck next time.
Yesterday I went to the little cemetery that abuts our building plan because I wanted to photograph the beautiful old trees there. I was not disappointed. Two big yellow trees dominate the center of the old cemetery which is surrounded by bright orange trees and others that are still green. Because the weather report calls for rain for the next few days, I fear that most of the leaves will have dropped from the trees by the end of the week. I made the best of it while it lasted.

Quiet Time

I went to Beechwood today, despite the heat, because I wanted to drop off a framed photo at the gift shop where I sell my photos. I arrived there after being stuck in traffic on Route 28 and vowed never to go there again on a Friday.
The trails were almost deserted and I spent a quiet time at and near the pond. Although we're currently experienced August-like heat, I spotted several signs of autumn: fallen leaves everywhere, and a white-throated sparrow. Are they back from Canada already?
After a hectic week, I truly enjoyed the quiet time and photographed an entire mallard family (mommy, daddy, and a juvenile male) while they rested on the rocks near the water. Usually they fly or swim away as soon as I get into photographing distance. This time, I was able to hide behind some wildflowers near the waterline. Other than that, I saw mostly sparrows and cardinals. I have not taken as many great bird photos as I have last year.
I am getting ready for a couple of art shows. The first one, Art under Glass, will be held at Bedners Greenhouse in Cecil on Saturday, October 13. The second show will take place on Saturday, November 3, at John McMillan Presbyterian Church in Bethel Park.

Traffic and car woes

Last week was interesting, to say the last. On Wednesday, we celebrated our eighteenth wedding anniversary with a dinner at an almost empty restaurant. The food was good, but the fact that there were more waiters than guests was a little disconcerting.
To get away from some stressful issues and to hopefully photograph some migrants or butterflies, I ventured out to Beechwood last Friday. Bad idea! I was stuck in traffic three times on the way to and from the nature reserve and any thought of relaxation went out the window. Had I known that I would hit two traffic jams on the way home, I would have never left the house. To top it all off, I didn't see any birds or butterflies there. Where have they all gone? I did see a wooly bear, though.
Sometime last week, I must have driven through a freshly painted line because my car is all white on the bottom of the passenger side. To assess the damage, I pulled the car out of the garage and decided to finally check out that rattling noise my car makes whenever I start it. I still don't know where the noise comes from, but my husband and I found a whole winter's supply of peanut shells scattered all over the engine room. With the aid of a vacuum cleaner, an old toothbrush, a barbecue skewer and other long sticks, we were able to get most of the debris out of there.
Lesson learned: Don't store any open bird feed in your garage!

Walking down Memory Lane

When I returned from my trip to Germany, my husband told me that I needed to clear some space on our computer or he would do it for me. So I spent the hot, humid days of August glued to the computer, getting rid of thousands of bird photos I had taken during the last few years. I guess I had planned to delete them once I got better ones and then forgot about it. While I saved my best images on CDs and on an external hard drive, I'm a bit paranoid about losing anything. Besides, I like to work with them on the computer without having to go through all my CDs. I'm not sure how much space I actually freed up on our hard drive since it's not the .jpegs as much as the .tif photos that take up room. I save each photo that I consider a keeper as a .tif before reverting it to .jpeg again if I want to use it for something specific (such as forwarding it to my stock agencies or getting prints made from it). JPEG is a lossy format and each time you open a photo, the image data gets compressed and the image deteriorates. Therefore, it is advisable to save all good photos as .tif first.
Going down memory lane was very interesting, though. For one, I realized how much my photos have improved since I first started photographing birds. I also like to go back and revisit them to check what time of year I photographed a certain migrant. For example, last year I photographed a junco on November 5. I gasped, because that's less than two months away. Where has the year gone? It seems like they just left, especially since it was so cold in April that their departure was delayed. That means also that it's almost time to stock up on bird feed and clean the feeders.

Late Summer Rambling

My last trip to Beechwood was not very fruitful. My best photo was that of the lone monarch I saw there. We have more of them at home. I did see, but not photograph, a warbler, a wren and some cedar waxwings. Butterflies were scarce that day, but so it goes.
Our own little butterfly garden is a hotbed of activity. We're having a good crop of monarch larvae this summer and also milkweed moths and bugs. Amazing that a poisonous plant such as milkweed (we have butterfly weeds and milkweed) can support so much wildlife. We're also seeing bumble bees and honey bees, all kinds of butterflies but not as many swallowtails as in the past.
I'm seeing and hearing more birds in our yard, including a pileated woodpecker. The male hummingbirds appear to have departed, yet the young ones are still around fighting over the nectar. They're also visiting our flowers, particularly the zinnias. I'll definitely plant those again next year.

End of Summer

August is my least favorite month. I don't like days that are so hot and muggy that I can barely venture outdoors--and get eaten up alive if I do. So I am relieved that the sweltering heat is over for now, hopefully for good.
Summer is winding down in our garden too. Yet, even flowers past their prime provide food and nectar for insects and birds. Goldfinches particularly like the seeds of coneflowers and coreopsis. Our butterfly weed and, to a lesser extent than we had hoped for, milkweed are again popular with monarchs. Every summer, they return unfailingly to our small butterfly garden as if by word of mouth. It is fascinating to watch how their larvae munch on the otherwise poisonous milkweed plants.
Zinnias and lobelias are again popular with insects. Not all our experiments worked out, however. The leaves of the New England Asters we planted in May to provide fall color were eaten by a stealthy thief, probably a groundhog. I don't know if they'll make it. The false indigo met the same fate. The cosmos looked very good, even though they all have the same color, orange, of which we already have plenty.
Now, I'm looking forward to my favorite season, fall. I expect to add some more birds to my stock photo list and hope for better fall foliage than last year. That shouldn't be too difficult since last October was the worst foliage since I've come here.

A Day at Beechwood

After a long absence, I took my camera out to the Audubon nature reserve at Beechwood yesterday morning. It was very cloudy when I arrived there and I wondered whether I had made the right decision to go. I headed toward the pond area, as I usually do, because that's where most of my photo opportunities seem to be located. I noticed an Indigo Bunting in a bush near the pond, but could not get a good photo of it. The difference between the sky and the dark bird was too great. At this early hour, I had the pond area for myself. I was grateful that I was able to listen to the birds and frogs without any human noises. At last, I walked around the pond and spotted a spicebush swallowtail landing on the grass. It sat still for quite a while, which is unusual for this busy butterfly, and I was able to shoot some great photos of it. When the sun came out, the tiger swallowtails were out in full force at the Joy-pye-weed and I captured them too. The crowning touch, though, occured when I was almost ready to leave. I made a last visit at the pond area when I saw two Cedar Waxwings land on a berry bush nearby. I had seen them earlier in a tall tree and hoped to get a better look at them. Cedar Waxwings had been on my wish list since last fall when I photographed many of them but couldn't get one decent shot. Now my wish has finally been fulfilled, although there is definitely room for improvement.
While I was disappointed that I didn't see any monarchs yesterday, I know they will return when the goldenrod blooms. I'll be back to capture them and any birds that pass through. All in all, it was a great day at Beechwood once again!

Lasting friendships

My most memorable experiences during my trip to Germany were several reunions with old friends. While the friends certainly aren't old yet, our friendships are--in years at least. Some of them go all the way back to kindergarten, which begins at age 3 in Germany. So, we're talking decades here. One girlfriend in particular is my trusty driver and almost always available for a dinner date.
My visits to the old country provide a perfect opportunity for a get-together. In fact, my friends don't usually meet unless I'm coming. The exception was last year when my business school mates organized their first ever reunion without me. I saw photos, of course. I was therefore thrilled that seven of us could get together during my recent visit. It amazes me what great memories some people have. "Do you remember our trip to...?" Blank stares were my only answer since I didn't recollect that trip at all. Although we had parted ways at age 16 and our lives took us in many different directions, it did not matter. We soon chatted away as if we met regularly.
After school, I joined a club where my brother was also a member. When everybody started a family, the club folded but a couple of years ago they started to meet again every three to four months, each time at a different restaurant. This time they organized a meeting during my stay. Again, the words "do you remember" echoed from the walls as we recollected funny or embarrassing moments from our trips together. As we talked away the hours, I wondered in disbelief whether it had really been twenty years since we sat together just like this. Of course, life has left its mark on all of us. Some of us had to endure serious illnesses or surgeries while others struggled to find a job. Yet, for one evening we were transported back to our youth which is probably why people go to reunions in the first place. May we all have many more reunions to celebrate!

Spaghetti ice, rain and white storks

I just returned from a trip to Germany. For the first two days, temperatures hovered in the 90s, but then they dropped considerably. So much so that cool, rainy days seemed to be in the majority. The weather affected people's moods and limited my outdoor activities. Unlike during other visits, I was not able to go for a ride until my last day. Stuck in a small town without a car, my days dragged on forever while my dates with friends mostly took place during evenings. One highlight was a mini-reunion from my business school where I met two "girls" I hadn't seen since 1974.
As the title suggests, a visit to Germany is not complete without eating several portions of spaghetti ice. This concoction consists of whipped cream topped by vanilla ice cream which is pushed through a press (similar to a potato press, I assume) and then covered with strawberry topping and white chocolate flakes. Thus, it looks just like spaghetti and tomato sauce, but tastes much better.
Years ago, white storks were reintroduced to my hometown and this time, I was finally able to take some photos of them. I know my pictures aren't very good, but it's the best I could do without a telephoto lens. There were four storks, but one was missing. Mrs. Stork was recently killed during an encounter with a power line. I hope that Mr. Stork finds another mate. I heard that he is quite finicky and won't accept just any lady that comes along. I wish daddy and the kids all the best.

Bird Talk

Last night, I gave the first public talk in my life. I'm currently exhibiting my photos at our new library in Robinson Township and the librarian asked me if I wanted to give a talk. I agreed since it was a good learning experience for me. My topic was birding and how to attract birds to your yard. The audience was small but very interested. My husband came along and together, we answered all questions that came up. It turned out that the librarian herself is an avid bird-watcher and has already acquired quite a few bird books. When I prepared for the talk, I made a list of all the birds we have sighted in or from our backyard and I came up with 35 species. While I haven't been able to photograph all these species, it's quite an impressive number. I had great fun doing the talk and it gave me confidence on doing similar sessions in the future. The interactive talk was a lot less intimidating than a formal speech would have been. I hope that the attendants came away from the session with an enthusiasm to learn more about birds and, most importantly, to enjoy themselves.

When good plans go awry

In early April, I booked a flight to Germany for mid-July after days of checking travel websites for the best possible connections. Since there are no more direct flights to Europe from Pittsburgh, I knew I had to make a connection at least once. I finally decided to use the same airline I had used twice before, with one exception: they now offered a second daily flight from Frankfurt to Detroit in the afternoon. This would enable me and my driver to sleep in and avoid the morning rush hour near Frankfurt. The fact that it was cheaper than the morning flight didn't hurt either, or so I thought.
Yesterday morning, however, I received an e-mail with a change of schedule. Instead of flying from Frankfurt to Detroit and then on to Pittsburgh, the airline now wants to send me via Amsterdam - Memphis - Pittsburgh. Memphis? Amsterdam? I looked at the itinerary in disbelief. Did I book three months in advance for this? And I thought Chicago or Charlotte were too far out of my way! A child with a dart could have just thrown it at a map of the United States and pick a better layover point. Also, my first flight would leave before 11:00 a.m. so I would have to leave during rush hour.
I called the airline. The customer service representative was very nice, but he didn't have any other seats available. Apparently the flight I had picked has been canceled and now they're scrambling to book people on other flights. The rep suggested that I check back if anything opens up and assured me that I would be able to make my connection in Memphis. What annoys me the most is that I will have to walk through four airports in one day with my newly recovered knee.
I have never experienced an itinerary change like this before, although I came close back in 1979 when I first came to the U.S. with a folk dance group. We were 39 people for the return trip from St. Louis via New York. Unfortunately, none of us had remembered to confirm our flight back from New York to Frankfurt. When we arrived at the ticket counter, they only had 13 seats available. A powwow followed and it was decided to give these seats to the farmers and married couples. I was among the second batch of 10 or 12 seats that miraculously became available so I missed what followed next. Our president told the musicians to unpack their accordions and the dancers started dancing in the check-in area. Within minutes, the distraught airline reps cried, "Everybody on board!"
Perhaps I should try something similar when I'm taking the grand tour, but I'm afraid my dancing days are over.

Communing with Nature

I'm still nursing a flare-up of an old knee injury and avoid driving as much as I can. On Saturday, my husband therefore took me out on a picnic to North Park so I could get out of the house for a while. I had barely set up our lunch in a picnic shelter when a male cardinal showed up on the next bench. My husband threw a small piece of cookie on the ground and the bird picked it up and flew away with it. I had never seen a cardinal that was so unafraid of people and begging for food. We also saw an adult flicker feeding an immature flicker on the grass surrounding the shelter. As usual in those cases when I'm not in the mood to carry heavy camera equipment around, I see great birds.
A while later, we set up chairs at a wetland area where we were greeted by a yellow warbler. It flitted around us, chattering all the while and landing just a few feet away from us. I will probably never see a warbler this close when I have a camera handy. We also saw several groups of ducks across the inlet. A group of children from a nearby party flushed out three tiny ducklings - cute as buttons - that paddled across the water to get away from them. About an hour later, an adult duck (probably a wood duck) called out frantically for her kids and the three ducklings swam across the water again. On the other bank (and out of my sight), however, they were greeted by shrieks of annoyance. They had approached the wrong mother! Then they paddled around in circles, not sure what to do next. After a short while, all turned quiet again and I sincerely hope that the little ones were united with their mother. They were much too young to make it on their own.
By mid-afternoon, everything went quiet around the wetland. Even the frog that had croaked from time to time went mute. We packed up and went home again, happy with the discoveries we made.

Happy Hummers

June is not turning out to be one of my best months this year. Besides having some unpleasant medical tests done, my right knee, which I injured years ago, is also hurting a lot for over a week now. So, instead of going to the air show with my hubby this past weekend, I could only watch the planes that flew by our backyard. Since we live in the airport area, I saw quite a few and heard even more.

To make my time at home more pleasant, I've been photographing the ruby-throated hummingbirds that visit our feeder. I could do this from the comfort of a garden chair. Life doesn't get much easier than this, but photographing hummingbirds is no easy task. First of all, they are fast--really fast. A more dedicated photographer would probably set up several flashes, but I only have one flash and so it took quite a few shots to get a decent photo. Yesterday, I finally took some shots of both a male and female hummingbird that I'm proud to show everybody (which I'm doing right here). The hummingbirds are hitting our feeders hard and are not happy when the syrup gets too old (too old meaning three days max.). So, they might as well pose for my camera to earn their keep. They are fun to watch, but they are quite territorial and don't like it at all when another bird shows up at the same time. Never mind that there's enough for everybody, and how do some people manage to photograph half a dozen hummingbirds at their feeder at the same time?

Other than that, I haven't seen any unusual birds lately, except for a possible oriole sighting, but it has been a strange year. The weather has been weird this summer and the birds and plants are surely affected by that. Oh well, that's what makes bird photography so interesting and sometimes frustrating.

Frogs and other creatures

On Wednesday, I went to the Audubon Nature Center to photograph birds. I ended up photographing a bullfrog, a green frog and tadpoles (or pollywogs) in all stages on development. The pond at Beechwood was teeming with life, if one looked closely. The bullfrog, for example, was so well camouflaged that it took me a while to discover its eyes sticking out of the scum. At first, it pointed its back at me, but later it was kind enough to show me its side view and a reflection in the pond. I took some pretty good images of it and a green frog. Most amazing, though, was when I noticed a northern cardinal near the pond. I fired away when it caught a dragonfly in its beak. I was also happy when one of the swallows that hovered over the pond to catch insects actually sat down on top of the solar panel to clean itself. All in all, I spent over two hours at the pond. Nature photographers spend a lot of time waiting, but I couldn't have picked a better day to do it. The lighting was mostly good and the temperature was cool enough to enjoy an outing. Now we're back to sticky, hot weather.

My photo exhibit at the Robinson library is already a success. I'm told that people are amazed at my bird photos. They will probably be up till the end of July.

Spring, Where Art Thou?

I have recovered from the Pennwriters Conference and am now trying to digest all the information I gathered there. The workshops were all wonderful and my only beef is that I could only attend one at a time. There were occasions when I could have joined all three that were going on at the same time. I recognized more faces than I had two years ago and enjoyed networking with everybody I had contact with. Now it is time to sit back at my desk and apply what I've learned.
The weather is clearly encouraging me to write since it is too hot to spend much time outdoors. We seem to have moved from winter to summer in about two days. Last week, I ventured out to Beechwood Farms despite the rather warm temperatures. While I did not take any great photos, I did see a Pileated Woodpecker, a Blue Heron, a Catbird, and many Canada Geese and their goslings. My goal was to photograph the Baltimore Orioles that frequent the feeder but I have not succeeded yet. There is always next time.
On Memorial Day, my husband and I ventured out to the wetland trail at Raccoon Creek Park. On several occasions, it deserved its name and we got muddy shoes. However, we did see many Catbirds, an Eastern Towhee, a Blue Heron, a Baltimore Oriole, and plenty of Red-winged Blackbirds. The sound of bullfrogs filled the air, but we never caught a glimpse of one. What we did catch were mosquito bites and I'm still suffering the consequences. Still, it was nice to get out before we had to disappear into the house like vampires. Aah, summer in Pennsylvania!

Nose Art

During this time of year, I usually photograph birds. Yesterday, however, I had an opportunity to photograph some pretty big birds.

A few months ago, I learned that the artist who paints nose art on military planes at the 171 Air Refueling Wing lives in the next town. I thought it would make a good article for Pennsylvania Magazine and queried the editor after securing approval from the military. Last week, I got the go-ahead and was informed that a plane would be in yesterday for one day only. So Donna, the artist, had to paint the motive, the Duel 'n Fueler, in one day.

I went out to the base to take some photos while she was painting. But the story doesn't end here. I was actually chauffeured to the flight line where I was able to photograph each of Donna's designs that was on the ground. Her nose art is truly awesome. There were a total of seven planes available: the Spirit of Pittsburgh, the Falcons Spirit, Freedom will Endure, the Patriot, the Allegheny Warrior (my personal favorite), the Steel Phantom, and Pittsburgh Simply the Best. It was better than an airshow and everybody was super nice to me.

All this happened because I was networking with my fellow Pennwriters. I can't wait to write the article that will accompany my photos, but I guess I'll have to postpone the writing until next week since I'm getting ready to attend the Pennwriters conference from Friday till Sunday.

My photography has taken me places I would have never dreamed of going: a day sail aboard the Flagship Niagara, a museum for automated musical instruments, Old Economy and now this. What's next?

Busy Time

This is the busiest time of year for me. As a bird photographer, I was looking forward to migration to add some new species to my ever growing stock photo list. I was not disappointed since I took some great pictures of an eastern towhee, a white-crowned sparrow, a white-throated sparrow, a cardinal and a red-bellied woodpecker. On my wish list of desirable species is a bluebird. Yes, I do have bluebird photos from last year, but none of them is very sharp. So, on Tuesday, a birder friend and I went out in search of bluebirds. We did find them, including one that sat on top of a No Parking sign, cleaning its feathers. When not grooming itself, it and its mate fed the fledglings in their birdbox. But they didn't let me come close enough to get a really sharp photo. I didn't want to interfere with the feedings of their young so I backed off. On the way back, I took some photos of a yellow warbler, but again they're no more than record shots. So the quest for a great bluebird shot continues.

I am also getting ready for the Pennwriters conference which will begin next week on Friday. This time, I not only have an agent appointment, but I also volunteered to be a time keeper for another agent. Friday promises to be very busy.

I learned yesterday that my nonfiction proposal to Pennsylvania Magazine was accepted. This photo feature will showcase an artist who paints noses on military planes. I am very excited about this and can't wait to go out to the base to photograph some very big birds.

In June, I booked a photo exhibit at the new library in Robinson Township. I am pleased to show my work for an entire month in the town I've lived in for almost 10 years. And besides, I always love to hang around libraries.

Happy spring to you all!

The Hummingbirds are back

I am in full birding mode right now. Yesterday afternoon I spotted a male ruby-throated hummingbird at our new feeder. This feeder not only has an ant moat, but it also has perches that make it more comfortable for the little fellow to drink. Yesterday was an interesting birding day anyway since I observed two male rose-breasted grosbeaks under our feeder in the early morning. Then I went to Beechwood were I was disappointed at the amount of birds I saw. There were no bluebirds at all and I only saw one warbler. Even the feeders weren't very popular. Where have all the birds gone? Apparently, they all come to our feeders. It seems indeed that all the action happens in our own backyard at the moment. The juncos are probably gone now, but I photographed both white-throated and white-crowned sparrows a few days ago.

Sometimes I wonder why I love photographing birds. They never land on the branch I want them to land on, they move with lightning speed, and when I finally focus on their eye, they turn their head and my focusing job goes out the window. Nine out of ten of my photos go right into the digital trash bin, but the tenth photo is a thrill. Like the photo of an eastern towhee I show here, it is exhilarating when everything comes together: sharpness, action, a great looking bird and a decent background. And if I can photograph a species I haven't collected yet, so much the better.

Happy spring, everybody!

Bird Photography

I've been photographing the birds in our backyard for the past couple of years, but some species are so shy that I could never get a close-up picture of them. Last fall, I purchased a collapsible hunting blind so I can get closer. I have yet to figure out the collapsing part of it. It's supposed to fit into a small bag but it took too long to fiddle with that, so I just left it out of the bag all through winter. Now that the weather is more favorable, I've set up the blind several times to get a closer view of the many birds that visit our four feeders. My objective was to catch a shot of the Eastern Towhee that has been foraging under the feeders. On Tuesday, it finally showed up once and I fired away. Although it never returned after that, I was able to grab some great photos of a White-throated Sparrow which is quite beautiful in its new spring dress. The blind really works in allowing me to fill the frame with the bird. Even shy birds such as Red-bellied Woodpeckers show up occasionally when they don't feel threatened. Now, if I could only snatch a photo of a migrant passing through...

Spring is here, I hope

A while ago, I wrote that spring is just around the corner. That was foolish, considering the recent wintry weather we endured. I'm afraid we won't see our redbud bloom this year, but I hold out some hope that our azaleas survived the frost.

On Thursday, I attended a fundraiser at a library and was very pleased with the event. The evening was sponsored by Lincoln Avenue Arts in McDonald of which I am a member. I not only sold several prints and greeting cards, but I also met the nicest people who told me about the birds in their yard. Some of them were bird-watchers who admired my photos. After such a success, I was more than ready to get back into photography mode. Yesterday's warm weather prompted me to set up my blind again in the backyard. I was not disappointed. While I didn't get to photograph any new bird species, I am pleased to report that I took not just one, but five fantastic photographs. Besides the cardinal shown here, I also shot a goldfinch singing, a red-bellied woodpecker up close and a black-capped chickadee eating a sunflower. What a great ending to an exciting week! I can't wait to make prints of these photos and show them to the world.

Planet Earth

When I was young, I could not understand why my dad loved to watch nature programs on TV. Nature was boring and something for older people, I concluded. Fast forward twenty years and I'm the one who watches nature shows on the tube. For the past three Sunday nights, we have been glued to the TV to watch the Planet Earth program on the Discovery channel. It is a fantastic, although sometimes disturbing, show and the photography is spectacular. Never before had I heard of elephants in the desert or camels in snow. The other day, my husband asked me, "Why do we hate predators so much?" I had no answer. We humans aren't really innocent creatures. Animals, after all, only kill to feed themselves and their young. Humans, on the other hand, kill animals without need and without thinking about the consequences. When I thought about the predators of humpback whales, for example, I could only come up with one: humans. So--who are we to judge when an animal who has gone hungry for days kills another animal to feed itself and its young? Survival drives all life on earth.

Personally, I was hoping that I would be photographing birds by now, but winter has made another appearance here and the temperatures are still hovering in the forties. While this would be decent weather in January, it's a bit harder to take in April. Everything that was getting ready to bloom either froze or came to a standstill. I can't wait to see blooming and green trees. It's no surprise that the juncos are still here and I'm worried whether the hummingbirds will survive their spring migration. I guess I will hang up my feeders a little later than usual.

Spring Photography

For the last few days, we have witnessed an Eastern Towhee visiting our backyard to feast on the seeds that fell from our bird feeders. Yesterday, I set up my blind in the backyard and waited for the towhee to make an appearance. Of course, it never showed up. Instead, I saw plenty of robins foraging through the grass. I also photographed the juncos that are still around. As a wildlife photographer, I have to act fast. So, when a fox squirrel showed up, standing upright at the edge of our hillside I clicked the shutter until it disappeared. Squirrels can be very annoying when they raid our feeders (and our pockets) since we have to fill the feeders three times a day when they're in high form. They also destroy (and sometimes abscond with) our feeders. One recently broke a metal perch off a feeder. But, when it comes to modeling for the camera, they are second to none. Who could possibly be mad at such a cute photo subject?

Why I photograph

I came to photography by accident. Yes, I had always loved to take vacation photos and had taken a couple of photography classes geared at amateurs. Sadly, my photos from the 1970s have faded badly. I traveled extensively during the 1980s and I now wish that I had decent photos from that time. The way I traveled, though (backpacking, bus tours, even hitchhiking), prohibited carrying around a big camera.
After my husband and I started dating, we traveled every weekend to a different town and he took a camera along. He graduated into shooting 35mm transparencies and purchased another camera for me. I took my first slides during a vacation to Norway. Unfortunately, it rained the entire week we were there, off and on. Needless to say, most of our photos are not top quality. But I was hooked. I signed up for a photography course with the New York Institute of Photography and we listened to the lessons together. We wanted to operate a homebased portrait studio photographing children and pets, but things didn't work out.
Over the years, my interest in portraits waned. After buying a house here in Pennsylvania, we began to feed the many birds in our backyard. We purchased a 35mm digital camera and I was finally able to photograph birds with a telephoto lens (the digital sensor extends the lengths of a lens). Six months later, I took a photo of an airborne Tufted Titmouse that has won me two awards so far and a feature on TV. But fame alone is not the reason why I photograph.
Photography gives me an opportunity to see the world in detail that I would otherwise overlook. There are photo opportunities everywhere you look. In the city, that could be a fire escape or an interesting shadow or colorful store front. In a state park, there are grasses, trees, water, fungi, animals and birds that beg to be photographed. By showing people the beauty of nature, I hope that they, too, will want to protect it. Children are particularly attracted to my bird photographs and I hope that they will take that enthusiasm into their adult lives. Our own future depends on it.

Spring is Around the Corner

Last Tuesday was a very warm day and, since the weather forecast was not favorable, I decided to take my camera out to the Audubon nature center. As I left my car, I was already greeted by the honks of Canada Geese from the pond area. You can always hear them before you see them. Another sign of the spring ahead was the house sparrow checking out the real estate of a bird house. The pond itself was still covered with solid ice, so there was no sign of life yet besides the geese. As I walked along the trail, I kept my ears and eyes open for birds, never knowing whether it was a slight breeze or a secretive bird that rustled in the thickets. A hawk glided overhead and a honey bee actually landed on my lens. Nature is awakening at last. It was too early yet to see migratory birds, but a red-winged blackbird screeched out his mating call (which can only be attractive to another blackbird) to the world. Too bad it was perched in the middle of a holly bush and I could not get a decent photo of it. They look pretty impressive when they flex out their wings and show off those red and yellow striped feathers.
By March, I'm tired of looking at gray trees and can't wait to go out into nature again and witness its awakening. Our crocusses are coming out now and it won't be long before our silver maple will show fresh greens and the birds are pairing off. The robins have arrived a couple of weeks ago. Another long winter is finally coming to an end.

February Be Gone

Today is the last day of February and I can only say, "Good riddance!" The weather would have been bad enough this month. Subzero temperatures and snow followed by ice rain canceled quite a few appointments and made me housebound. Add to that three malfunctioning appliances (including the furnace, which actually turned out to be a frozen pipe that backed up into it) and a watermain break next door.
Yet, things got worse when I learned that my dad had been admitted to the hospital. And then my husband's uncle died. The funeral was scheduled for yesterday, a day after my birthday. So this year, my birthday was wedged in between a viewing and a funeral.
Because our uncle had been in the Navy during World War II, two retired sailors were present at the cemetery. It was the first military funeral I attended and the taps barely left a dry eye in the small crowd. I don't want to remember our uncle as I saw him last, his mind lost to Alzheimer's disease, but rather as I saw him first, standing next to my husband when I got off the plane after passing through immigration. He was the first relative I saw here in Pittsburgh and he was very kind to us.
There are some good news, though: My dad was released from the hospital yesterday. On the writing front, I am now finalizing a long-time writing project and am also working on a nonfiction article. And--this morning I saw a groundhog and a chipmunk in our backyard. Hopefully, winter will be over soon. I can't wait.

Books I like to read

An op-ed commentary in the paper this morning spawned me to write about the novels I lke to read. Thinking back, I find that my reading has evolved over the years. In my twenties, I used to read a lot of self-help books and, occasionally, a chick-lit novel. But I also read lots of James Michener, John Jakes, John Steinbeck and Leon Uris novels. The more I learn about writing, however, the more I find flaws in almost every novel I read. Sometimes I reject a novel after reading 20 pages, sometimes it takes 80. I recently read a novel that seems to be popular for its social content. Yet, the novel was at least 90 % dialogue with no description of the characters or the town they lived in. While I usually enjoy dialogue (and reject novels that have page after page of description), 90 % is too much. I found myself getting weary. My brain needed a break. I'm currently reading a historical mystery set in Victorian England and I'm enjoying the descriptions a lot.
You may wonder now what novels I enjoyed reading all the way through. Here is a partial list of the books I've read and loved during the last few years:
Snow falling on Cedars by David Guterson
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
Wish you Well by David Baldacci
Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi
The Ballad of Frankie Silver by Sharyn McCrumb
Down to the Soundless Sea by Thomas Steinbeck
North and South by John Jakes
Out of this Furnace by Thomas Bell
The Haj by Leon Uris
Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt

My first craft show

I survived my first craft show where I sold my bird photographs and greeting cards. It was not the rousing success I had hoped for, but I am not discouraged. It was bitterly cold that day and I don't blame anybody who preferred to stay home.
I had an opportunity to talk to another photographer who gave me some valuable tips. One of my customers actually asked me, "Are you the lady who won the award?" I was amazed that people still remember that. In late summer 2005, I won first place in the Amateur category of WildBird Magazine's annual photo contest with my photo of an airborne Tufted Titmouse. After that I sent a press release to the local part of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, hoping for a one-sentence write-up. They ended up printing a half-page article about my bird photography which, in turn, led to a TV appearance on KDKA-TV.
Children were particularly intrigued by my photographs at the show. Some of them came back three times to look at them. Perhaps, one day they will ask their parents to buy one of my photos. One can always dream...
I have not taken any new bird phtos lately since I am not weather-proof for these low temperatures. In fact, I barely leave the house to feed the many birds who visit our feeders. Another trip to the Aviary is in my future.

A Winter Walk

We are currently in the midst of a cold wave and therefore don't get out much. My only exposure to winter weather is walking from the car to a store and back. When I had to attend to some business at the Audubon nature reserve this weekend, my husband tagged along and we headed to a trail. It was the first day in almost two weeks that the temperature climbed above freezing and we wanted to take advantage of it to get some fresh air.
The trails were covered with snow and we detected more animal tracks than footprints from people. We played detective and tried to figure out who the tracks belonged to. We guessed correctly which tracks were made by squirrels and which ones by deer. In fact, we even flushed out four deer on our lonely walk through the winter woods. These deer showed us that the woods aren't deserted after all. There are the usual winter birds such as red-bellied woodpecker, black-capped chickadees, and tufted titmice. Later in the thickets, we observed numerous white-throated sparrows and northern cardinals. In other words, we saw the same birds that visit our feeders every day.
My bird photography is currently on hiatus because of the low temperatures. I keep busy preparing photographs for a craft show I'll be attending on Saturday. And I cannot wait for spring to get out there again with my camera and photograph the species that have eluded me so far. Last year has been a great one for my stock photo list. I'm now offering my photos at www.photographersdirect.com.

Planning ahead

As I've stated in my last post, I have lots of goals for the new year. I am happy to report that I have not only set myself goals, but I have taken steps to achieve them. I signed up for my first craft show where I'll be selling my photographs as prints and notecards. So I am busy getting supplies, prints, and putting everything together. I didn't stop there, though. I just registered with www.photographersdirect.com, a stock photo agency/portal in England. They act as a middleman between photobuyers and sellers and send out want lists every day. I am busy uploading my photos and may even dust off my transparencies soon.
My bird photography is on hiatus right now. The weather (first rain and now cold) and the fact that I already have photos of the usual backyard birds keep me from shooting too much. I can't wait for spring now, as I have some "dream birds" that have eluded me so far. I'm using my time now to market the photos I already have.
I haven't had too much time for writing this month, but I have submitted entries to two contests and plan on attending Pennwriters Conference this coming May. Once the craft show is over, I'll have more time to write. My plan is to sell at least one article a year. Not a very lofty goal, but my photography takes up quite a bit of time, too.
So, there you have it. In good weather, I'm a bird photographer, and in bad weather, I'm a writer and marketing specialist.

Setting goals

At the beginning of the year, many people make resolutions. I am no exception, but I like to call them goals.
Setting goals and deadlines is essential when you are a freelancer. Some deadlines are determined by outside events such as a contest, a show, or conference. Others are more vague and it helps if I set myself a deadline to get that article written or to get my photographs in front of the public. Some projects are seasonal (articles have to be submitted two or three seasons in advance). In any case, I write down my goals for the month - and am lucky if I achieve half of them. Yet, that is better than not having any goals in the first place.
While the year is still young, I am happy to report that not only do I have some lofty goals for this year, I already took steps to achieve them. I have decided to sell my photographs at a craft show, so I am currently looking into suppliers and the necessary paperwork involved with such an endeavor.
I hope to add some new birds to my stock photo list this year, but because of the warm weather there aren't too many birds at our feeders or at Beechwood right now. So, yesterday I took advantage of our membership card and went to the Aviary. The lighting is not the best (naturally, the tropical rainforest is too dark to take any decent photos in it). It is a great advantage that the birds at the Aviary are completely fearless. One of them actually walked under my tripod. The photo above shows one of my best efforts. Too bad the bird didn't wear a name tag as I have no idea what it is. Whatever its name, it is a beauty.