I just returned from a trip to Florida's southeastern coast and while photography was not a primary goal it's always high on the priority list. However, being unfamiliar with the territory makes it hard (as you all know) and when you're on vacation it's hard to find motivation to get up at sunrise and by sunset you probably have indulged yourself too much to make good photos! Either way, I photographed 3 new species - two which were a wonderful surprise. The only catch is that I had to settle with using my iPhone to capture images of the two surprise birds, so sorry for the horrendous quality!
I was kayaking the Loxahatchee River with my girlfriend through Riverbend County Park and Jonathan Dickinson State Park (which is an amazing place to kayak/canoe so I recommend it to all!). We didn't know what to expect and I didn't have a drybag so I left the camera in the car - but it turns out I would have made a killing had I used my 18-200mm and had some sort of dry bag (or heck, even a cooler). Shortly after we began our trip we came across about 6 Limpkins lazily eating freshwater mussels along the banks of the river. They hardly noticed our presence and as you can tell from the photo allowed close approach (note that the Iphone has basically a super-wide angle lens so I was REALLY close).
As we continued down the river and passed our first gator, my girlfriend noticed something big fly into a tree downstream. When I got there I realized it was a Barred Owlet (there were some noticeable down feathers). We watched and admired this awesome bird for a little bit and then heard two others calling - a little ways down the river was an adult perched on a tree and we stopped to observe it. After about a minute, the owl took off toward us and landed 2 feet from my girlfriend along the bank of the river, nabbed a snake and flew over her into the tree with the owlet where it passed the food on. Then the other parent flew in. We couldn't believe it and were so thrilled to have witnessed such an event. When we got to the end of the "course" we had to paddle back up river and we once again found the owlet - sitting on the knob of a Cypress along the bank. I was about 5 feet away and it hardly noticed.
While I would have loved to have my camera with me - it wouldn't have done me that much good because of the lighting and the lack of maneuverability a kayak offers - and in a way it was nice to not have it as I really observed nature instead of focusing on how to photograph it. If you ever have the chance to visit this part of Florida - it's highly recommended!!
Nice catches!
I personally don't go ANYwhere without at least a point-and-shoot with decent resolution. They are not expensive, and one excellent shot makes the cost worth it, IMO.
Sounds like a really great trip!
Sandy
At least you have a good time and got to enjoy viewing wildlife. There are times that I leave my camera home just so I can enjoy what is there instead of being some wrapped up with trying to get that perfect shot. Of course I then curse myself out for missing some photo ops. Any idea what kind of snake was on the Owl's menu?
Yes it always seems to go that way - I had joked with my girlfriend that I knew we would see something good because I was without camera. Has happened so many times.
Not sure what species of snake - though it wasn't very big. A little while later we saw another snake swimming along the bank which was relatively small and seemed to have some color (red and others?) on it. Possibly a coral snake, but only it's head was out of the water
Discussion
4 repliesI was kayaking the Loxahatchee River with my girlfriend through Riverbend County Park and Jonathan Dickinson State Park (which is an amazing place to kayak/canoe so I recommend it to all!). We didn't know what to expect and I didn't have a drybag so I left the camera in the car - but it turns out I would have made a killing had I used my 18-200mm and had some sort of dry bag (or heck, even a cooler). Shortly after we began our trip we came across about 6 Limpkins lazily eating freshwater mussels along the banks of the river. They hardly noticed our presence and as you can tell from the photo allowed close approach (note that the Iphone has basically a super-wide angle lens so I was REALLY close).
As we continued down the river and passed our first gator, my girlfriend noticed something big fly into a tree downstream. When I got there I realized it was a Barred Owlet (there were some noticeable down feathers). We watched and admired this awesome bird for a little bit and then heard two others calling - a little ways down the river was an adult perched on a tree and we stopped to observe it. After about a minute, the owl took off toward us and landed 2 feet from my girlfriend along the bank of the river, nabbed a snake and flew over her into the tree with the owlet where it passed the food on. Then the other parent flew in. We couldn't believe it and were so thrilled to have witnessed such an event. When we got to the end of the "course" we had to paddle back up river and we once again found the owlet - sitting on the knob of a Cypress along the bank. I was about 5 feet away and it hardly noticed.
While I would have loved to have my camera with me - it wouldn't have done me that much good because of the lighting and the lack of maneuverability a kayak offers - and in a way it was nice to not have it as I really observed nature instead of focusing on how to photograph it. If you ever have the chance to visit this part of Florida - it's highly recommended!!
- Luke
I personally don't go ANYwhere without at least a point-and-shoot with decent resolution. They are not expensive, and one excellent shot makes the cost worth it, IMO.
Sounds like a really great trip!
Sandy
Not sure what species of snake - though it wasn't very big. A little while later we saw another snake swimming along the bank which was relatively small and seemed to have some color (red and others?) on it. Possibly a coral snake, but only it's head was out of the water