Christmas Cocktail

This looks so good I can almost taste it. The drink itself was made with ice which had fallen off tree branches after the ice storm in December, 2008 which left many in our area without power for days. The beverage is, of course, Scotch. I don't recall what brand.

I will be enjoying similar beverages this weekend, but with more normal ice cubes. Everyone have a safe and enjoyable Christmas weekend.

Canon EOS 30D, EF 28-90mm f/4-5.6 at 47mm, ISO 100, f/9.0, 1/250 sec., Speedlite 220EX

The Other "Side" of Peebles Island

I've taken a lot of nature photographs at Peebles Island State Park on Peebles Island in Waterford, New York. Mainly White-tailed Deer, some birds and the occasional foliage. You can view the collection of those photographs here.

But the island also has an industrial history. A railroad line ran across it at one point and Cluett, Peabody and Company built a textile mill with a bleaching plant on the Island in the early 20th Century. Some of those buildings remain and while some now are used as State Office of Parks and Recreation facilities others remain vacant and in poor states of repair.

Here are two photographs of old towers I made a week or two ago.  It was early in the morning on a nice clear day with lots of contrast.

Canon EOS 5D, EF 24-70 2.8L at 64mm, ISO 100, f/6.3, 1/320 sec.

Canon EOS 5D, EF 24-70 2.8L at 35mm, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/200 sec.

Red-tailed Hawk Update

Right before the bird flew away, I did walk around the tree to look for another angle. The lighting was not good because the bird was in the shadows and the sky was bright behind the bird. But, with post processing, I was able to turn this picture:

Into this picture:

Canon EOS 5D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM + 1.4X, ISO 800, f/5.6, 1/400 sec.

Certainly nothing outstanding, but decent enough to add the hawk to the bird guide collection on my zenfolio site. You can visit the bird fieldguide here.

Whose Limb is it Anyway?

I happened upon a Red-tailed Hawk sitting on a tree limb earlier today. The bird spent about a half hour preening in the same place. Unfortunately, there was a thick limb between the bird and I so there wasn't really an opportunity for a nice "portrait."

But, an Eastern Gray Squirrel happened to climb the trunk of the tree and head out onto the limb where the bird was sitting. Clearly, the hawk is higher up on the food chain and I can only imagine what went through the squirrel's mind at that moment.

The two sat there for a minute or so and then the squirrel backed off and headed to safety.

Canon EOS 5D, EF300mm f/4L IS USM +1.4x, ISO 800, f/5.6, 1/30 sec.