Herons

A couple of years ago I spent a lot of time walking and taking pictures at Striebel Pond.  Just recently I've started going through these old pictures and I feel some are pretty interesting.  One day I photographed a great blue heron.

And a little further on I captured this great egret.  I had always thought these were great white herons but it turns on that those are only found in Florida and what we have here is probably a great egret.

I caught this one performing his morning toilette.

 

But what I liked most about these pictures is that this egret appeared to check out his reflection in the water



Before moving on to his daily grind.

You Capture - Inside

Beth's You Capture theme this week is Inside.  Once again I was at a loss....at first.  Then Eli gave me a hint when he sat inside this box.

I also looked in the backyard for inspiration and saw a bluebird inside the bluebird feeder with another on top waiting his turn.

Finally the waiter lost his patience but the insider warned the intruder away.

 After waiting a little longer and a little more patiently.

 There was a switch and for just a second there was nobody inside.

Yesterday I turned to the birdbath where one bluebird was inside, one waited on the perimeter and another arrived on the scene.

The bluebird inside wasn't budging despite a lot of grousing from the other two.  In fact he appears to be talking back.

 But the insider held his ground (or his water).

And finally I looked at the koi pond this morning and saw all these residents inside.

For lots more insider views, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry.

You Capture - Flowers

Beth's You Capture assignment this week was Flowers and I loved it.  Although many of the summer flowers have started to fade, they're still quite colorful and the fall flowers have begun to come into their own.

Here's a volunteer wave petunia.  I wish I remembered what the variety name is because I'm blown away by the array of colors stemming from one plant.

And speaking of an array of colors, how about the many shades of pink on this sedum.

Obviously I'm not the only one who appreciates the sedum.

Even the geranium shows well when you can't see how much of it isn't blooming. 

And finally the variegated liriope, known for it's foliage not it's flowers, puts on a nice show as we head toward the end of summer.

That's it from my backyard but to see a truly dazzling array of flowers, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry and if you dare, take a picture of your closest flower and join the fun.

You Capture - Windows

Beth's You Capture challenge this week was windows.  So during the week I asked her why she didn't choose something easier for ME and she just laughed.  I guess it really is about the challenge.

So I set out to find windows.  These were on the local courthouse.

And right up the street from the courthouse is the window mecca of the city.  In fact this hotel brags about it's windows!
 
 

Turns out windows weren't so hard after all.  In fact, they seemed to be everywhere.

To see more windows, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry.

You Capture - Green

Beth's You Capture challenge this week was Green and I have to say that 'was' is the key word here since I'm a solid two days late in participating.  I certainly hope the old adage 'better late than never' is true because I pretty much live by it.

I searched for Green at home and away and I think I had more success at home.  I'll start with the away efforts.

There's a drive we frequently take.  It's one mile of curves and streetlamps and green.  

And there's a car I spotted in a parking garage which sported an unusual shade of green.


And now for the green in my backyard.

The water hyacinths incorporate many shades of green.

And I like how the grasses and reeds at the edge of the pond have a predominately green background.

I have three hydrangeas near the pond and one of them has really green blooms.
 
 
 But my very favorite green blooms are those of the sedum before they turn pink.  What a versatile plant the sedum is.  It's hardy and has an interesting and decorative foliage before there are any blooms at all.  When the blooms appear, they are green until they eventually turn pink.

 

Finally, what could be greener than a couple of old pond friends playing board games in the flower bed.

And that's it for Green and this week's You Capture.  To see lots more green, visit Beth's I Should Be Folding Laundry.

Old Picture Files - 20100811

I used to walk and take pictures at Striebel Pond all the time.  Not only was the walking good for me, but I captured some great shots back then.  I have to give some of the credit to Beth's You Capture because a lot of the pictures I took were to fit into a certain theme or challenge.

But sometimes I took pictures just to see what I could get.

I've been trying to catch up on labeling old files and I ran across these from August 11th, 2010.  The light must have been just right to make it a perfect picture taking night because I love these snapshots of a night at Striebel Pond.

 I loved the red cast on the geese in this shot.

But a few minutes later with a different background and I loved the blue cast and the fact that the geese almost stood out like they were in 3D.

When I first looked at this shot, I saw silvery water and an orderly swan family.

But in this picture, the peaceful coexistence between the ducks and the swans was the focus for me.

 And at the end of my walk I loved the silver and gold in this picture.


And this last shot was taken deep into the evening on a bridge overlooking the night resting place for almost all the birds of Striebel Pond.

The only birds that never got to sleep here were the geese.  The swans never allowed them to be anywhere near them.  (To see proof, visit the 3-post series that started here) I'm sure it was the surly attitude of the geese too because the swans got along with everybody else.