Hey, Red Head

I have been watching for a Red-headed Woodpecker for a long time, and I was finally able to get a good photo of one while I was participating in an organized nature hike at Garbry Big Woods Sanctuary.

The hike was a lot of fun, but this photo was the best part of the entire two-hour event. There was actually two of them, and I also saw a Pileated Woodpecker, but I was not able to get a photo. Sometimes you take what nature gives you, and just enjoy the experience. 

~ Rick

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 Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Tree Swallow

The swallows are so fun to watch. They fly in crazy patterns that resemble a bird that smoked something or had a little too much to drink. Seriously, they are fun to just watch. They seem to play tag, and just have a good time.

I have tired to photograph one for a long time, but on this day, this particular swallow just didn’t move much. It perched on this post, and just let me take photos. I always saw a Bank Swallows too, but they were not as wllling to be photographed. 

~ Rick  

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 Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

A sunset sandwich?

I am going to dive into a little of the technical side of this photo today .. if you find this boring, let me know. I don’t want to do this often, but this photo seemed to call for it. 

HDR (High Dynamic Rage) photography can really make photos look unique. The iPhone can take amazing HDR photos. The user can set HDR to Auto, ON or OFF.

HDR photos are a combination of several photos, usually 3, each at different exposer levels. It is good to use HDR when you are taking photos in low light situations, or with blacklit scenes. I like to use it for landscapes, especially sunrise or sunset shots. 

There are apps that can help create HDR photos. For example, Pro HDR X. I prefer to just use the stock iPhone camera app. It really works great, and I used it for this sunset photo. 

The other technique that can make sunset photos interesting is to increase the saturation and highlights in the photo, while reducing the shadows. I did that on this photo using Snapseed. 

All that said, I just love a good sunset photo. The clouds make this extra cool. It looks like a sunset sandwich, with the sun between the horizon and the clouds.  

~ Rick

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 Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Green or blue?

Saturday was a very cold spring day. Teresa and I stayed indoors most of the day, but later in the afternoon, we took a drive. After a short pass by the eagle nest just south of PIqua, we took a headed to Garbry Big Woods.

I have seen more variety of birds there this year than any time in the past. I don’t think there are any more species flying around the reserve. So what is going on? I think I am listening and watching more intensely. I am connecting with nature more deeply than before. Retirement? Maybe. Whatever, I am enjoying this time in my life. 

I was disappointed that there was some kind of social event going on and lots of noise. The birds were silent and out of sight. On they way out, we drove by this remote little pond. It’s not the one where everyone was fishing, and playing. I saw this large winged bird ... what was that. It looked blue, and graceful, flying over the water. I could not get a photo, and I felt frustrated. I drove a little further and started looking for it. Teresa was the 1st to spot him. I saw him, and focused my 600mm lens his direction. I cropped the image to get the above photo.

This is a Green Heron. Yes, green. I saw blue, but what can I say. I did learn one cool fact about this bird: They are one of the few types of bird that will use a tool! Yes, they often will drop bait on the surface of the water, then grab the fish it attracts. Cool. 

~ Rick

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Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright

Mirror on the Lake

Sunrise was moments away, and dispite the light clouds, it looked like it was going to be beautiful. With a few minutes remaining, the lake suddenly became a large mirror. The lighting was just right, and the clouds and sky reflected off the mirrored surface. I don’t think this photo does it justice. Beautiful beyond words. Every color, every cloud .. it was all on the surface of the lake in great detail.

~ Rick

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 Prints are available for many of the photos on this site on canvas, metal or glass. They are stunning and you can purchase them for a wall at home. Click the link or the ‘prints and such’ tab.

©2018 Rick Cartwright