The Photographer Quarterly

For several years now I've been printing sets of note cards to give as Christmas presents. At this time of year it's always a struggle to select the best portraits out of thousands of pictures I have taken over the year. A portrait to me is different from a natural more artful scene as is highlights the bird in perfect focus and needs to be a perfect specimen. This years portraits were taken fairly close to home as Covid cautions have restricted Julie and my travel. Here are the 12 best for 2021.

Ruby Throated Hummingbird Female

Great Egret

White Throated Sparrow

Downy Woodpecker

Eastern Bluebird

Killdeer

Orchard Oriole - Female

Orchard Oriole - Male

Common Yellow Throat Warbler

Bob White

Baltimore Oriole

White Breasted Nuthatch

My wife Julie chose the title for this post which sums up beautiful weather, good friends and delightful surroundings. I think this title takes on deeper meaning in the midst of the Covid pandemic that we are all struggling through. For Julie and I our gathering was a date long anticipated as we have been staying close to home and being very cautious about crowds, masks, vaccines and venues. I don't think our human species was meant to spin cocoons and wait out a transformation.

Our friends Bob and Sandy have been so generous in sharing their "time share" at North Myrtle Beach South Carolina each year. Their generosity also includes sharing their friends Mike and Kathleen who we have come to look forward to seeing. Julie enjoyed her walks through the neighberhoods to keep up her fitness routine. As I've gotten older, walking the beach has had less appeal but discovering the little marshlands scattered around has meant great bird photography.

Brookgreen gardens is a must visit site. Listed as one of the finest gardens in the USA it highlights Carolina rice culture as well as the owners love of sculpture and local flora.

After taking in the sculpture gardens we decided to take the boat tour through the rice fields. Our guide told us of the various families that owned the plantation and the many enslaved people who worked the fields. Though slave life everywhere had to be horrendous a slave's life on the rice plantations was particularly hard. Rice cultivation led to very short lifespans; hard labor in hot humid surroundings and in areas filled with poisonous snakes and alligators.

Belted King Fisher

While touring the rice fields with their many rivers and canals we learned of the people who live today on some of the islands in the area. South Carolina provides School Boat service that shuttles the children who live on the islands to the area school.

Another perfect day was offered up at the Russell Burgess Wildlife area. Coordinating my visits with "Low Tide" provided an abundance of wading shore birds and opportunities to perfect my birds-in-flight skills.

Capturing images of birds in flight requires a coming together of many factors. Good light, precise camera settings, good equipment and good-luck. As I've gotten older it has become more difficult to manage the heavy glass required for these shots. Hats off to Nikon for their new line of fresnel lenses which reduce the weight of the lens by about 5 lbs.

This year I was able to observe a special treat. Roseate Spoonbills, a southern bird, have been moving north and can now be regularly seen along the coastal shores of South & North Carolina. As climate changes so do the birds habitats.