Shake off the water and keep on fishing

There’s an old saying that a bad day of fishing is better than a good day at work. I thought about that adage this morning as I watched an Osprey fish for its breakfast. And then I thought, how fortunate am I that I get to do this for a living. Sure there can be frustrations running your own business, but how many people get to spend at least part of their days out watching wildlife, exploring gorgeous landscapes and talking to people about Florida’s treasures? A good day at work brings me all of those pleasures and I bet I wasn’t as frustrated as the ospreys who came up empty time after time as they dove into the waters below.

I also get to witness a lot of good days of fishing. I have seen birds try to swallow fish that were clearly too big to gulp down. I’ve seen bird parents feed their chicks and I’ve watched boats come in with seafood headed to our best restaurants. But the key is to make sure our waters are healthy enough to fish, and the habitat supporting those waters is conserved , keeping pollution, including runoff and sewage, out of our waters.

As a Florida native, I’ve had a front row seat to some of Florida’s best conservation efforts, including one this week. The state set aside $19.5 million in Florida Forever money to purchase Orange Hammock Ranch, the largest undeveloped property in Sarasota County, according to a state summary of the conservation deal. After too many intense red tides, I have read about more research and effort going into figuring out how to save our waterways. I think we could use some more urgency from the state as a whole, but I am heartened that there is a real effort behind keeping our waterways clean and getting to the sources that feed the red tide.

At the same time, I’ve watched my own stomping ground change drastically with unfettered development. It seems the only way to contain development is to buy land and set it aside. And even then the land can be vulnerable to future development. I drove through downtown Sarasota the other day and wondered how, through this canyon of high-rises, the sun would be able to shine on the historic places below. I remember when Lakewood Ranch was actually a ranch. I’m now watching that same kind of intense development along Long Bar Point, which abuts an estuary along the Sarasota Bay. It’s a place where hundreds, if not thousands of birds used to live. I remember seeing the wood storks, an imperiled species, out there by the dozens. Those estuaries are life-giving habitats for all sorts of fish and other water species. As I watch all of this habitat loss, I wonder if we will still be able to still call this paradise.

We must take conservation and clean-up efforts seriously is we plan to hold on to that old adage about a bad day of fishing being better than a good day of work.

Trees hold the wisdom of ages

I recently took a long hike with my wife and another photographer through a 5,800 reserve out in east Manatee County. It was the first hike I had taken in a long time where there was very little water and few birds. Instead, this hike held ancient trees, a rare commodity in this part of Florida, where developers are tearing down trees at an accelerated rate to build houses and shopping centers, and the government follows behind building wider roads and all the other things development entails..

We set out on our hike through Edward W. Chance Reserve’s Gilley Creek Tract along County Road 675. We hiked past a field of saw palmettos interspersed with trees. We noted the ruts from recent wild boar activity and we found a path bordered on one side by a farmer’s field and by the reserve property. We spotted a rare American Kestrel flying in the distance, and we kept walking. We were looking for a creek, but then I got distracted by the trees. Lovely old oaks and other hardwood trees. I saw a couple of snags in the distance.

I saw branches of the old tree poking through layers of vines and debris. Old trees are one of my favorite subjects so I set out across the field to make a picture. When I arrived and set up my camera, I couldn’t seem to find the right shot. The light was wrong and for a moment I thought the majestic tree was too far gone. But as I looked through the mess surrounding the tree, a beautiful form caught my eye. Almost at a crawl I worked myself, camera and tripod to the massive old trunk, worn by the years, and I found my photo.

I spent time with the tree, and then in my excitement, I called out to my hiking companions, who were out chasing hog photos — and who had already seen the tree — come here, i yelled, you have to SEE this tree. I wanted them to appreciate this old tree for what I had seen and for its part in nature. This tree had been home to birds, a solid hunting spot for birds surveying the fields and in the past shade to all of the wildlife that had passed under her branches. And here she is now, still solid, even though mostly naked of her own wardrobe, but covered in Spanish moss, vines and other debris. I hope you can appreciate this rare Florida beauty as well.

Shootout at Robinson Preserve Designed to Raise Awareness

I am hosting a Shootout at Robinson Preserve Jan. 4 and 5 to help raise awareness about this beautiful preserve and about conservation in general. Manatee County has some beautiful parks and preserves, but not nearly enough, especially given the rapid pace of growth. Charlie Hunsicker, Director, Parks and Natural Resources for Manatee County has said that Manatee is behind others in terms of setting aside land for conservation. We can do better all along the west coast of Florida. These lands are vital habitats for birds and wildlife, but also necessary for our own mental health and general well being.

The Shootout is also an opportunity to promote a wonderful local nonprofit, “Give a Kid a Camera.” The nonprofit works with underprivileged children locally and internationally to teach them communication and photography skills. They work with children on introducing themselves to people — looking them in the eye, shaking their hands, telling them their names and talking to them about their projects — and on storytelling. Sometimes it can be intimidating to go up to a stranger and talk to them. Give a Kid a Camera helps them get past that fear and helps instill a sense of pride in their abilities.

Photography is an amazing tool for story telling and it helps to build bridges with people. For example, this past summer Tom O’Neill, the founder of Give a Kid a Camera, worked with teenagers who were refugees from other countries and now living in Kentucky. He worked with the young photographers on their skills and gave them the assignment of telling their stories through the theme, “My Kentucky Home.” The project helped get the teenagers out in their communities and to show people how Kentucky had become home for them.

This nonprofit also helps keep the art of photography alive. It helps the students focus on others, on their surroundings and on what makes this world special. Tom has kept up with students he taught a decade ago. While they are not professional photographers, they have told him the skills they learned helped them in the careers they chose.

The Shootout at Robinson Preserve is an opportunity for photographers to tell a story about wildlife and conservation while just having fun. I am pleased that the most outstanding photo from the weekend will hang in the Valentine House this spring, showcasing an element of the preserve and why it matters to the county, I am grateful for the opportunity to promote conservation and to raise money for a worthy cause. I hope you all can join me.

Photo Provided/Tom O;Neill

Robinson Preserve, Manatee County, Florida

Robinson Preserve, Manatee County, Florida

Expressions add life to photos

Last month I had fun with a photo of an eagle on facebook. The eagle had his talons in the air and a certain expression on his face, so I asked people to caption the photo. The captions people submitted were all clever and funny. I love a good sense of humor. I am especially grateful when people get inspiration from wildlife and nature.

Good photos are meant to be thought-provoking. Sometimes birds and wildlife are so expressive they make it easy to get a reaction. Take the eagle, or the owl posted here. I love these guys for the way they show me they are full of life and on a mission here on this earth. Wildlife, whether it’s birds, fish or mammals, are busy building homes, raising families and teaching their young. And while some may say we humans anthropomorphize them by giving them our thoughts, I like to think we are trying to understand them and through that, we build empathy for the creatures around us. In some ways, it’s them teaching us.

These creatures need all the empathy we can muster. Their habitats are disappearing and their populations are dwindling. The more humans can connect with them and their expressions, the more likely we are to think twice about tearing out trees or filling in wetlands that are vital to these creatures. In that vein, I’d love to see your thoughts about this young burrowing owl in Cape Coral. They are on the imperiled species list, but a population of them has learned to live around the library. ball fields and even on some lands cleared for development. Post your captions in the comments below or on Facebook.

Landscapes can take you places

I was recently showing a new client some of my work. She had visited the exhibit on imperiled birds at the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature but was more enamored with my landscape photography. She was particularly fascinated with the black and white landscapes for what they reveal and what she saw in them.

We discussed the textures, the focal point, the mood, the sky, the horizon, the things you might miss in a color photo. We also talked about the memory of place, how a photo can take you to a certain time or event in your mind. She had grown up on Longboat Key and worked in Sarasota for decades. I showed her my photo titled Longboat Light and she immediately went back to her childhood and sitting under the trees at Beer Can Island reading books. Her story reminded me that there is power and emotion in place.

Because I have the exhibit on imperiled birds, I have spent much of 2019 more focused on my bird photography than my sea and landscape photography. In some ways birds are easier. They can be comical, they have personality, their colors are vibrant and they usually are active. While getting those shots can be tough, I always come back with something I am willing to share.

Landscape photography is a different sort of challenge. So much depends on the mood, the perspective, the light and the scene. It takes patience and care to find just the right shot. When I come back with a landscape or seascape photo, unlike bird photos, there is usually just one that stands out — only one I will print from a day of shooting.

I love landscape photography for several reasons. The first is that landscapes change, so I know that when I get that shot I want, it won’t be duplicated. The light will never be exactly the same against the plants and grasses; the water levels ebb and flow; there may be footprints next time where there were none. The second reason is that landscape photography is as much about preservation as my bird photography is. The birds are disappearing because their habitats are disappearing. Part of my mission as a photographer is to raise awareness about our environment so we all have the good sense to preserve it for the future. My third reason is that landscape photography evokes emotion. It can bring a sense of serenity, prompt memories and take you away from the chaos of the moment into some place wild and wonderful and can cause people to reflect on what’s important..

The conversation about landscape photography prompted me to think about what I love and it got me itching to go back out there and look around Florida for something I want to bring home and print.

The photograph below was taken in Myakka River State Park with a Nikon 810 using a Nikkor 19mm PC lens. It is two photographs stiched together using Photomerge in Photoshop. What you do not see is the mud that I am sharing with tripod.

What My Students Have Taught Me

Over the past year I have been giving private lessons in photography. I knew I had plenty to share about photography and the places to find great art, but I have been surprised by how much I enjoy working with photography students and how much I have learned from them.

I have a student who knows more about birds than I may ever know. She can identify them from their songs without ever setting eyes on them. She gave me a lesson on birds and maybe even one in humility. (I thought she couldn’t possible be able to tell a scarlet tanager from just hearing a song in the woods. She and the tanager quickly proved me wrong). She has traveled the world and is well-versed on our feathered friends. It’s been nice to get to know her and to share her excitement about Florida’s birds and the migratory birds that visit the Sunshine State.

Another student has proven to me that the art of photography hasn’t died with the advent of the iPhone camera or the selfie — and that it will likely always have a future. A young student who was recently accepted into Rowlett Academy for Arts and Communication, began developing her artistic vision through her incredible drawings. Now she is interested in photography. She has a great eye and has taught me young people are enthusiastic about photography. She is open to all sorts of photography, from taking pictures of her brother playing baseball to going out into the preserves of Manatee County to get photos of wildlife and landscapes.

Finally, I have a student who has reminded me what’s it’s like to be new to photography and to be passionate about it. She taught me how to nurture passion. She has also taught me patience. I guess that comes with the passion. Once she realized she had a talent for photography, she invested in some good equipment and her photos got dramatically better. I have seen this student improve tremendously in a short time. She has posted some photos that made me say, “I wish I had shot that.” She enjoys sharing her photos, so check out what she’s doing and like her page.

After a photography presentation, I took the Suncoast Camera Club out to one of my favorite Audubon spots for bird photography

A juvenile Night Heron gives his fans the once over.