Eaglets

After a string of bad weather and just plain being busy, I finally managed to visit OBNWR again. I'm not particularly satisfied with my latest round of results, but the subjects make it worthwhile to post some of them.

Over two visits, I was able to observe two eaglet feeding events. The first was in the evening, in fading light, with the nest back-lit. I had to boost my camera's ISO to 1000 just to get a shutter speed that I could use hand-held. The sky is completely blown out to get the right exposure. I cropped and processed the photos, leading to some pretty washed-out results. And on top of that, the eagles didn't cooperate, never simultaneously showing their eyes.

Three Eagles

Feeding Time

I went back a few days later, hoping for another opportunity, this time in the morning with the light behind me. A cold, brisk gusting wind made for uncomfortable conditions and an unsteady camera, and again the eagles didn't cooperate.

Both Eagles Looking at Me

Eaglet Shows Early Wing Feathers

 After I'd been there for a few minutes, the parent got very vocal. I looked up and noticed this immature bald eagle passing through, having a hard time flying straight and level in the gusting wind.

Bald Eagle

And I had two lifers for me, so I'll post these too.

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

Prothonotary Warbler

More Cherry Blossoms

I made my annual trip to the Tidal Basin over the weekend to try to photograph them, but the weather was awful. I had the opportunity to go again yesterday afternoon. Here's the second round of photos.

Cherry Blossoms

The Grebes were Playing among the Petals

Cherry Blossoms

Jefferson Memorial

Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms

It's that time of year; the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. I was unable to visit during the week, so I went this morning and arrived at the crack of dawn. It was cold and windy and cloudy with a brief period of mixed drizzle and sleet. I was hoping the bad weather would keep the crowd down. It did suppress the size of the crowd, but still there were lots of people.

I grabbed some shots of the monuments before the lights shut off. Aside from the tent, I like this one.

Jefferson Memorial

As I wandered around, I mostly used my 85mm f1.8, like most visits. However, I saw some horned grebes playing in the water, so I switched to my 70-200 f2.8 about halfway through. There was a pair that stayed pretty close to shore, diving frequently. Here's one who managed to surface under a flower petal.

Horned Grebe with Cherry Blossom Petal

 The overcast skies created a soft light that didn't really do much for the subtle colors. I've read plenty of times that overcast can create flattering light, but I've decided that I don't like it.

Cherry Blossoms

Robert E. Lee's house overlooks Washington DC. Here it's visible way off in the distance across the Potomac River.

Robert E. Lee's House in Arlington National Cemetery

Given that I passed the spot directly opposite the Jefferson Memorial while I had my zoom lens mounted, I went for the head-on shot with Jefferson's statue silhouetted.

Cherry Blossoms

The National Park Service decided to try to clean the top of the monument. It's had this ugly bacteria growing on it for a while. A contractor did a test cleaning with a new process, and it's easy to see the strip of the roof that got cleaned.

Jefferson Memorial with a Cleaned Strip

And I went inside for a quick shot of Jefferson. That dark statue in dim light was hard to expose for a usable photo. Wide open, with high ISO, and image stabilization, I got some detail in his face. It's possible to see the bird droppings.

Thomas Jefferson

So I'm glad I went, but I don't think I'll try again in the future if the weather is this lousy. There was a wedding taking place in the grass next to the Jefferson Memorial. The men all looked cold. The women in their bridesmaids dresses, and the bride too, looked like they were uncomfortably cold as the wind blew their dresses around a lot.