More Mergansers

More of the hooded mergansers from the lake behind our State Capitol. I am so happy to learn that these are year-round residents here, though this is the first year I've seen them. More information may be found at allaboutbirds.org.

You aren't wealthy until you have something money can't buy.
Garth Brooks

Linking with Weekend Reflections and Saturday's Critters.

Strike a Pose

Photos taken Jan 3 and Jan 12 around our Capitol. I don't mind seeing these guys when I'm out and about. Just as long as they stay the heck out of my yard.

A cherished gift from the bread lady.

Happiest squirrels don't have the best of everything, but they make the most of everything.
Squirrel Quotes on Twitter

Baeolophus bicolor

I love these acrobatic, animated birds with their mohawks, big eyes and tiny beaks. They are year-round residents in Louisiana and we're happy to have them. Photos taken January 7, 2014.

Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.
Proverbs 4:23

Tricolored Tuesday #5

Going back to my December 1st shots, more examples of the tricolored heron.

Don't look back.
You're not going that way.
Unknown

Extreme Close-ups

I was able to get super close to a great egret earnestly fishing on the side of a pond. This is the most laid-back one I've come across. Very patient and gracious.

If we magnified our successes
as much as we magnify our disappointments
we'd all be much happier.
Abraham Lincoln

Linking with I'd Rather B Birdin'
Thanks, Anni!!

Frilly

A great egret landed about twenty feet in front of me as I was walking around Capitol Lake the first week of January. He then proceeded to fan out his feathers as though showing off to a potential mate. I did not see any other egrets around, so I don't know if he was confused or what. Maybe he saw my camera and wished to be on the cover of Herongirl Magazine. :)

I base my fashion taste on what doesn't itch.
Gilda Radner

Miscellany and a PSA

Miscellaneous shots taken on an outing January 3rd.

Great Blue Heron

Mockingbird enjoying the peaceful setting.
I always imagine myself sitting in a place like this, but can never seem to actually do it.

Snowy egret

PSA: When I previewed this post, the photo of the snowy egret looked noticeably degraded in quality from what was appearing in Lightroom and Photoshop. The blue was more of a navy and the smooth water was filled with noise. Fiddling with the export settings did not help. I eventually discovered that the "Auto Enhance" feature in Google Plus's settings was not just for photos uploaded to G+, but it's applied to blog photos, too. That Google just takes it upon themselves to mess with photos that I have painstakingly edited makes me angry. After unchecking "Auto Enhance" under Google+...Settings...Photos, I re-uploaded the image. It's much better than it was, but I still find the quality and color off from LR and PS. Here is a better blog post explaining it if you care to read further. I just want to say to Google, "Knock it off!"

Photos from January 5th:

 Trio of canoers on the Tchefuncte River.

Lake Pontchartrain, Mandeville, LA, late afternoon
All of the photos that were shot with 200 ISO and f/8 came out looking 1/2 blue and 1/2 gray.
I wish I was technically savvy enough to know why, but I just accept and appreciate these happy accidents.
Maybe it was because dark clouds started to gather and my sensor was too low on sensitivity to record the scene properly.
The only editing applied was resizing, cloning out sensor dust in the sky, and a slight lighten.

I love the way the light hit the center of the Causeway Bridge

Water's like me. It's laaazy... Boy, it always looks for the easiest way to do things.
Bob Ross (painter and host of The Joy of Painting)

Butter Butts

A dear blogging friend told me about the nickname "Butter Butt" for the yellow-rumped warbler and now I can't refer to them any other way. I passed this knowledge on to my husband and he continually gets it wrong, saying 'butter balls' or 'yellow butts.' I no longer correct him; I know what he means.

Photos taken mid to end of December.

Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul.
Emily Dickinson

Tricolored Tuesday #4

Continuing on with my December 15th shoot, which was my second opportunity to photograph the tricolored heron.

The more high-tech our lives become,
the more nature we need.
Richard Louv

Check out other cool blogs from:

Our World Tuesday
I'd Rather B Birdin'

Thank you to the meme hosts!

Heard Museum

When I was in Texas for my "baby's" 30th birthday last July, he and his sweetheart took my dad and me to Heard Natural Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary. Talk about HOT. Oh my gosh. Flashbacks of 28 Texas summers was not a pleasant memory, so this was a very short outing. Besides, I had already been there with my daughter a few years before. Here are a scant few clicks I managed to get between water breaks and mopping sweat off my brow.

Passion flower. Reminds me of a sea anemone. 

Smile! You're on candid camera!

Button Bush aka Button Willow

I think this is a queen butterfly - female.

Unknown flower Globe mallow (thanks, TexWisGirl!)

To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.
Audrey Hepburn