This week has been a week of preparation for a five-day long Dressage Riding clinic that I’m participating in next week. So while the migrating birds have been calling my name daily, I’ve been unable to get out and bird.
It was a hazy and overcast morning, and these barns seemed a bit forlorn along the soybean field. Even an old car was left along the side, left to the elements to rust with the wind and rain.
I stopped by a local park on the way home to try get at least a little birding in. When I arrived to the Wood Duck pond, I had forgotten how to be really stealth when approaching the edge. Little did I know, but two wood ducks flushed not 10 feet from where I was heading and flew off squawking to the other side.
I sat for about 10 minutes, wondering if they would come out, but then decided I needed to get home. Again, little did I know there was a Green Heron just steps away from me. He too flew off squawking and fussing. DARN ! Two missed fantastic photo  ops.
Now the challenge has been set. I’m determined to stalk this pond to get the perfect wood duck and Green Heron shots. Somehow I think a chair will be required.
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The most glorious moments in your life are not the so-called days of success, but rather those days when out of dejection and despair you feel rise in you a challenge to life, and the promise of future accomplishments.
Categories: 2013 Project 365, Birds, Nature
Emily Carter ~ Nature as Art 
Cute duck in a terrific setting!
Thanks Phil ! Are there wood ducks where you are? I really need to stalk these cuties and get that gallery shot. 🙂
Love both the barn and the duck shots
Wow, thank you so much!
Reblogged this on My Blog snuppy.
Thank you so much Paul for sharing this with your readers.
I love the barn photo. Good luck with both the riding clinic, and the birding! The wood ducks near where I live are the most wary birds that I’ve tried to photograph. Other people have the ducks following them around, go figure.
What??? they follow people ?? So not fair ! All the wood ducks in the area here know to run away from me. 🙂
From what I hear, it helps if you carry cracked corn or oats in your pockets.
http://watchwhereyoustep.wordpress.com/
Now that’s just plain cheating! LOL !
Excellent picture of the duck…I don’t think we have these types over here – ours are mostly ‘Mallards’. Every morning I walk a mile to the bus stop (yuck) to go to work and I walk along the side of the river Wharfe which runs at the bottom of my house. There is a weir there and when I pass at 6:30 am there is always a Heron catching his breakfast. He is too far away to get a good shot with the 18-55 zoom and I don’t want to carry the 70-300 zoom and DSLR as they are heavy and anyway I don’t want to bring them to work along with a laptop and work detritus. Maybe I should just stop being lazy and get up an hour earlier, walk to the river – take the shots – walk back home – drop the camera off and walk back down to work….but then again maybe not 🙂
I can’t imagine the day you lead, starting with a good stroll regardless of the weather. You can always try to visit your heron on the weekends.
When you see the male ducks of these wood ducks, they’re incredible. Full of multicolors. A true natural work of art. Hopefully one day I’ll get one captured.
The description of the ducks look fabulous, maybe one day you’ll get one (I hope so)…
OH I LOVE the little duck! how beautiful and effortlessly it glides cross the lake! WONDERFUL!
I love it when it landed in the algae, left a little landing strip.
HA!!! I always wonder if it bugs them that stuff gets on there feathers.
I have seen them shake after landing..perhaps it does bug them a little. 🙂
I look forward to seeing the shots from the dressage.
Oh that is hard. It’s not quite like you’d imagine. No fancy work, no cute outfits. Just hard learning of the basics. The lighting is terrible too.
But..now that you’ve asked, you know I’ve got to try. 🙂
You have the most wonderful posts! Looking forward to catching up!!!
I’ve been missing you ! I hope everything is well and you’re having a wonderful time. I’m looking forward to slowing down after this project 365 so I can do better justice keeping up with other people’s work. 🙂
Good luck with the bird stalking. Your little duck is so cute.
Thanks Mike ! I did different bird stalking today, but the ducks keep calling my name. 🙂