A Distraction From Birding...

Just about my favorite photo of a Black-and-White Warbler, I love the circle of light around his bill.

How can I say 'Distraction from birding' when these are all photos of birds? Well, I've been working on updating a photo presentation on Photodex' ProShow 4 for the past few weeks. Though I should have done it long ago, I was hoping for that last minute 'amazing' shot that would shock and awe everyone in my audience(that would be the Doodles and my cat, Heidi) but, it never came. I'm still pleased with the outcome.

So I went back to trying to pick my favorites with quite a few added from this year, I'm happy to say! I'll be giving this presentation at the Southwest Camera Club's meeting on October 19th at the Rocky River Nature Center in Cleveland's Metropark system. If you're in the area, I could use the moral support! Showing my pics to my fellow birders is easy, showing them to other photographers that will undoubtedly criticize them scares me.

I hope at least one person attending will be sparked into going birding and joining our cause to save our feathered friends!

In the meantime, enjoy a few of my very favorite birds...

The Chestnut-sided Warbler is the Warbler that first got my heart pumping about Magee Marsh

and them little warbly things!

Not the best Black-throated Green Warbler shot I have, but he has personality!

Look at the stream lined shape of this Magnolia Warbler.

Isn't it amazing how far such small, light birds can migrate? I am in awe of them all.

No show would be complete without my buddy, the Gray Catbird!

My "Good Morning " friend has left for the winter, but he'll be back again in the spring and have another successful brood in our garden!

We saw this Great Blue Heron on our January mini-vacation to Florida.

Free plane tickets are a wonderful thing!

This Indigo Bunting was so busy finding food for his fledglings, he didn't seem to mind me aiming my lens his way.

This Hooded Merganser was in California at a nature preserve that I can't remember right now.

Doodles, wake up!!

By far, my favorite Red-tailed Hawk photo!

He's a 'guest' at the Medina Raptor Center.

Royal Tern or Peter Boyle reincarnated?

This cute little Veery at Magee Marsh during the Migration Madness didn't care a wit about his audience.

The high point of last winter was finding this White-winged Crossbill, not an everyday sight in northeastern Ohio!

This Black-bellied Plover is from the group of birds that sparked my obsession of birding and photographing them. This was on our trip to visit Laurie's...oops...the Doodles, Aunt Ginnie and Uncle Bruce on Sanibel Island, Florida.

They are great birders and cemetery searchers and taught us a lot during our visit with them. I don't think they quite realized what they were starting with me!

I owe them a big thank you!