fgorga

<p>Maturing male Autumn Meadowhawk</p> <p><br /> All meadowhawks start out yellow. The males turn bright red as they mature.</p> <p>For a short while (a day or two?) one can observe the intermediates stages; individuals with orange and/or partially red coloration.</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Stream Bluet Mating Wheel</p> <div></div>

<p>On Saturday, I spent some time staking out the hummingbird feeder...</p> <div></div>

<p>Stream Bluet Mating Wheel<br> <img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/24-jun-2016/dsc1917.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="600" /></p>

<p>I watched this male calico pennant for 10-15 minutes.</p> <p>Each time the sun came out from behind a cloud, this individual assumed the classic obelisking pose with abdomen held almost perpendicular to the ground. When the sun “disappeared” it quickly lowered its abdomen and resumed the pennant pose (with the abdomen parallel to the ground) for which it is named.</p> <p>Obelisking is a thermoregulation strategy where the dragonfly orients its body to minimize its exposure to the sun and thus minimize solar heat gain.</p> <div></div>

<p>Ode season is in full swing around here (i.e. Southwestern NH).</p> <p>This is a male twelve-spotted skimmer...</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/24-jun-2016/dsc1879.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="480" /></p>

<p>All though it is a little bit west of your target area, I have had good luck in the past at Mass. Audubon's Long Pasture Sanctuary in Barnstable (see: <a href="http://www.massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/long-pasture">http://www.massaudubon.org/get-outdoors/wildlife-sanctuaries/long-pasture</a>).</p> <p>Now that I live in New Hampshire, I haven't been there is a few years but I used to go regularly when I lived on the north side of the canal.</p> <p>--- Frank Gorga (<a href="http://www.gorga.org/blog)">www.gorga.org/blog</a>)</p>

<p>Male Purple Finch</p> <div></div>

<p>Many wonderful photos thus far.</p> <p>My contribution for the week...</p> <p>Tri-colored Heron (17 March 2016, Ding Darling NWR, Sanibel Island, Florida)</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Laura... sorry to hear about your tree and car; what a hassle!</p> <p>The weather here in southwest NH has been a bit nutty as well... 70 degrees F on Friday, an inch or so of snow on Saturday night and then the wind, but with no damage at least in the immediate neighborhood. There was about an inch of new snow on the ground when I got up this morning and it is still coming down... probably three or four inches total as I write.</p> <p>Anyway, my wife and I returned a week ago from a sixteen day road trip that took us a far south as Sanibel Island in SW Florida. The photo below was made at Ding Darling NWR.</p> <p>More photos can be found on my blog, if any one is interested: <a href="http://www.gorga.org/blog">www.gorga.org/blog</a>.</p> <div></div>

<p>Semipalmated Plover from last September</p> <div></div>

<p>A dragonfly exuvia (the exoskeleton of the nymph after the adult has emerged):</p> <div></div>

<p>A reminder of summer... a calico pennant from last June:</p> <div></div>

<p>David... spectacular photo of the kestral!</p> <p>My photo for this week is of a much more common bird. Made in my yard a few weeks ago.</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Red-bellied Woodpecker, photographed back in May in my backyard.</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Female Calico Pennant in my yard back in July.</p> <p>It has been drab and gray here in south western New Hampshire; hard to get motivated to make new photographs.</p> <div></div>

<p>Another feeding interaction from back in August. Rose-breasted Grosbeaks this time.</p> <p>The juvenile (on the right) had been fed a seed by the adult male<br> not more than five seconds before this photo was made but (s)he<br> is already begging for more!</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Some critters think that Thanksgiving dinner is NOT a good thing! ;-)</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/18-may-2015/dsc5915.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="480" /> </p> <p> </p>

<p>Yes... it is all about light.<br> Autumnal Flow<br> <img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/13-oct-2015_1/dsc7498.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="480" /></p>

<p>How did I miss Monday... again!</p> <p>Semipalmated sandpiper on Second Beach in Middletown, Rhode Island, three weeks ago.</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/22-oct-2015/dsc7796.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="480" /></p>

<p>From back in July, one of a number of feeding interactions (in three different species) I was able to photograph this summer.</p> <p>An adult male downy woodpecker (on the right) feeding a juvenile male. It is interesting how "plump" the fledgling is compared to the adult.</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/27-jun-2015/dsc3082.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="768" /> </p>

<p>Here I am a day late, again... just forgot that yesterday was Monday; happens when you are retired!</p> <p>Anyway, following Laura's lead, here is one from my "Autumnal Abstract" series:</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/19_oct_2015_2/dsc1573.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="600" /><br> Made by deliberately moving the camera during a three second exposure.</p> <p>The only "photoshopping" (actually Lightroom was used) involved is typical RAW processing (black and white points, contrast, etc.). </p> <p>Shutter speeds of 2-10 seconds were used for other photos in the series. I use a variable neutral density filter to help attain these shutter speeds. An overcast day also helps.</p> <p>I experiment with many modes of movement (e.g. translational or rotational) and with direction (i.e. horizontal, vertical, diagonal). Sometimes I use smooth movements and sometime jerky movements.</p> <p>I also experiment with scale (or maybe "zoom" is a better term). Some photos are framed on a single leaf. Some cover a square foot or so of the forest floor. In some, I point the camera at the canopy.</p> <p>The results are unpredictable and unrepeatable but digital makes it cheap to experiment and to throw out a lot of photos.</p> <p>More in the series can be seen here: <a href="http://gorga.org/blog/?p=3234">http://gorga.org/blog/?p=3234</a>.</p>

<p>Saturday evening brought our first snow of the season here in southwest New Hampshire... about an inch total at our house.</p> <p>The snow did not last long. Sunday morning's sun made quick work of most of it.</p> <p>However, by mid-day, flurries and snow showers returned as I took a short hike with camera 'in hand' (as is often the case).</p> <p>Fresh snow and fallen autumn leaves made for a slow and interesting walk!</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/19-oct-2015/dsc1590-edit.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="480" /></p>

<p>Lots of nice photos this week. I especially enjoyed Douglas' birds and Edwin's shell.</p> <p>As for the Shackleton, et al. story, I remember reading about it as a lad many years ago. However, I had not heard about Hurley's story or photographs until today. I guess that now I need to track down a book or two!</p> <p>Here is my, admittedly late, contribution:</p> <p><img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/13-oct-2015_3_1/dsc1410.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="600" /><br> Wetland in Autumn #3 (Bradford, NH)</p> <p>Foliage season is well underway here in New England. I made this photograph in the middle of last week on a back road in an off-the-beaten-path corner of NH. </p>

<p>Removing spider webs from one's face (or one's lens shade!) is part of the nature photography game!</p> <p>Keeping in the arachnid theme... here is one from a couple of years ago.<br> <img src="http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/12-aug-2011_1/dsc6233.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="481" /><br> Writing Spider with Prey (damselfly) -- Nikon 70-300 mm VR ED with 36 mm extension tube on a Nikon D300 </p> <p>Observing spiders preying on damselflies or dragonflies (odes) is not uncommon when you spend as much time in wet lands photographing odes as I do! My wife says "At least is keeps him off the streets and <em>mostly</em> out of trouble."!</p>