wandering

I had the most wonderful afternoon shooting the reflections at Smithers Pond.

The light was late afternoon with the sun low and warm in the sky. 

This was taken at the edge of the pond.

The colors were beautiful.

I couldn't find my way through the thicket to get to these sunlit leaves hanging over the water, so I plowed through the prickers as far as I could go and shot through the brush. 

I love the dreaminess of it all. 

It was a perfect afternoon.

The Scottish sun

There is something so magical about the Scottish light, especially in the autumn months. I traveled down this path and wandered along the narrow trails bordering the ponds.

Wouldn't you love to spend the day under this tree reading 

The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben?

A pleasant pheasant walk...

Look who I saw wandering in the grasses,

after an exhausting day of staying safe.

Now strolling leisurely in the fleeting Scotland sun.

Scotland time

I'm off to Scotland tomorrow.

I plan on spending time on the ground looking out into the grasses to see what I can see.

Maybe I'll find someone looking back at me.

Or maybe I'll get lost in the colors and forget where I am

And take a little nap while the rest of the world dissolves around me.

a beach gathering

Back in the day when the sun used to shine....

a fly by

Had my attention on the songbirds when this great blue heron flew by.

I was so happy that I was able to capture any of his flight. Especially when I was manually focused on the tiny songbirds right in front of me. 

I was entertained by my favorite mockingbird singing his little heart out while all this activity was going on. 

a light show

What do you do when you're motivated to shoot but the light is contrasty and horrid? 

Go find fabulous leaves that are backlit by the sun!

It's hard to believe so many beautiful colors are hidden from us until we view it down the barrel of our lens. The world just opens up for me when my camera is in my hands. 

along the shore

I think that Great Blue Herons are spectacular. 

This one lives in Florida. Look at the enormous wing span! 

kayak time

The  tide was high, the bay was calm

 and the late afternoon light beckoned me. The birds were everywhere along the shoreline.

Great egrets, blue herons, snowy egrets and songbirds. I grabbed my camera and very quietly found my way to the kayak, in hopes of going sight unseen. The entire flock took to wing and left me sitting in the water quite alone. They just left, altogether, gone, zippo.

 It seems I have lost my touch. 

But this lone Great Egret took pity on me and remained behind. 

He preened and watched me as I watched him.

We enjoyed the next hour just being in each other's company. 

Until I discovered a Great Blue Heron in the canopy of a tree and I slowly paddled over to have a look see....