I was taking bird pictures down by the ferry dock near Gulf Shores, AL and took these two photos. I was taking pictures of the two birds in my viewfinder, a cormorant and a pelican. When I reviewed the pictures later on my computer, I found a pleasant surprise which I think made both pictures keepers. In both, another pelican is peeking back at me trying to see what I was up to.

Peekin' Pelican not so sure about my intentions


Another Pelican watching me from below

Joe: Thanks for the comments about the photos as well as the ID of the bird. I am not a bird expert by any means and just know when I get a chance for something new an different I want to try to get a good photo of it. I did, in this case, ask for help with the ID from our local Audubon Society chapter and got the following response:
"Bill,
I think that you have a juvenile Rough-legged Hawk. In this case, the most prominent identification feature are the feathers on the legs. In North America only the rough-legged hawk, ferruginous hawk, and golden eagle have feathers on the legs. Since the colors are not yet fully developed to correspond to the characteristic markings in the field guides, I feel that it is still a juvenile.

Thanks for sending us the questions.

Dennis ********

Webmaster for Peoria Audubon Society"

If you have a better way of determining the ID, I'd like to know - or is your determination from experience in birding?

Thanks for any insight as I would like to learn something from this.

My wife and I left town to eat breakfast at an adjoining town and came across a hawk sitting on a fence post near a highway intersection. We pulled over to admire it. My wife said lets go home and get your camera, I said it would never be here when we got back from the 15 minute round trip. We watched it for about 3-4 minutes and it flew off. We crossed the intersection to head to the restaurant ant found two more of these birds feeding in the grass. I thought maybe they would still be here and went back for my camera; lo and behold they were still there. I find that around here, mostly red-tailed hawks, are quite skittish and won't let you get close enough to get a good photo. These guys (gals?) were quite willing to pose and perform. Did not even have to get out of the car.

Foraging on the ground


Bird on a wire (Minor Cropping)

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Another view on the wire

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Cholly: Thanks for the kind remarks. I use a Canon T4i and for these photos, I used a Tamron 70-300 mm F4-5.6 lens - both 1 and 3 were at 300mm.

Thanks for the heads up, never quite sure where and how to get things posted correctly. Also thanks for the nice comments on the photos.

I went "bird hunting" the other day in Gulf Shores, AL and found a very cooperative Great Blue Heron. He (She?) moved very little even as I got out of the car and closed the door. Got pretty close, unusual as most times they take off if you get close to them.

Trying to hide behind the grass

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On alert, looking for a meal

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Posing for a nice portrait

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Many times I have read or been told by seasoned photographers, “when you are taking photos of a specific sight or event, don’t forget to look behind you, there may be a good, or better opportunity there”.

I did that exact thing last Friday night and this is what I found while taking sunset pictures, the sunset, first photo, followed by the Behind Me sight. The Behind Me photo is not focused as well as I would have liked, but dark, night time photo focus is something I need a lot of work on.

Sunset at the beach - Gulf Shores, AL


Behind me, What a pleasant surprise!

I've been out bird hunting again here in Gulf Shores, AL. All I could find cooperating today was the Blue Heron. I found a couple who were very cooperative with me, even moved in my direction, so I was able to be close enough to get what I thought were good distances - couldn't even use the full extent of my 70-300mm Tamron. Also, I was out early and found the water they were in to be like glass - a rare and welcome sight. Hope you enjoy

A Matched Set


Same PAir


One Left, Coming My Way




Like Walking on Glass

Thanks Linda. My pp work is extreme novice, I can't even remember what I all I did, except for lightening up the heron so one could see the color and feather details. It was shot one stop overexposed, otherwise it probably would have been a silhouette.

I really appreciate the kind words and commentary.

Thanks for viewing and commenting, I appreciate the good thoughts.

I have been "wintering" in Gulf Shores for, this the 6th year. I became infatuated with the Great Blue Heron, as it is a beautiful bird, as well as quite accessible here in this area. I have taken many, many photos of this species, showing one today that I took last week. It is colder here than normal and opportunities so far have been limited. Took the shot in .jpg (1st entry) and edited it a little in PSE. I have very little experience in post processing, just wondered which version any of you prefer.

Un-edited jpg


Post processed in PSE