Quack, Quack!

Summer in Phoenix is not a prime time to take photos due to the crazy heat. Even though this summer has been fairly mild compared to the last few, I still haven't felt like braving the heat to go out shooting. So my photography got put on the back burner, and I'm finally getting back to editing more of the images I took back in May at the nature preserve near my house.

I got a later start than I wanted to on the day I was out shooting, and it was getting pretty warm, so I decided to find myself some shade to hang out in for a while. I settled myself in a shaded little clearing near the water, and just sat there watching the world go by. It was obvious by all the feathers around the area that it was a favorite hangout for the ducks, and slowly, one by one, they started swimming up and gathering themselves all around me.

I was able to hang out and snap quite a few photos of them, and managed to catch a few good ones.  Here are my favorites...

As I was taking these photos, I decided that I'm probably not cut out to be much of a nature photographer.  It seems like you'd have to have an insane amount of patience to sit quietly and stay still while the wildlife adapted to your presence and resumed it's routine, and I definitely don't have it.  My backyard is full of birds every time I look out the window, yet whenever I get it in my head to go out and take photos of them I'm never able to capture any images.  They always fly off when I open the door and I'm never able to make myself stay out there long enough for them to come back.  I think the only reason I was able to stay still long enough to capture these photos is because I needed to cool off before heading back out into the hot sun!

Michele Whitacre used to be a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona.  Now she just takes photos for fun when the mood strikes.
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© 2017 Michele Whitacre Photography LLC

Take Flight

I wanted to share a few more photos I took recently at the local nature preserve.  I enjoyed taking these images, and I was surprised that I managed to capture a few good ones.  I really don't have the equipment for this type of photography so I feel like what I capture is a bit hit or miss sometimes.

This one is my favorite!...

As always, thanks for stopping by!

 

Michele Whitacre used to be a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona.  Now she just takes photos for fun when the mood strikes.
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© 2017 Michele Whitacre Photography LLC

Hummingbirds

A few weeks ago I spent my Sunday morning at the nature preserve near my house. I was sitting on the bank of a pond under the shade of a large tree, photographing birds that were hanging out on the opposite bank. (Stay tuned for those photos soon!)

While I was sitting there I heard a noise behind me and turned around to find another photographer standing behind me looking into the tree I was sitting under. When I turned and looked at her, she began talking to me and said that there was a hummingbird in the tree. I began looking and saw it flying around, but from my position sitting under the tree there's no way I could get any photos. Plus I didn't want to encroach on the other photographer. She continued to take photos until the hummingbird flew off and then she left. I continued sitting there watching the larger birds across the water, but noticed that the hummingbird kept returning overhead. I'm assuming there was a nest in the tree, but I never saw it.

I finally decided to stand up and see if I could capture any photos of the hummingbird since it seemed determined to stay near the tree. It wasn't until I returned home and began looking at the photos that I realized there were actually two hummingbirds there! I never saw them both at the same time and just assumed it was the same one every time I saw one...

I really have no idea if these photos are all of the same one or some of each of them. Regardless, I was excited to capture these photos. I love hummingbirds - something I've acquired from my mom over the years! She loves them, and puts feeders out for them.

I love this one, with its wings spread out!...

I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I do!

Michele Whitacre used to be a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona.  Now she just takes photos for fun when the mood strikes.
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© 2017 Michele Whitacre Photography LLC

Dragon Flies

I'm not feeling overly creative with my blog post titles, can you tell?

Recently I went shooting at a nature preserve near my house and captured some fun shots while I was there.  I was hoping to spend my day taking macro photos of dragon flies and other bugs, but I really didn't see very many.  Those that I did see where too far away for me to use my macro lens, so it ended up being a day of shooting with my zoom lens instead!

Here are the photos I did mange to capture of the few dragon flies I spotted:

I really liked this one in black and white!...

This is the same dragon fly, just a few color shots...

The next three images are all of the same dragon fly.  The first image is my favorite...

I missed getting the his (her?) body in focus by a little here, but included it because I love how you can see the detail in the wings where the image is in focus...

I have a lot more photos from the adventure that I am still editing, so stay tuned for more photos soon!

Michele Whitacre used to be a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona.  Now she just takes photos for fun when the mood strikes.
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© 2017 Michele Whitacre Photography LLC

A Walk Around the Yard

As I begin experimenting with other types of photography I feel like I'm a newbie again who has no clue what I am doing! I see these gorgeous macro shots or stunning landscapes that other photographers create, and then I see how blah and boring mine are in comparison and realize I have a long way to go to get good at something other than portraits. That's the crazy thing about photography, in my opinion. Someone can be amazing at one type of photography and completely suck at another.

I recently looked back through the first set of portraits I ever took. At the time I thought they were pretty good, but now I realize how awful they really were in comparison to what I can do now. I just keep reminding myself with tons (and tons and tons and tons and tons and tons and tons) of reading, learning, and practicing I eventually got decent at portraits. The same thing will happen with other types of photography if I stick with it.

While my first attempts at portraits are buried in my archives, where no one will ever them but me, I've decided to share my early attempts at other types of photography with my readers. (Aren't you lucky?!)  So, here are some macro shots I recently took of the bushes, trees, and flowers in my yard:

I have no ideas for what to photograph next, which seems to be a common problem for me.  If anyone has any ideas or suggestions send them my way! Otherwise, I think it's time to start researching some photo prompts to inspire me.

As always, thanks for stopping by.

Michele Whitacre used to be a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona.  Now she just takes photos for fun when the mood strikes.
Like Michele on Facebook | Follow Michele on Instagram | Follow Michele on Twitter

© 2017 Michele Whitacre Photography LLC