Today, we went back to the little pond park with Grandpa and our uncle. This time, I remembered my camera.
I almost wish I hadn't.
Not only did the eagles return, but they put on a spectacular show. They soared. They dove. They perched right on the water's edge. They screeched. They chased off an osprey. The osprey dove for a fish, and they chased it for the fish. One of them even soared right over my head from a tree I hadn't seen it land in. Even the ducks put on a fine show - they paddled and quacked right under the viewing area. A little stripe-billed gray bird dove for fish almost under my feet. A beautiful blue damselfly kept landing on me.
Later, we went over to a nearby heron rookery. We saw more ducks and a goose. We saw another pair of eagles and a nest. We saw herons building up their rookery. We even, thanks to a chance encounter, saw a Cooper's Hawk nest, complete with roosting Cooper's Hawk.
All of this, I saw while I had my camera with me.
How many shots did I get? How many times did I manage to have the camera out and aimed in the right place at the right time and ready to go? How many pictures came out?
Look at the start of the post. Count.
Yep, even when I had my camera, I could barely manage to get one remotely salvageable shot. The moment I'd have to wipe off my glasses, they flew. When I had to leave to eat lunch with the family, they danced. When I found a vantage point without a tree in the way, they hid.
I swear those birds were laughing at me...
When we finally got home, I happened to glance skyward.
A bald eagle was flying over head.
I heard a pileated woodpecker laugh as I watched it.
Very funny, birds.... veeerrry funny.
3 comments:
The pileateds around here have a *real* attitude. Serious attitude.
I believe that if you want a good shot of wildlife, and birds in particular, you've gotta be willing to sit in one of those National Geographic blinds all day munching on nothing but granola, camera set up on a tripod and ready to rapid-fire at a moment's notice.
It is eternally difficult to get a semi-decent picture if you are at a family gathering, too, unless you can walk completely away from everybody without being called anti-social.
Yeah, I know better than to expect masterpieces, but it'd still be nice to fluke one now and again...
As for family gatherings, I'm probably already considered antisocial, so no real loss there. ;-)
(Oh, if you feel up to trying your luck sometime, the places featured in today's frustration session were the Tukwila Pond Park and the Black River Riparian Forest. As a warning, the latter's near a sewage treatment plant; high summers can evidently get a little fragrant in the vicinity...)
:( But, hey, at least you got 1!
symene = the maker of memory cards for Sompi cameras
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