Tag: portrait

A Photo a Week Challenge: Grandparents.

David M2 Comments

This is my contribution to the A Photo a Week Challenge: Grandparents.

I talked about my maternal grandfather a little in a previous post. He was a lenghtsman, responsible for maintaining a length of road for the local council.

This is Freddy, my maternal grandfather photographed in the 1970s. Everyone called him Freddy, I can’t remember his given name but don’t think it was Frederick. He was one of nine brothers and sisters, none of whom went by their given names if I recall correctly.

He had retired when this photo was taken but was out with his brush sweeping the snow and ice from the path. The tobacco pipe was a regular feature and the hearing aid was from an accident when training with the Home Guard during the Second World War.

My maternal grandfather.

Weekly Prompts Photo Challenge: Comfort.

David M2 Comments

ThIs is my contribution to the Weekly Prompts Photo Challenge: Comfort.

My initial idea was a selection of comfortable looking bird and wildlife subjects. Then I got thinking about some of the close encounters I have had. When birds and wildlife have been comfortable enough to ignore me and carry on doing what they were doing before a photographer pointed a lens at them.

Lying in the yard in Ontario, Canada I was trying to get shots of an uncooperative male Cardinal when this Eastern Chipmunk started posing for the camera.

An Eastern Chipmunk posing for a photo.

I was in the yard photographing Sparrow species one spring when this American Red Squirrel started feeding on seed under the bird feeders. Ontario, Canada.

American Red Squirrel feeding.

I had gone down to the Lake Huron shoreline in Southampton for the sunrise when I found a couple of juvenile Red Knot on the shoreline. I spent some time with them, they fed, bathed, preened and even slept in front of me. Ontario, Canada.

having a nap

I was sitting on a bench at Dominion Lookout on the Lake Huron shoreline in Southampton when this Red Fox came trotting along the shoreline and continued on past me. Ontario, Canada.

Trotting Red Fox.

I was lying in a mix of sand and wildfowl poop photographing American White Pelicans when a small flock of Wilson’s Phalarope landed on the shoreline and proceeded to feed around me. This female posed for a portrait before walking so close to me that the lens couldn’t focus on her. Saskatchewan, Canada.

Female Wilson's Phalarope.

I was in the yard photographing birds when this Racoon appeared and started eyeing up the bird feeders. Ontario, Canada.

Raccoon with spiky wet fur.

I was photographing a plant in a ditch when this male Common Blackbird came over to investigate the strange behaviour of the human. Cheshire, England.

Male European Blackbird.

Squirrel in monochrome.

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Monochrome Monday travels back two days to Saturday morning.

I had set up outside trying for shots of the birds and small mammals in the yard. The light was very uneven as the sun was shining through trees that are only now coming into leaf.

This American Red Squirrel was in the shade with sunlight illuminating the grass behind it. I liked the detail in the shot, especially the claws, but didn’t like the lighting in the colour version so did a monochrome conversion to tone down the background.

American Red Squirrel portrait.

Shiny Grackle.

David M4 Comments

The new Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge is Shiny.

My initial ideas involved ice as winter seems to be dragging on in this part of Ontario.

I then started thinking about some of the bird species with iridescent plumage and thought of the male Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) that should be arriving in Ontario soon. They’re quite a colourful species in the right light although not very popular with some people who feed the birds when they descend in large flocks.

A portrait of a male Common Grackle on the South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario in the spring.

A shiny male Common Grackle.