My Personal Favorites
Here, you will find what I consider to be some of my best photographs. I will change these photos from time to time in an effort to keep things interesting. Newer photos will be added to the top and the older ones will "fall off" the bottom.
You can click a photo and it will appear in a new window. Click it again to zoom in further. After zooming, you can click and drag to inspect the photo more closely. Click the X in the upper right corner to go back to the original page. If you are using a phone to view the site, you can zoom and move around with finger pinches, etc.
American Robin
All puffed up against a cold January morning, this bird made a wonderful pose for my camera. It's so nice when they cooperate like this.
American Avocet
Glowing with confident beauty in the rising sun. This is perhaps the most elegant of the migratory birds that pass through Ohio. There were three of these birds on this day. You can see all three together in the "Shorebirds" gallery and on the Home Page slider display.
Location: Lorain Impoundment
Date: 6/9/2023
Gallery: Shorebirds
Red-headed Woodpecker
Cromwell Park is a new destination for me. I was rewarded with this nice shot of a Red-headed Woodpecker on just my second visit. I saw 3 or 4 of them gathering food and flying away. I presume they are feeding little ones.
Location: Cromwell Park
Date: 6/15/2023
Gallery: Woodpeckers and Birds of Ohio
White-rumped Sandpiper
Another long distance traveller. They breed in the northern-most parts of Alaska and Canada and winter in South America. They grace us with their presence for a short while as they pass through. The Lorain Impoundment seems to be a magnet for birds like this.
Location: Lorain Impoundment
Date: 6/9/2023
Gallery: Shorebirds
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
This is the only perched hummingbird I have ever seen in the wild. I see them flying around wildflowers once in a while but never perched.
If you zoom in, you will see that the photo is fairly sharp in spite of the poor light.
Location: Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve
Date: 5/23/2023
Gallery: None, don't know where to put it yet...
Carolina Wren
Doing his best eagle imitation.
Location: Rocky River Nature Center
Date: 5/4/2023
Gallery: Chickadees, Sparrows, Titmice, and Wrens
Song Sparrow
Make sure you get my good side.
Summer would not be the same without the songs these birds sing.
Location: Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve
Date: 5/23/2023
Gallery: Chickadees, Sparrows, Titmice, and Wrens
Yellow Warbler
Looking handsome in his yellow suit. I'm pretty sure there's a naked lemon out there somewhere.
Location: Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve
Date: 5/23/2023
Gallery: Warblers
Semipalmated Plover
Somehow, these guys wade around in the muck and mud but never get anything on their snow white bellies. Haven't seen a dirty one yet.
Like many plovers, the Semipalmated Plover breeds in the northern-most parts of Canada and Alaska. They winter along the southern coast of the US and farther south to Mexico and beyond. We see them here only when they pass through during migration. They commonly stop along the Lake Erie shoreline to rest and refuel before moving on.
Location: Lorain Impoundment
Date: 5/15/2023
Gallery: Flycatchers, Swallows, and Swifts
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
This attractive little bird was gathering materials for a nest. It returned to this same spot many times looking for that "perfect twig" each time.
This one is a male. The males sport the little black eyebrow and the females do not.
When I returned about a week later, it was nowhere to be seen. I suppose it finished the nest and moved in.
Location: Wendy Park, CMP
Date: 5/18/2023
Gallery: Flycatchers, Swallows, and Swifts
Willow Flycatcher
A Willow Flycatcher takes a short break from singing while sitting on a bare tree branch.
These sparrow sized birds are difficult to approach closely but this one seemed to trust me enough to get a reasonable shot.
Zoom in on this photo. The olive and gray colors seem a little drab but come to life when seen up close.
Location: Lorain Impoundment
Date: 5/30/2023
Gallery: Flycatchers, Swallows, and Swifts
Fish Dinner Takeout
A Caspian Tern dives for fish at the Lorain Impoundment.
5/9/2023
Red-tailed Hawk
This year, a pair of Red-tailed Hawks built a nest right outside the nature center building in the Rocky River Reservation. It's a great opportunity to watch these birds raise a family.
The nest is about 100 feet up which makes it impossible to see inside. The best one can do is take photos like this one when a bird stands on the edge of the nest. I really need the powers of invisibility and flight but, sadly, those things are just too hard for me.
This photo has high contrast and the bird's eye is a little soft (out of focus) but I felt the subject matter outweighed the photo quality. It's the best I have for now.
Location: Rocky River Nature Center
Date: 5/6/2023
Gallery: Birds of Prey
American Robin
I have been reluctant to photograph robins because everyone sees them everywhere. They are just too common to be interesting, right? This handsome fellow proved me wrong.
I was actually out looking for eastern meadowlarks when this robin landed very close to me. The scene was too perfect to ignore. Early morning light, blue sky background, cold, clear air, and an absolutely perfect specimen. It doesn't get better. I snapped off about 20 shots before he flew away.
Now, he's on my portfolio page. I will never ignore a "common bird" again.
Location: Margaret Peak Nature Preserve
Date: 3/30/2023
Gallery: Mockingbirds, Thrashers, and Thrushes
