Girls' Weekend, Day 1

Goodness, y'all! I'm so far behind on posting and editing I don't know whether to scratch my watch or wind my butt. :)

In March, my high school BFF, Michelle, planned a wonderful mini vacay for us the first weekend of May. Neither of us had visited Percy Quin State Park before, so we treated it like a grand adventure. We hadn't had a sleepover since 1975! The weather couldn't have been more beautiful. The evening was cool, so we sat outside on the picnic bench in sweatshirts drinking wine. Oh, how I wish Michelle would let me post the video of her singing "Hello Darlin'" by Conway Twitty, using the mosquito repellant as a microphone. She's so fun and crazy! We now refer to ourselves as Lucy and Ethel. Guess who plays Ethel? And I'm okay with that! :)

Since there are so many photos, here is day 1:

We met my dad and stepmom here the first night for dinner.

A few glasses of these and I had a talent show on my hands. LOL

View from our screened porch.

In typical Michelle fashion she insisted on tidying up the place!

Can anyone help ID this cute little butterfly? I'm thinking some kind of Hairstreak.

First bird to see, an Eastern Kingbird.

Stay tuned to Part Deux!

Linking up with the lovely Anni!

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Wide Open

Ever since I took the basic photography course from the talented Aaron Hogan a few weeks ago, I've been playing with different settings on my camera. Lately I've been shooting on the largest aperture possible. For two solid years I had been shooting on f/8, and while that seems to be the sweet spot on all my lenses, the trade-off was losing that luscious, creamy background. In addition to going wide open with the aperture, I lowered the ISO, taking it off 1600 and putting it on 100, 200 or 400, depending on the light. I've really enjoyed taking control over my shots instead of letting my camera make the decisions for me.

Tiger Swallowtail.

Anyone know what kind of plant this is? The thorny stems fascinated me.

Macro of purple thistle.

An orange clump of pansies in the middle of purple and gold ones.

Two x Two

Cilantro

I was captivated by this pansy that sprang up between the bricks.

A great illustration of a smooth background as a result of f/2.8.

In this instance, f/8 would have focused more on the bee below. Do you see it?
But I wasn't going for that in this instance and I like how it turned out.

I appreciate everyone who stops by to visit. Thank you for lifting my spirits with your words of encouragement. So far, blogging once a week has been going pretty well. I still get to see what most of you are doing, and also have time to go out and see what the world has to offer.

February Highlights

Where did February go??? It seems like the days are whizzing past me before I can take stock of what has taken place. Yesterday I worked for my former boss, including two days last week. And, since my car had a costly repair, the work was timely.

Below are some highlights from February.

Close-up of Barbara the Barred Owl

Bluebonnet Swamp

Preening after spending hours in the nest.

You can hear her cooing to the eggs now. Its' very sweet!

The eggs are due to hatch next week. We are all super excited!!!

Snout nose Butterfly (American Snout)

Bluebonnet Swamp

Spreading its wings.

Rock pigeons on a hill
LSU Lakes

Canada Goose on a small strip of sandy beach at LSU Lakes.

I have no idea what this is. Looks like a cross between a swan and a goose.

A sweet little Chihuahua from the Mystic Krewe of Mutts Parade.

More to come...stay tuned!!!!

My prayers go to Anni at this time. Godspeed, dear girl.

Good Day, Sunshine!

It's hard to believe that on November 2nd I was sweating while photographing winged things at the arboretum, since most of us are experiencing record-setting cold temperatures this week. As I age, it gets harder and harder for my body to retain heat. Thyroid disease doesn't help matters. It took much effort to get off the couch where I was so comfy with my blankets and heating pad to prepare this post. I'm not complaining, mind you. I much prefer the cold to the sweltering heat. But that's just me.

Before we really get into winter and holiday mode, I thought I should share these images.

Gulf Fritillary

Gulf Fritillary

Checkered Skipper

Unknown bee

Unknown insect

If all goes as planned, Bridget and I are set to photograph horses at a ranch not far from town this morning. I'm so glad the frigid temps are starting to abate. I hope it is for you also. Take care and have a great weekend!

Winged Things and a Rant

Had an interesting encounter last weekend at the arboretum. I watched from a distance as a young (and very pretty) pregnant girl picked a small bouquet of flowers. Carefully she made her selections; however, one flower was rejected and placed on a brick post to wither and die.

When she made her way over to the rose section, closer to me, I saw no choice but to confront her. As gently as possible I informed her that she wasn't allowed to pick the flowers, that they were for everyone to enjoy, especially the butterflies and other insects who depend on them. I'll spare you the entire exchange, complete with eye rolls and sass. However, I remained calm yet firm.

As I was packing up my car to leave, she walked by, glaring at me, sans flowers. My jaw dropped open. I said "Where are the flowers?" She said, "Does it really matter? I mean, after you bitched at me, I no longer wanted them." "Well," I said, "that's just great. Now they're wasted. You really should have known better anyway."

Doesn't everyone know you cannot pick flowers from a local arboretum as though it was your own personal garden?!

Okay, rant over. Here are some critters I was able to shoot in between blood pressure spikes.

Guess who? Face blurred on purpose.

It's been a long time since I felt angry enough to confront a complete stranger, so it's still bothering me. Not one of my finer moments to say the least. My biking partner said she would have nicely informed her that twice a year the arboretum has plants for sale, but I didn't know that. Would you have handled the scenario differently?

Weekend Update

Howdy folks! The arts and crafts fair put on by St. Luke's Episcopal Church was a great experience. I loved spending the day with Sweet B and her equally sweet son. We met a lot of people, even making some contacts for future work. A lady from St. Amant purchased cards from both of us and asked us to photograph her horses and stables. There were three ladies who wanted photography lessons, and the guy in the booth next to us was interested in buying art for three locations of a business he was expanding. So even though sales were a little lackluster, we made some great contacts! Our minds were swirling with ideas like getting a web site, etc. Not sure where all this will lead, but I feel hopeful.

Some of you asked which notecards sold at the arts and crafts fair. Below are the ones that sold. You've seen them all before here at some point.

I have been a little worn out from the experience, so I promise to catch up with everyone during the week. Oh, and since I have so much extra card stock I am going to host a couple of give-aways in the near future. Y'all be good and have a great week!

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