Nature...what a wonderful thing

Recently I entered a photo into a photo contest in FOTKI which I have been a member of since 2005 but let it lapse and had to rejoin....The closest I got to the top 10 winners was spot 4..which I was kind of proud of the photo but looked at it as I could have done better....We are our worst critics...

I have been recently working on my yard because I want to photograph birds....So daily I go out there and sit at my table with my camera ready to shoot....In the previous years I have only been able to catch the Baltimore Oriole in a tree or just hear him singing..but in the past few weeks he has become a regular in my yard and I have been able to capture some fantastic shots of him and her feeding. They are no longer timid with me around...or they just love my grape jelly to death....Above is the photo which took 3rd place....I see it and still think I can do better...(looking for donations to buy a 500mm Nikon lenses (chuckles) it costs anywhere from $1500. to $3000.

My latest photo of Mr. B Oriole I think is better....but as of right now everyone here on the lake think it's awesome that my setup in my yard is bringing in more birds and with a variance of colors....Guess I just picked the right grape jelly..or maybe its the bowl I have it in...but whatever the reason  this pair just keep coming back to eat more jelly.....

Meet Mr. Blue Jay...he sits by my window all day and talks to me if I am at my computer wanting me to go outside....he doesn't fly away when I approach him either he just hops around my yard and always looks up to make sure me and my camera are pointed in his direction...what a clown....

I put  3 of my prints in a showing which hangs at the Cherry Hill Ice Cream Parlor they will hang there for a month.

Well that's whats happening in my world...

Beth

Springtime....I just love it

Orchard Oriole

With Spring here so are the colorful birds and flowers. I have put up more feeding stations in my yard, including a hummingbird feeder. I have spotted 3 hummingbirds but was so entranced in them I didn't get my picture, Eventually though it will happen as they start coming more. However the Orchard Orioles have made my yard their home and I can spot them visiting often and they don't fly off as soon as they see me.As the weather gets warmer I will take more photos and venture out more and explore places here in Michigan. June 11th I will be again hanging some of my favorite photos which I have taken from Western Michigan area at the Parlor Located in the Cherry Hill Market on Cherry Street.There will be 3 or 4 other photographers works of art hanging along with mine. Well, off to go see who is residing in my yard besides the 2 new families of geese and their gosling's (4 gosling's each) or the Mallard who has at least 8 ducklings in tow...Hope you have a memorable day...

Orchard Oriole

Blue Jay

Red-Bellied Woodpecker 

Time to make things happen

Today is really cold and wet outside. Michigan even though their weather is unpredictable is a very beautiful state with breath taking views and vast beaches. The colors change in the fall to reveal Michigan in all its splendor. Recently I spent 9 days down in Slidell, Louisiana and had the pleasure of visiting 2 very beautiful plantations as well as some small towns on the gulf. I took photos along the way and met some very awesome people. I learn about some real life stories involving Hurricane Katrina and how even after it the people pulled together to rebuild. I witnessed and documented some trees which were carved into Angel's and each tree has a story of salvation for people who clung onto them to survive. I also spent time in the French Quarters, however i did not care to much for it because it reeked of vomit, urine, garbage, and sewage, wrap all those smells up with temperatures of 88-90 degrees and you got the picture. I did however enjoy most of my time walking around the art district and watched some really awesome painters make masterpieces that I would have gladly bought and displayed on my walls at home.

Summer is upon us soon and I can't wait to just grab my camera and run off to parts unknown in my state. I do yearn to visit Leland, Michigan where the town is build over the water and boats travel along the boardwalk and dock to shop. I also want to visit a couple of lighthouses up that way to continue documenting Michigan's Lighthouses for my photo book I am working on.

The photo is of Houmas House Plantation in Darrow, Louisiana. I only wanted to stroll the grounds and after I left had wished I had taken a tour of the home also. my stroll entailed a couple walks around the property and looking at it at every angle. My third stroll I took the photos and tried to capture the beauty of this expanse home and its beautiful gardens.