Some of the one I got to pose for me.

Cardinal Meadowhawk

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Cardinal Meadowhawk

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Blue Dasher

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You are so right, I've gotten plenty of great pictures when they pose, but in flight...two

Green Darner in flight

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Green Darner inflight

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I agree with hlmichel, it would be #6 for me as well.

I appreciate it, and I stand corrected.

That is an excellent shot of a Black Crowned Night Heron. They are more curious that other herons, I've had them seem like they were intentionally posing.

taylorsacre

Welcome. I'm also in NW Houston, Cypress area. Your going to love that Tamron 90mm. Not only will it get you up close and personal, its also a great portrait lens as well. Enjoy.

taylorsacre

I would have to agree with a juvenile Black. They have a much more wide spread range, it would be rare to find a Yellow as far north as Michigan.

Its a Roseate Spoonbill. Very common all along the Gulf Coast from Brownsville Texas to all of Florida. This time of year they nest in the bayous and marshes along the intercoastal canal.

I bought my Tamron 18-270 several yeas ago when i first came out for Nikon D60. It is still on the D60 as my backup. I now have a Tamron 28-300 for my full frame D600 and for the money you just can't beat it as a walk around lens. I am so looking forward to the 150-600 when it comes out for Nikon. From the pictures posted here it seems awesome.

I'm guessing that the picture of the spider is one of the 70 or so species of wolf spider. The bird with the red and black bill was much easier, that is a Black Skimmer. The bird in the last photo is a Anhinga. It is native to the Gulf Coast fron Brownsville Tx. to all of Florida and is related to the Cormorant

Since this was taken in Palm Springs, I would have to agree that this is a Lesser Goldfinch.

I have shot multiple high school plays over the years and here is some tips that I learned by trial and a lot of error. First go see the play before you shoot. Learn where the action is going to be on the stage so that you will be able to be on that side of the stage at the appropriate time. Shoot on multiple nights. This will allow you to shoot one night from the back center of the theater to get full stage shots on a tripod. Then set up stage right one night then stage left on another, by shooting from all three locations you should be able to capture the entire production. Don't be afraid to zoom in tight on the actors, to capture emotion. You should never use a flash during the performance, this will distract the audience and the actors. Be aware of the constant changing light levels on the stage and be prepared to adjust ISO, shutter speed, aperture, etc, another reason for seeing the show first before taking pictures. After all of the high school plays I shot, the last night of the production, before they broke set, a time was set aside after the show to "stage" scenes in stop action to capture the setting with the stage lights up.

A long shot from "A Little Shop of Horrors


A medium shot from "The Foreigner"


A close up from "Grease"

The caterpillar is a tomato cutworm, sometimes called a horn worm and will turn into a moth.

I love macro and I also love the bokeh. I've never tried stacking, most of my shots of the tiny world that is around us is hand held. I can't tell for sure from this angle, but it may be one of several types of orbweaver spiders. What part of the country do you live? That might help in IDing this critter.

The green flash does indeed exist. As a former surfer I saw it many times as I was surfing at sunset. In fact as the sun dips below the horizon line of the ocean, the light refracts into each of the colors of the spectrum...but each color last a fraction of a second, so by the time you see it, its over. I've tried to photograph this phenomenon several times, but so far, no good. Good luck