On a recent walk around the Ashland Reservoir, I came across a great blue heron standing tall on a rock. I've seen great blue heron's at the reservoir before, however past encounters were from large distances, and often only when the bird was in flight, and so the moments were short-lived.
On this occasion, the bird was still and quiet. As I walked closer to it along the shoreline, I was happy to see that my footsteps did not bother it. So much so, that I was able to sit down and change to my telephoto lens, and despite the delay, the bird hadn't moved at all. I was able to capture a few photos, and would have captured several more except that someone else came along the path with a dog that barked loudly and made some moves in the direction of the bird. Naturally, the great blue heron flew off, something it does majestically since it has a six foot wing span. I love dogs, but not that one:) The owner apologized to me; she'd not even seen the bird herself. I was upset with her dog, but I held my tongue, keeping my opinions to myself.
Because of my position behind some shore trees, the bird was completely hidden from my view when it flew off, so I was unable to get any photos of this dramatic bird in flight. I am comforted only by the fact that, even if I had a clear view, catching good photos of birds in flight is not something I've ever had much success with. Evidently, this was not to be my day to improve on my "in focus birds in flight" ratio.😞
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| Watchful Bird |
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| Over the Shoulder Gaze |
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| Portal to Great Blue |
Here is the same photo cropped closer.
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| Great Blue in the Sun |
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