The Osprey That Catches My Eye

 Every morning I stand on our balcony, taking on the view and the breeze that flows in.

Every morning some bird flies around.

Some of those birds are just plain blackbirds, others are pigeons and some others are pelicans. 

And every morning I try to do a few "clicks" just for the fun of it.

Some of those clicks are random settings, others I try to remind myself of what Rodney taught me and follow those suggestions.

This particular morning the osprey who lives down the lane...literaly, was my model and I tried to follow Rodney's suggestions.

I used my Nikon D750 with the 500mm lens.

I used apperture priority settings and each photo's metadeta is such:

1/2500 sec. f/8 500mm, ISO 400

They passed through Lightroom only to be converted from raw to jpeg. 

While the setting is constant the lighting is not hence the variance in the coloration and light. 

Basically the camera was in control and all I was doing was tracking the bird. Something I don't normally do because I like to be in control hence never use anything but manual settings.

 This guy flew in and around, and I tried to keep up with his flight. 

Somewhat successful.

I know where he/she and his mate live, a few blocks from our residence, perched somewhat way up there.

Didn't have my long zoom lens on this occasion so clicked with a Z 50mm...as I said......somewhat way up there.

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Line From A Song! Week 8

 "Music and photography share similarities in many ways. Both are forms of artistic expression that appeal to the large audience but leave enough room for everyone to make sense of it in their own way. This week we are marrying these two art forms by shooting a photo inspired by a Line From A Song. "

Sittin' in the mornin' sun

I'll be sittin' when the evenin' comes

Watching the ships roll in

Then I watch 'em roll away again, yeah

I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay

Watchin' the tide roll away, ooh

I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay

Wastin' time....

Blue Herron

Blue heron

Standing on the shore

While we wandered all along

Little Lizard

I've sunken down to And I don't mind 

I can't find My way out of this witch'sbrew Livin' for the lizard life  
Livin' for the lizard life I stumbled.

Blackbird

 Blackbird singing in the dead of night

Take these broken wings and learn to fly

All your life

You were only waiting for this moment to arise

 

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Sundays in Stuart 2023 (part 1)

 Sundays in Stuart is not like any other Sunday, or any other day for that matter that I have experinced.

Sundays in Stuart is when the whole community and then some, come together.

The morning starts with the farmers market. 

Flagler Park is covered with vendors selling their ware; from consumables to wearables.

Once the farmers' market has had it's "scene", comes the free concerts at the pavillion.

The place is packed!

 I mean packed with locals and tourists. Each taping/stomping their feet to the music. And that is not all that goes on...every restuarant and pub around the area is covered with people. People eating, people drinking and people enjoying what is being offered.

.....And for me....while I am enjoying and taking it all in...I am still trying to capture a few here and there.

Sundays are the best day to be a street photographer in Stuart Florida.

The next couple of posts are based on what caught my eye on Sundays in Stuart.....

  The farmesr market runs from 9:00 am to approximately 2:00 pm each and every Sunday and there are tons of food to eat, pruchase or just gawk at.

But I must admit, one of my favorite stands is the Local Fisheries East. 

I know the owners, personally. They are the nicest people ever and they have the BEST and freshest shrimps and stone crab claws you have ever tasted. 

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Mckee Botanical Gardens

 McKee Botanical Gardens located in Vero Beach is an 18 -acre lush jungle landscape, which supports Florida's most extraordinary botanical collections.

McKee was founded in 1928, closed in 1976, and then reopened in 2002. Reviving and now improving the garden has been a Vero Beach community project.

The story behind the Mckeen Botanical Gardens goes as such: 

When Waldo E. Sexton and business partner Arthur McKee bought this property, their plan was to clear it for citrus groves. Instead, Sexton, brought in well-known landscape architect William Lyman Phillips to design a series of ponds and waterfalls and vistas. Good friend David Fairchild (of Fairchild Tropical Gardens in Miami) supplied exotic plants. And soon, newly mobile Americans driving down U.S. 1 to South Florida were stopping and visiting McKee Garden by the thousands.

Like most mid-century roadside attractions, McKee Garden could not compete with the likes of Disney. With freeways, few drove by its gates and in 1976, McKee Garden closed. 

Most of the land became condos and golf courses. A mere 18 acres, including the historic McKee Garden Hall of Giants, lay dormant until a citizen campaign in the 1990s succeeded in raising money and purchasing it.

Since then, McKee Botanical Garden has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and devoted Vero Beach donors and volunteers have helped preserve, restore and replant.

Map of McKee Botanical Garden in Vero Beach

(source)

 

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