Normal daily activities were in full operation when I arrived at the refuge. The Great Blue Heron was fishing by the bridge. The joggers were out, and so were the photographers.
I made a new acquaintance, Mark who was photographing the heron by the bridge. He was waving so I wouldn't scare the bird. As I got to the bridge, I explained to him how domesticated this bird is and that we would have move suddenly to scare it away.
That quickly turned into a discussion about how I knew about this bird, my project, the refuge, and cameras. Before you knew it I had a shooting companion for the morning. While I often enjoy the solitary walks in nature, it is also fun to have someone accompany you as you photograph. Twice as many eyes and ears as well as people's differing interests can make for good observation and interesting photographs.
Today, our primary subjects were insects. It seemed with the colder weather they were more inclined to bask in the sun. When we were patient we often could get quite close.
Shooting with another photographer you can often share tips and techniques. Mark showed me this different perspective on a cat tail. I showed him how you can get a wonderful black background.
Fall is definitely in the air. Here the poison ivy is starting to turn color. As we got to the woods, we noticed the festival of mushrooms continues. They came in many shapes and sizes. Some were just emerging, others were decomposing back into the soil. I like the contrast of this small mushroom found nestled at the base of a towering pine.
