2/9/2019 - 2/10/2019
I tried out a couple places I'd not been for a while this last weekend, but things just did not work out. In the end, I finished up my weekend at Eagle Creek Park photographing some of the same birds I've been photographing for the past couple of weekends. Not that I don't love them. Towhees and Fox Sparrows are great birds. I was just looking for some variety.
I did not get off to the best start on Saturday. I'd decided to head down to Goose Pond and try to photograph cranes. I got a late start, though, and I did not get down there until 9:30. The sky was clear, and the sun was warming things up. The entire place was flooded and frozen over. The combination of things did not lead to a great day for me. I battled head distortion. Many of the pics I took have that signature wavy/fuzz from the heat distortion. Pictures that should have been sharp were reminiscent of the '80s shopping mall, soft focus portraits that were popular as a kid. Not the look I really want in my bird shots. The highlight of the day was seeing the cranes flying around with their legs tucked up. They look so funny that way.
Sunday was calling for snow. My plans were to head to Starkey Park in Zionsville and to look for Winter Wren. Afterwards, I wanted to head to Eagle Creek Park and take some shots of birds in the snow. The plan worked okay. I did not find Winter Wren at Starkey. There's a lot of construction there, and I did not find wren where I've had them in years past. I did have a flyover Bald Eagle and a somewhat cooperative Red-shouldered Hawk. So, it wasn't a total loss. I got to Eagle Creek and scoped around a bit before settling in at the seed pile near shelter A. There were a couple cars there, but they left not too long after the snow started, and I moved to where I wanted to be. The snow was coming down nicely, and I just threw a rain jacket over my camera to keep it dry. By the time I left, I was soaked from the melting snow. It was a long, cold drive home, but I'd enjoyed myself. I should have kept a better eye on exposure and ISO, though. I could have used a little less of each. I ended up with a few over-exposed, grainy shots, and there's not a lot do with those; other than try to learn your lesson.
The forecast is for a lot of rain between now and next weekend. It's supposed to cool back down with a chance of snow. I'll just have to come up with a better plan before then.
Thanks for reading,
Mike