Spring Vacation 2023
March 20, 2023 - Spring break 2023 was a great week for bird photography in Central FL! Sandhill Crane colts, nesting Roseate Spoonbills, & Great Egret chicks
While the blog started as a record of my backyard garden and birds, it quickly grew as I discovered bird photography. This page contains images taken “beyond the backyard” during my travels around Central Florida (and beyond!)
March 20, 2023 - Spring break 2023 was a great week for bird photography in Central FL! Sandhill Crane colts, nesting Roseate Spoonbills, & Great Egret chicks
March 18, 2023 - Bird photography fun at the rookery followed by a gorgeous sunset - it's just another afternoon at Orlando Wetlands Park!
March 17, 2023 - Roseate Spoonbills play musical trees in their nesting habitat in beautiful afternoon light. A photographer's dream!
March 16, 2023 - A Bald Eagle hunts for breakfast at Orlando Wetlands, finally grabbing a siren from the water and flying off with it
March 14, 2023 - The new boardwalk at Orlando Wetlands is great for bird photography! Spoonbills, Limpkins, Kingfishers, and Coots that walk on water!
March 13, 2023 - Sunrises at Orlando Wetlands can yield dramatic orange skies, accentuated by nesting birds flying in with sticks!
March 6, 2023 - Afternoon bike ride and photography at Lake Apopka yielded Northern Flicker, Gray-headed Swamphens, and a gorgeous Northern Shoveler
March 1, 2023 - Springtime walk at Lake Morton yields great light and great birds! Redhead, Wood Ducks, and American White Pelicans
February 26, 2023 - Sometimes the lighting conditions, weather, and subjects come together in a magical way, like when the sun's glow illuminated these American White Pelicans
February 23, 2023 - Roseate Spoonbills are nesting at Orlando Wetlands and the photographic opportunities are amazing
February 20, 2023 - The new Orlando Wetlands boardwalk gives photographers access to the cypress swamps, yielding dramatic sunrise landscapes and fun flight shots!
January 13, 2023 - An afternoon walk at the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive yielded warblers, Blue-winged Teal, and a ton of White Ibis!
May 22, 2022 - A small flock of 10 American Avocets surprised me at Fort De Soto in early May. Flight shots in breeding plumage = happy photographer!
May 8, 2022 - Spring morning photographing shorebirds on Outback Key - Piping Plover, Snowy Plover, Reddish Egret, and surprise American Avocets
December 4, 2021 - A late November walk at Oakland Nature Preserve yielded Field Sparrow, Grasshopper Sparrow, and several species of woodpeckers
November 30, 2021 - Recent bobcat sightings drew me to the Circle B Bar Reserve, where a Pileated Woodpecker and a Common Yellowthroat entertained my camera
November 27, 2021 - A Roseate Spoonbill greeted me on my walk at Lake Apopka, where I also saw a Gray-headed Swamphen and soaring Northern Harriers
November 21, 2021 - A November walk around Circle B Bar Reserve yielded my first-of-fall Robin, Bald Eagles, a Black-crowned Night Heron, and Purple Gallinules
November 17, 2021 - The skies were full of winter ducks in this mid-November visit to Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. Plus a Redhead and a Roseate Spoonbill!
November 15, 2021 - The sparrows are back at Lake Apopka. I dipped on the Lincoln's but found plenty of Savannahs and Swamps. Plus a juvie Gray-headed Swamphen!
October 27, 2021 - A juvenile Bald Eagle defends his nest from a Peregrine Falcon, a Northern Flicker shows off his yellow undersides, and Osprey dives for fish
October 21, 2021 - Winter birds continue arriving at the Lake Apopka Wildife Drive, including Blue-winged Teal and a very cooperative Peregrine Falcon
October 18, 2021 - A quiet morning for birding as I enjoyed another bike ride at Lake Apopka. Belted Kingfisher flight shots and first-of-fall Eastern Phoebe
October 15, 2021 - Winter birds photographed on my bike ride at Lake Apopka - Merlin, Marsh Wren, American Redstart, and Black-throated Blue Warbler
October 11, 2021 - The Painted Buntings are back at Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive! Great photography bike ride also turned up Yellow Warblers and a Pine Warbler
October 8, 2021 - A cardinal thought my bike was his new perch on my latest trip to Lake Apopka. Plus Prairie Warblers and a hungry Red-shouldered Hawk
October 4, 2021 - Fall photography peek-a-boo with warblers at Lake Apopka: Prairie Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat
September 28, 2021 - Lots of yellow on the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive in late September: yellow warblers, yellow flowers, and returning migrant birds!
September 19, 2021 - Kingfishers, Common Yellowthroats, and Yellow Warblers mark the start of transition to fall at the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive.
September 15, 2021 - A slowpoke Green Sea Turtle took her time to nest and return to the ocean at Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge
September 12, 2021 - Another bike visit to the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, where I discovered the secrets of Purple Gallinules and other summer birds
September 8, 2021 - Photos of a nesting Loggerhead Sea Turtle as she finished laying her eggs at Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge and then returned to the ocean
September 5, 2021 - A late July morning at Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive yielded feeding herons and bitterns and a fun family of Barn Swallows
September 2, 2021 - July visit to Lake Apopka. An Indigo Bunting waved at me, Least Bitterns fished, and a pair of Common Ground Doves got the cuteness award!
August 31, 2021 - More Lake Apopka birds, photographed from Lust Road. Juvenile American Coot, night herons, Downy Woodpecker, and a Fulvous family!
August 29, 2021 - Least Bittern family with three fuzzy babies who grew up at Lake Apopka in between feedings from Mom and Dad!
August 27, 2021 - A nesting sea turtle makes a sunrise walk on the beach very special. The Green Sea Turtle covered her eggs, then disappeared into the sunrise
August 25, 2021 - Saharan Dust Sunrise over the canals of the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. Spectacular oranges, pinks, and purples lit up the skies that morning!
August 23, 2021 - Quest for Least Bittern flight shots in a mid-June visit to Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. Plus stilts, swallows, and Purple Gallinules!
August 21, 2021 - Mid-June images from a Least Tern Colony, where tiny tern chicks were fed, ghost crabs were chased, and a Snowy Plover used his mom for shade
August 19, 2021 - A mid-June visit to Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive yielded the normal summer birds, plus a Ring-necked surprise! Stilts, Least Bitterns, and more!
August 17, 2021 - Close-up opportunity with a Whimbrel at Fort De Soto's North Beach. Unexpected opportunity for head shots of this beautiful bird!
August 15, 2021 - Birds fishing in Fort De Soto's wading pools, where Snowy Egrets and a Roseate Spoonbill were busy in the early morning rain shower
August 13, 2021 - Baby birds growing up on the south shore of Lake Apopka - Purple Martins, Purple Gallinules, and a Limpkin with an apple snail
August 11, 2021 - A beautiful morning at Lake Apopka photographing a pair of Black-necked Stilts and their three chicks, the youngest still wet from the egg
August 9, 2021 - A beautiful June morning at Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, with Northern Flickers, Least Bitterns, Black-necked Stilts, & baby Purple Gallinules
August 7, 2021 - A baby Least Bittern and baby Northern Rough-winged Swallow were the highlights of my early June trip to the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive
August 5, 2021 - When Laughing Gulls invade, Least Terns are very effective at tending their colony. Lots of aerial acrobatics as tiny birds chase off gulls!
August 3, 2021 - A beautiful morning on the beach photographing cute Least Tern babies. Such excitement when the parents brought in fish for breakfast!
August 1, 2021 - A morning of Least Tern courtship on Outback Key. Several tern pairs took turns making terns! That makes for a fun photographic challenge! :)