A Tropical Wonderland! Many Photos

[Noel_Carboni]

With many of you fighting winter and snow, I'm happy to report it's still warm here in Florida!

I took a walk around the Green Cay Wetland in Palm Beach County, FL, with my 40D and 100-400 zoom last weekend. Finally got a little time to post some of the photos.

I filled a 2 GB card and could have used twice the space. There were SO many birds and SO much wildlife and SUCH beauty... Please let me share some of it with you. Click on any image to see a high res version.

The visitor's center in morning light...


A Snowy Egret watches the sun rise...


An Anhinga awakes. It hasn't made its first jump into the water to catch fish yet, and so it is fuzzy and dry...


We see a swampy mess in the mroning light, but the birds sure love it!


A Limpkin, its tongue stuck to the roof of its mouth, calls out. These guys are loud! Shortly after this photo it flew off after another Limpkin...


A Black Capped night heron stays up late...


A Green Heron watches the water for a tasty morsel...


Peek a boo!


A Common Moorhen gets a bit of warm sunshine. These birds forage around near the wetland floor.


A Purple Gallinule, similar to the Moorhen but more rare, prefers to climb the vegetation and eat the seeds...


A Little Blue Heron on the railing of the boardwalk...


A Tricolored Heron also on the railing...


This Anhinga has already been swimming, and is drying out its feathers...


I wouldn't want to be a fish when this Anhinga is swimming with its harpoon at the ready!


Another Tricolored Heron, hunting down in the sawgrass...


An American Bittern tries to blend in with the vegetation...


A Great Egret among the sawgrass... There were a lot of these birds in one area. A friend let me borrow his Canon 500mm f/4 for this shot. Schweeet lens!


A Great Egret in flight...


I always wondered how these big birds kept from getting skewered on the sharp sawgrass when they land. Apparently they do - look in the high res image. Ouch!


Who gets to be king of the pole? Why the largest bird with the sharpest beak of course!




A Harrier looking for small prey...


A Red Shouldered Hawk watches from atop the Cypress...


A Limpkin hunts its favorite meal - an Apple Snail...


Got one!


Hope you enjoyed this visit to Green Cay wetland as much as I did!

-Noel

[Martin_Doudoroff]

Nice avian candids! Thanks for sharing.

[Ron Metz]

Noel,

Beautiful shots. Did you use the Program setting for all shots? Also, when you used the 500mm f4 lens, how much better was the clearity/sharpness, etc. compared to the 100-400mm? Thanks.

Ron

[Marc_Schoenholz]

Noel,

Nice shots and thanks for sharing!!

When I have visited Florida I was very pleased with Wakodahatchee and the ability to capture birds mating, nest building etc. I have not been there when the chicks are born.

You are fortunate to live near so many places to capture images of birds.

Marc Schoenholz

[KevinStecyk]

Gorgeous shots Noel. Thank you for sharing your photographs with us.

[Noel_Carboni]

Thanks, guys.

Ron, the 500 provided a subtle - but definite - improvement over the image quality I'm getting with my 100-400. I think it's more in the way the background blurs away from the sharp parts, and the fact that there's really no CA anywhere in the image, where the zoom does give some at some focal lengths. Overall I'm VERY happy with my 100-400 zoom, insofar as I can shoot handheld with it quite effectively (all these are handheld).

-Noel

[Noel_Carboni]

Oh, and yes, I prefer to use 'P' mode for pretty much all shooting. Normally I leave my camera in this mode. When I'm composing I keep an eye on the aperture and shutter speed the camera is choosing, and slew the program (and sometimes change the ISO) if the choices are not what I would prefer.

-Noel