I have been sharing a lot of squirrels lately but as you know the Cafe also caters to our avian friends. So I thought that today I would show you this photo from Easter Sunday.
I photographed a few of our Spring flowers this afternoon and got some really nice shots. The Sun was bright and I think I caught it nicely as it showered the petals of my subjects. I could however use your help with something. Embarrassingly I cannot remember what kind of flower this is.
It's definitely not a Daisy but I don't know what it is. It has dozens of flowers that are probably about two inches wide each. Some smaller. There is not much of a scent. It is however very pretty and another reminder of the warm weather that is on the way. On another note I have another squirrel video for you. I have been able to get closer and closer to them.
For a couple of days I have been wanting to take some of our Spring flowers outside to photograph in natural daylight. The wind we have been having however has prevented that. At least for the most part. I was able to take one out though. Our Daisy. The Daisy is nice and short and didn't blow around too much. So for today's photo I would like to show you this.
How would you like to see a squirrel pic today? I hope you said yes because that's what I am sharing. I made this photo yesterday at the cafe.
And since I have been in a video sharing mood lately check this one out from Valley Forge yesterday morning. It's two minutes of "My Favorite Tree". See it as I do in the peacefulness of the early morning.
Happy Easter everyone! Over the past few years I have come to start an Easter tradition of visiting Valley Forge to photograph the sunrise and then whatever else I am in the mood to work with. Well though I continued this tradition today I was unable to get the sunrise because it was way too cloudy. But that's okay because I was able to concentrate on other areas. Of course I shot a lot of frames of "my favorite tree". I can never seem to get enough of it. I would dare say I have photographed that tree on several dozen occasions and probably well over a thousand frames. Probably a lot more than a thousand. After I was done with the tree I did one of the things I often preach about in photography. I turned around. I always say that turning around can often lead to an even better scene than that I just finished with. I guess it boils down to observing everything around and really take in the environment. Even if it is somewhere I have been many times before I might just see it in a different way or from a different angle. This keeps it fresh if you know what I mean. At least that's how it is for me. So today I am sharing what I saw when I turned around.
The moment I started to process the RAW image I knew this had to be black and white. When I got home from the park the Garden Cafe was filled to the gills with diners. Big birds and little birds alike. And our squirrels too of course. The fountain bird bath got lot's of visitors too. Here's a video showing many birds coming and going.
This is best viewed full screen in 1080P HD. It's kind of long but there is a lot of action from start to finish. Feel free to scan through it. And now...
Before I go I would like to give you a quick history as to how my tradition of visiting Valley Forge on Easter morning started.
Several years ago both of my parents passed. My dad in 2004 and my Mom in 2005. They are both buried at the cemetery at Washington Memorial Chapel located at Valley Forge. I try to visit when I can and a few years ago I went on Easter morning and just sort of did so every year since. It sort of makes this very special day even more special. And though the day can be somewhat solemn it is also very inspiring too.
Thanks for stopping by to read my blog my friends! I really appreciate it. Please be sure to come back real soon because I have a lot of good stuff coming your way.
Kim and I had a busy day today. We were all over the place doing this and that. At one point we visited Nor View Farm in King of Prussia to buy some Spring flowers. Well Nor View has goats, chickens and other animals that you can visit and feed so you know I had to grab a few photos. And naturally I am sharing one with you in today's post.
I was also able to shoot a quick video of this very talented goat.
Over the past couple of years I have continually expanded the "Cafe" in our front garden and literally changed an environment that had very little birds and squirrels to a place where they flock. It takes a lot of work and lots of food but it has been worth it. I can't imagine looking out at a quiet critter free yard. Also as time goes on the local wildlife is becoming more and more friendly and much less skittish of me. Most of my squirrel photos are made with a long lens from a distance. Today's photo was made with my camera phone. A Samsung Galaxy S6.
This may not seem like much but I was a lot closer than this looks and the squirrel came up after I was in place and ready to photograph. You can see more in this video I shot when I made this picture.
Continuing with the Spring theme I have been running with this week I would like to share this tulip with you today.
Tulips are one of my favorite flowers to photograph. This is one that we bought last weekend. It's actually the tulip with it's bulb in a glass container. There is no soil so you can see everything. It's really cool. I m hoping that I can plant the bulb and see a new flower each Spring. I guess we'll see. And now...
It seems that business is picking up at the Cafe. During the cooler months I would only have to fill the feeders once every two days or so but now that the weather has warmed up we are getting loads of diners. And when I got home this afternoon I saw this one enjoying some seed.
The warm weather is slowly creeping in and after a cold morning the afternoon was quite pleasant. After dinner this evening I was able to spend some time in the garden sprucing things up a bit. I leveled the bird bath so the water wouldn't spill and the fountain would work properly. I also did some cleaning and mulching. By the time I was done it was dark so I haven't made any photos yet. Earlier however I took our Amaryllis outside to document it's progress and I would like to share that with you today.
It is now 35 inches (89 centimeters) tall but I think it's probably about done. The flowers are opening and should be at full bloom real soon. I'll be sure to share more photos when they are. And now...
It may be a bit chilly outside and the winds don't make it any better. But I was looking up at the sky from our back deck and saw that the Moon was nice and bright. And mostly full. I just had to shoot it. So despite the wind I gave it a try and shot several photos. I think this one turned out the best.
F5.6 1/1250 Second ISO 200 300mm
Even the slightest wind can jar the lens enough to make a blurry photo. I shot about 50 frames to get this one.
Today is the official start of Spring and naturally we are having some of the coolest weather we have seen in a while. While Christmas day was in the 70's we are lucky if we saw 45° F (7° C) today. Right now we are at 36° F (2° C). But we assured that it will get warmer as the weeks goes along.
About a year ago I made several posts about our amaryllis. In fact here is a link where you can find them. I was amazed at how fast it grew. Especially because I had purchased it in a kit and didn't plant it for quite a while. Well as you can imagine the flower finally died off and so did the leaves. All there was left was a small stump. But I still kept if watered. And almost a year later I saw it's stem begin to grow. And grow and grow and grow. As of today it is 33 inches (84 centimeters) tall. And the flower has begun to open. Check it out.
And to show you just how tall it is I am including this photo.
Of course I'll be sure to share more photos as it opens.
Spring is upon us and it has sent one of it's ambassadors to let us know. This isn't the first robin I have seen lately but it is a welcome reminder that Winter is almost gone.
I was sitting in the cafe this morning and was trying to grab some more squirrel shots and this guy literally just hopped on in. He was picking at some seed an bread I put out. I have also seen cardinals but haven't been lucky enough to photograph them yet. Now when the hummingbirds return we'll know the warm weather is here to stay a while. And now...
This is going to be quick my friends. I am getting to this a bit later than I wanted to so let me get right to today's photo. This is another shot from last weeks trip to Smithville Village.
One of the many roosters we saw that day. Not a hen in sight but plenty of these guys. And now...
What a beautiful day my friends. Mostly sunny and nice and warm. When I got home I was able to spend some time in the Cafe. Boy was it a mess! But after and hour and a half of raking, sweeping and bagging up debris I am happy to say that it is once again up to the standards my customers demand. I had planned on doing some photographing but by the time I was done cleaning everyone had gone for the day. So for today I am sharing another squirrel shot from yesterday.
Spring is almost upon us and it sure feels like it. Though according the the weather forecasters there is a chance of snow by Sunday afternoon. But how often are they right? Today when I got home there were two squirrels running around our front yard foraging for food. I guess the ton of peanuts I put out earlier didn't do it for them. So I tossed more out and grabbed my camera. Dozens of frames later I got this awesome shot.
Today I would like to share another seagull photo that I shot on that jetty in Atlantic City. It's not as unique as the first one from a couple of days ago but I still like it.
Sometime I'll have to show you how I got onto the jetty to grab these shots. And even worse, how I got down. For a moment I thought I had to decide between breaking my camera or myself. I am happy to say we both made it down okay :) And now...
Have you ever seen a chicken climb a tree? Well I haven't. That is until this past weekend when Kim and I visited Smithville Village in Galloway New Jersey.
Okay maybe this is more common than I know. And he didn't really climb up there. He kind of jumped. And it's really not that high. But I still have never seen a chicken do this before. And now...
Kim and I are home from our weekend in Atlantic City but before we left we took a drive to the Boardwalk to see if any progress was made in the restoration at the north end. This is the section I mentioned in a previous post that wraps around into the bay. Well it looks like they are coming along pretty good. There are a lot of footers in place and I suppose they will start laying boards down soon. While I was doing my snooping I climbed up onto a jetty to get a better look and as I turned toward the ocean I saw a bunch of seagulls resting on the rocks. And that is the subject of today's photo.
This was a lucky shot. If you look at the seagull with his wings out you will see that he was taking off over the water. I didn't even know I snapped this until we got home and I was going over the day's work. There will be more coming your way soon so stay tuned. And now...
It has been a good day photographically my friends and I have lots of stuff to share with you. So to start out I figured there would be no better way than by showing you this morning's sunrise over the Atlantic. It was a bit cooler out there than it has been for most of the week but still very pleasant for the middle of March.
Pretty much the same place I shot my last set of sunrises a few weeks ago with just a little different perspective. And that tugboat showed up at the last minute.
It's really late my friends so this is gonna be quick! Kim and I are on another short trip to Atlantic City so I thought I'd show you the view from our Suite. How's that sound? Cool! Have a look.
Not my best work but it was a quick shot with my camera phone.
Yesterday I wanted to share an early morning photo from the Cafe but I just didn't get anything that I thought was good enough. Well this morning I was able to get out and try again and I was able to grab a shot of this guy enjoying his breakfast.
I was glad to see him. It hasn't been that busy lately. The strange thing is that some days I get almost no birds and then one day it will be packed. I guess it must be something to do with the time of year.
Today I wanted to share a photo from the cafe that I shot this morning. And I shot a lot. But sometimes it just doesn't work out. I didn't like any of them. Well that's not quite 100% true. I liked the composition of a few of them but the quality was lacking. So once again I am sharing a photo from Longwood.
Yep! Another orchid. And there's lots more where this came from. But hopefully tomorrows work turns out a bit better. And now...
Wow! There are only 11 days until Spring and it sure does feel like it. We hit the low 70's today and it's supposed for be even warmer tomorrow. For today's photo I would like to share something that actually reminds me more of Autumn. Though I don't know if it's really an Autumn thing. Does that make sense? Have a look for yourself.
Yesterday I told you that I had a little time to photograph some of the flowers in our home and I shared our new African violet. Today I would like to show you our orchid. You have probably seen this before because we have had it for about two and a half years and I just love shooting it. After several months of dormancy it started to bud about a month or so ago. It was slow going (or growing?) for a while but I recently moved it to a different window and wow what a difference! It sure has taken off again. And I think I need to transplant it to a larger pot soon.
My Sister Elaine gave this to us and I am pleased to say that though it's our first (and only for now) orchid I must be doing something right because it is still going strong. I know I'm not supposed to but I water it two days a week. Just a little each time. But it works so that's what I'll keep doing. And now...
Yesterday's View...
Click the link below to check out what I shared yesterday.
