Florida Workshops - Trip Report

March 3, 2022

I just finished up with my “Florida East Coast Bird Photography” workshops that Donna Bourdon and I did together-what fun! We both had wonderful groups and sometimes our groups photographed together when the location allowed. I was glad because Donna had some of my favorite workshop clients in her group. Once again Donna’s group gave her rave reviews for her abilities to lead the group. My group was a mix of old and new friends —some of which I have known and loved for years. Such an excellent group of people! We did an image review session where everyone shared some of their favorites, I was impressed by the talent in the room.

Here are some of my favorite images from the trip, though I have many, many, more to share. All were captured with my Sony A1 camera (that camera continues to impress me) with my Sony 200-600mm lens-did I mention how much I love that lens. All handheld, natural light, and manual mode.

The birds in Florida are so tame. I was able to get pretty darn close to many of them. We had really nice weather and only fought the sun on a few outings. Our trip to Viera Wetlands yielded a Great Blue heron nest with two chicks, it was pretty close to the pathway. We arrived just before sunrise and there was light fog. I created a few foggy nest images that I may share at a later date- just too many images to process. Some of my clients stayed on the nest and were rewarded as the chicks woke up to feed on an eel. I opted to walk around with the group to look for cranes. I found a very nice backlit Green heron instead. On the day before the group arrived, I went to Viera to see what was around and check out the conditions. It was in the middle of the day, and it was sunny and hot. As I walked around the loop, I encountered a Bobcat crossing the pathway in front of me. And no, I didn’t have my camera…ugh.

At Stick Marsh I captured a Roseate Spoonbill in flight with its legs crossed. I called it “Gotta Go.” The morning we went it was overcast and windy. We didn’t have a lot of light for flight and the spoonbills roost too far away to shoot unless they fly by, but every now and then one would get close enough to capture.

Merritt Island was almost a bust, but for the lone young Roseate Spoonbill that graced our morning shoot. That said, I loved that bird! It was so adorable and very accepting of us until a gator scared it off. The spotlight effect on its back (top image) is all natural, the sun peeked through the clouds in just the right place.

Sebastian Inlet had a Reddish Egret that danced for us. At Sebastian we photographed just about everything. My favorite photos from the inlet were the close-up of the juvenile Brown pelican and the Reddish Egret. But many of the group killed it on pelicans flying just above the surf.

Wakodahatchee Wetlands was a nesting paradise for Wood storks. There were also quite a few Great egrets displaying and I managed to get a shot, I’ll share my image soon. I also captured some good pictures of Anhinga and Wood storks but haven’t processed any yet.

In Lakeland, we photographed American white pelicans in gorgeous soft light. We also shot a nesting pair of GBH and that was loads of fun. After all was said and done the workshop was a great success. I think everyone had fun, learned some new techniques, met new friends, and captured loads of images to go home with.

A big shout out to Scott Young and his wife Pat-sorry I missed seeing you in Florida. Also another big shout out to Michael Zajac and Beverly Still for their assistance on this workshop, thank you.

Plans are underway to add a 2023 Florida East Coast Bird Photography Workshop (5-days) followed by an optional (2-day )add-on to Blue Cypress Lake, for nesting, flying, feeding Osprey, followed by a second (5-day) workshop to St. Augustine. Those interested can shoot me an email. Dates are in March of 2023. Exact dates TBA soon.

Backlit Green heron, I would usually expose even more to the right to open up the exposure on the birds to create an even more high-key look but I liked the green in the background.

Soft backlighting added to the look here. Many thanks to my tame model for the lovely pose.

American white pelican in soft light. i loved the breeding plate and wanted to share a pose that showed it off.

Wood Duck, drake, high-key with reflection.

“Gotta Go” This young spoonbill had a muddy neck and wind tips.

Crested Caracara

February 26, 2022

Florida has a lot of different locations for photographing birds. You have the East or West Coast, Central Florida and of course southern Florida including the Everglades. Each of these sections offer great opportunities for bird photography. There’s a lot of overlap of species in the different areas as well. No matter which area you concentrate on you are sure to find birds.

The photos in this post were created on the side of the road as my friend Michael and I we were headed to a specific location for first light. We spotted the Crested caracara as we were driving by and decided to turn around and check it out. We positioned ourselves across the street with the sun expecting to rise behind us. The caracara was eating some kind of roadkill, probably an opossum. It had picked up a large piece of meat from the carcass and carried it to an overgrown fence post; in mid-air most of the meal fell but the bird managed to hold onto one of the pieces before landing. Just then the sun hit the background palms and it looked like a fire. I was, of course, very happy as I watched this bird feed from the comfy of our private bird hide (the car). We knew if we got out of the car the bird would fly. The bird went about its business feeding on the roadkill which was located just off the road; each time carrying small pieces up to the fence post area. My friend and I decided to stay and enjoy this great photo opportunity and forget about our other plans for our morning shoot.

Years ago (about fourteen) Michael and I would go to Central Florida and spend our winter’s counting eagle nests. We kept a journal recording every adult bird, every egg, eaglets and/or fledglings (during our time). We recorded the nest sizes and locations and of course the behavior that we witnessed. We’d spend hours and hours in our car- blind just watching and making sure nobody was harassing the nests. It felt like a treasure hunt.

One year after Florida had a huge storm, we went back to find one of our favorite eagle nests knocked to the ground. The nest had been built on the top of a lone tree; it was a huge nest with a beautiful background. It didn’t suffer from Murphy’s law of nests which clearly states that any bird nest big or small will have that one branch that covers all the action or covers the bird’s face just as you shoot it. LOL!

The giant nest had been enhanced, mended, and carefully cared for by a pair of adults with five young eaglets. One of the eaglets was tiny and neglected by the adults and picked on by its siblings. We worried about that little one and knew its days were numbered as it held onto life. But, on our next visit that week, we saw this starving eaglet fight one of its siblings for a meal and won. I can’t tell you how happy Michael and I were. I think we both had tears streaming down our faces. Our little guy was going to make it. By the time we had left Florida he had continued to fight and win. We were like proud parents. So, to see that nest on the ground when we returned broke our hearts. We retired the journal that year… It is easy to get caught up in the trial and tribulations of these birds especially when you go back year after year.

One of the most heart- breaking videos I ever saw was a Great Blue Heron nest with an adult and two fairly large chicks. The nest was built over a body of water that was filled with gators. The adult was preening while her chicks were just sitting there minding their own business. When the adult stopped preening, she reached down and picked up one of the chicks and tossed it to the gators below, then began to preen again. Never once looking down as her young chick was gobbled up. I couldn’t make sense of it. Someone said that food must have been hard to come by that year and she knew both chicks would starve if she didn’t sacrifice one. As a mother myself, I found it cruel and hurtful at the time but have come to realize that it’s nature and it’s about survival-nothing more, nothing less.

Scouting in Florida

February 24, 2022

I arrived in Florida a few days ago. I wanted to do some scouting before my workshop start date. Since weather, local conditions and bird numbers are ever changing it is always best to scout some of the shooting areas in Florida beforehand.

My friend and helper Michael Zajac, picked me up at the West Palm Beach airport. He arrived in Florida about a week before me so that he could do some additional scouting. Donna Bourdon will arrive shortly and do even more scouting.

Scouting can be fun because you are on your own and can come and go as you please. Not having a schedule appeals to me. I always enjoy quiet time with my subjects as well as the opportunity to observe their behavior even if I’m not photographing.

Plus, it was nice to be in a warmer climate and enjoy some downtime. I especially like some of the hikes that Michael and I often do. Usually, we go to some “off the beaten path” location filled with miles and miles of endless trails covered in pine needles. We usually mess with our gps and walkie-talkies as we are both gadget geeks.

Even with careful planning and hours upon hours of scouting you just never know what you will get when you go out to photograph birds. Patience and the understanding that you are not photographing paid models always helps.

My gear for my upcoming workshops will be my Sony A1, Sony A9, Sony 200-600mm lens, Sony 70-200mm lens, Sony 24-105mm lens. I do enjoy traveling with my Sony gear, it’s lightweight and more manageable than traveling with my older Canon gear.

So far during this scouting trip, I have been to several locations, some twice! A few of my images from several locations so far.

Not Your Everyday Bird on a Stick

February 22, 2022

I often hear the phrase (and I have said it myself) nobody cares about a bird on a stick. Usually when someone says this comment, they are referring to the everyday run of the mill bird sitting on a branch shot. Don’t get me wrong, some can be quite lovely, but usually it holds the meaning that the shot needs something more to make it compelling than just a bird and a stick.

I think Donna’s bird on a stick shot featured above brings the meaning of that phrase to a new level. Not your average bird, not your average perch, not your average weather condition. I think the shot is fantastic, especially with the extended talons that stand out as well as the fully open wing position with fanned tail feathers. The bird is sharp and well exposed and the intense look on the eagle’s face with the colorful bill makes this a winner. Oh, ya, the snow doesn’t hurt <wink>.

Donna Bourdon just returned home from her very successfully Alaska’s Bald Eagle workshop that she conducted for A Creative Adventure Tours. Donna’s group spent 5 glorious days photographing the eagles from a private boat. I was so happy to hear that they had great weather and it even snowed for them.

During the Zoom image review session that I did with the group I had a chance to see many of their images. I was impressed by the quality and variety that each participant captured. I’ll be sharing some of them soon.

Donna received rave reviews from her group. One of the participants, when asked, wrote “Honestly, it was one of the best wildlife photographic experiences of my life and I feel like I was able to capture some of the best images ever as well”. Her 2023 back to back workshops are selling nicely. If you’d like to learn more about one of these workshops CLICK HERE.

Client's Images From Death Valley

February 19, 2022

From Paul: You and Mike were great leaders, taking us to some great sites, helping us to find the sometimes elusive lines in the sand, as it were, creating a fun atmosphere, and keeping me moving. I had a great time, and look forward to the next time I have the opportunity to join you on a workshop. Flicker Page- https://www.flickr.com/photos/preinstein54/albums

From Wendy: Folks can visit my Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/Wendy-Schneider-Photography-304508963037091

or website: https://www.wendyschneiderphotography.ca/

From Gerold:

Scale is so hard to show at DV, but I thought this image does a pretty good job of doing that. I want to personally thank the guy wearing red—whoever he is--for walking into the photo at just the right time!

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