Friday, January 20, 2012

Huddle

 Cold.  Frosty.  I'm in Wisconsin visiting family and with it, I come with an agenda.  I have been given the gift of gifts......a zoom lense that puts all zoom lenses to shame.  This is not using my new zoom lense or tripod, but it will be the beginning of several photo shoots, environmental issues, and places to check out around the Lakeshore area for this week.  I have hope of getting a picture on an owl, but if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen.  Today's theme is on the frozen waters of Lake Michigan.  There were snow flurries.  The sky was grey.  And it was cold.  So cold, that the waters partially froze in the nearby rivers.  Here we witness several shots of ducks and seagulls huddling close together enduring the freezing temps.
 This shot captures the front views from my parent's house. I always wonder how life can survive during our winter months.  Everytime I come from a visit from Arizona, it gets more difficult to endure these terrible temps.  The wind whipped up a storm here and my ears and hair froze.  Note to self, I will need gloves, scarf, and hat if I am going to survive these photo shoots.   
Seagulls are a common bird in the Great Lakes area.  Things have changed here as some birds don't migrate like they used to in the past.  Because of warmer temps, some birds, which include geese, have been hanging around the lakeshore area all year round.  Two Rivers is a beautiful town and a place I'm proud to call my hometown.

10 comments:

  1. oh welcome home!
    yeah, you got to made of tough stuff to live in Wisconsin in the winter.....but there is beauty everywhere..and a fascinating environment where life goes on...
    Here in Ill it is in the teens and we are expecting 5-8 tonight
    yuck...but then...I give myself a talk to SEE what is there around me
    I love that you have a new zoom...what kind of camera do you use....your shots are always so great....May the sun come out while your here and blue skies reign above....

    ReplyDelete
  2. Je suis toujours admiratif de voir tous ces oiseaux traverser des hivers difficiles pour eux,et, pour un grand nombre, survivre aux pires intempéries.
    Belle chronique encore, aujourd’hui.

    Roger

    ReplyDelete
  3. oh, right there on the lake must be FREEZING cold! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. That looks like a nice trip, but still no snow on the ground? Weird! Last winter's trip to Fargo and NW MN was amazing for me...some thought I was crazy. Seeing that as a visitor is quite special!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sounds like a big contrast from your normal desert weather to there Rohrerbot!

    Here, the winter can go either way - cold, or wet and not so cold ;-0

    ReplyDelete
  6. What an interesting blog you have here! Thank you for visiting mine.

    Nice photos of the chilly gulls and I will look forward to seeing the results from your new lens eventually.

    I was enchanted by your story of the Firefly pranks, so nice to have fond memories like that.

    Enjoy your stay with your family.

    ReplyDelete
  7. That looks like a nice area for birding! Have fun visiting family. :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Just wait. This was kind of the "cover" page to the series. I'm actually back in Arizona. We had a blast back home but some of the interviews and photo shoots are some of my best. I like to work ahead of myself so that I can get some of the research completed. For an example, I had to contact the director of a local historical area to make sure my facts were correct. I several of those interviews coming up. Suz, unfortuneatly, we won't be getting to see the telephoto lense until I get to the Whitewater Draw series on Sandhill Cranes. That lense is wicked fun and is 1000 mm but it's a bit tricky to manipulate out in the wild....it must be completely steady and any breeze will throw the shot off...but it has created some interesting results. My favorite is the 500 mm and it requires a quick hand on the manual focus but it's my preferred lense of the 3. I think I'm going to ask Santa for one other lense this upcoming year that will allow for faster snapshots. It's cold...and now my parents say snowing A LOT!!! I'm glad to be home again and this weekend, I'm doing some more work and interviews for next month. This is too much fun and the best part....meeting the cool people behind the scenes in the garden centers and wildlife areas.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh, boy! A new lens and new places to explore. I can't wait. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sea gulls??? WOW! How awesome is that!!! Hey...have a ton of fun with your new lens. I just saw one camera made by Nikon that is such a lovely sahe of pink (with matching lenses)...ohhhhhh I would love to have that!!! For now, my cell phone is taking most of everything (I seem to always have it). Looking forward to the owl pic as soon as you find one! I usually see one sitting up on top of our power poles here...keep looking UP!
    :)
    Julie

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by!