March 30, 2010 Dark Eyed Junco

I love that spring has arrived! The snow is fianlly gone, green grass is visible, and the birds are even more plentiful at the feeders! They are busy all day long eating and scratching beaneath the feeders. The sun has moved so the light is better on the north side of my house and the patio door is no longer frozen shut so if I'm careful and very quiet I can slide the door open for my photos instead of shooting thru the glass. Much better! Today I captured this little Junco as he looked my way when I slid the door open. I'm glad I didn't startle him as he continued to scratch at the seed shells looking for something more to eat. Enjoy your spring days where ever you are!

Blessings~

March 29, 2010 Chow Time!

Pretty Purple Finch at my new feeder. This one is squirrel proof, little springs pull the cage down and close the feeding holes when the squirrel climbs on due to his heavier weight! I'm likin' it and the birds seem to too!
Blessings!

March 28, 2010 Cascade Falls

I love waterfalls but here in ND in the Red River Valley, you don't see too many! This one is Cascade Falls in Osceola, WI. I photographed it last summer but was happy to have another opportunity to do so. I so enjoyed the sunshine but it made the slow shutter speed photos I had in my head difficult to produce. Every click of the shutter teaches me something however and while not the images I was looking for, I will enjoy looking at them!
Blessings

March 27, 2010 Sharp Shinned Hawk

Walking in the woods in Wisconsin, the noisy leaves startled and scared off the birds. Except for this guy (or gal). I was using my 55-200 lens and this is still very cropped. Sure would like the 70-300.... one of these days! Not sure of the identity, hawk but is it a sharp shinned hawk or a coopers hawk, I'm leaning towards sharp shinned.... This was a very exciting moment for me! Birds at the feeders really aren't a challenge, they are wonderful but somewhat expected. This however was a capture in the wild and I feel so blessed! If you can help me pin down the identity of this bird it would be much appreciated!
Blessings~

March 26, 2010 Afloat

Last falls leaves on the spring pond. I visited Wisconsin this weekend, beautiful spot and beautiful weather. There's a small man made lake for swimming in the summer. It has jus a bit of water in it right now, mostly snowmelt perhaps, they'll fill it later. On the surface were scattered last falls oak leaves. I don't have an oak tree, don't see them around town. I learned this weekend that many of the leaves stay on the trees all winter even thru wind, storms, rain and blizzards! A friend told me that often they won't fall off til the new ones come. There's a spiritual lesson there, if we want new in our lives, we have to get rid of the old! After a winter of snow cover I found the leaves to be soft and pliable instead of crisp and crumbly like the leaves in my yard. It was like they had just fallen off the tree! I took a long walk around the grounds thru the woods, loved the sound of the leaves as they rustled under foot and the smell of the ground and the forest waking up from the long winter. Feels good to wake up after a nap, rested, energized, refreshed, ready to go and grow!! I'm glad spring is here, I'm ready to go!
Blessings~

Caught you!! March 25, 2010

Been a couple busy days, cutting mats for photos and then matting nearly 50 prints. Not as much time as I'd like to shoot photos. There is always a subject outside my patio door however. Most often birds and fairly often my little squirrel friends. Now that temps are warmer I try to carefully and quietly open the sliding glass door enough to stick my lens outside. Sometimes it works and sometimes all the birds fly away. Such was the case today, the birds scattered buy my friend held his place in the tree. I'm off for the weekend, going to a retreat in Wisconsin, bring some of my photos along for a small exhibit/sale. This is a yearly treat for me and am looking forward to seeing friends I haven't seen since last year! It's beautiful there too near the St Croix River, hoping to stop by a waterfall I know. If I can, I'll share some pics next week!
Blessings~

Pretty Pink March 24, 2010

Today the geranium blossom was fully opened! There are tons of buds and so I will have lots of pretty little blooms in the days and weeks ahead. A little taste of summer days to come! As I look out into my yard and my gardens it is clear that there is some work to be done before I will see any bloom outdoors! All the hard work is worth it when your gardens begin to bloom however! I can't wait to share some of it with you!

Blessings~