Tampa Audubon Photography Field Trip: Circle B Bar Reserve, 25 Mar 2023
Yesterday I led a second Photography Field Trip out to Circle B Bar Reserve in Polk County. Four people signed up, two showed. The two were a young couple, Brianna (Bri) and Jake, who are new to birding and bird photography. They were very enthusiastic about the trip and had never been to Circle B before.
We met at 07:15 am, 12 minutes before sunrise. While waiting for the sun to rise and others to show we talked about birding vs. bird photography, the plan for the morning, safe trail practices (no one wants to get eaten by an alligator), and the ethics of bird photography. At 07:30 we hit the trail, following the same route discussed in my last post. It was overcast with no wind. The birds were still scarce at this point, but that was OK given the overcast conditions. We did come across a group of bushes and trees which had a few Common Yellowthroats and Yellow-throated Warblers flitting about. We also saw a few Purple Gallinules off in the distance - too far for me to photograph.
Common Yellowthroat. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 500mm, f/5.6, ISO 6400, 1/640 sec, mounted on a monopod.
We turned down Marsh Rabbit Run and walked till we reached the short pier with a blind overlooking the lake. From there we spotted a few Bald Eagles and their nest on the opposite side of the lake. It was too far to take photos but it was good to see the eagles nesting. It looked like there were young birds in the nest.
Returning to the trail we spotted a Green Heron in the small canal adjacent to the trail. We watched him catch a little bug and eat it, but the bird was in some fairly dense vegetation and I didn’t get a shot. He eventually moved a little and I managed to get a few frames of him standing there watching us watching him.
Green Heron. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 340mm, f/5.6, ISO 6400, 1/500 sec, mounted on a monopod.
Eventually we made it to the Alligator Alley trail where the sun thankfully began to break through the morning gray and we could lower ISOs to reasonable levels. I was on the lookout for Painted Buntings but did not see them on the trail or during the trip. There were occasional song birds such as this Carolina Wren.
Carolina Wren. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 410mm, f/5.6, ISO 1600, 1/500 sec, mounted on a monopod.
We also saw lots of Common Gallinules and Great Blue Herons. The GBHs were in the canal running parallel to the trail or on the opposite bank. They gave us the opportunity to discuss subject-to-background distance, the rule of thirds, the importance of focusing on the eye, and in the photos below, the matter of avoiding natural lines in the background crossing the bird’s body. These natural lines typically are branches and horizons. In the first photo of the GBH below I got low, as I normally do to be at eye level with the bird, and snapped a photo. I instantly recognized that the water line was running right across the bird’s head and the bird’s eye is slightly turned away from me. Both are undesirable, so I raised my monopod to get a better angle. In the second photo, I’ve gotten a better angle so that the water’s edge is now above the bird’s head but now the bird has completely turned its head away. A few moments later I took the final image where the bird turned its head back to me so that I was able to get a full profile shot with the bird’s eye now visible. Now, this photo is far from perfect. The light is flat, the bird is not doing anything particularly interesting, and the water & background is unattractive. But it’s always fun to practice and we got some quality time observing a beautiful bird.
Further down the trail we spotted a couple of nests in the trees. First we found an Anhinga nest with some fluffy white chicks. Very close to the Anhinga nest we spotted a GBH nest with at least one chick in it. They were far away though, so getting good photos was tough.
Anhinga nest. Those babies are getting big! Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 500mm, f/5.6, ISO 900, 1/640 sec, mounted on a monopod.
Great Blue Heron nest. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 500mm, f/5.6, ISO 900, 1/640 sec, mounted on a monopod.
Near the end of Alligator Alley were walked out to the pier where Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, and Double-crested Cormorants filled the trees. I took two photos: one of a Great Egret along the shoreline and a cormorant resting in the trees.
Great Egret. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 380mm, f/5.6, ISO 400, 1/1000 sec, mounted on a monopod.
Double-crested Cormorant. Nikon Z9 with 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 460mm, f/5.6, ISO 1250, 1/800 sec, mounted on a monopod.
Compare the backgrounds of the GBH and the cormorant. Why is the background in the cormorant photo nice and blurry while the background in the GBH photo more detailed? The answer is subject-to-background distance. Because the GBH is close to the background, the background has more detail. The cormorant was perched on a branch and the background foilage was at least 15 feet away, giving it a softer (and in my view more pleasing) view.
Bri, Jake and I had a great time. It was their first visit to Circle B and they were surprised by how big and open the park is. I know they’ll return soon.
If you’d ever like to go on a trip with me, there are two ways:
Photography Field Trips through the Tampa Audubon Society. These are free. In these field trips I provide some basic instruction but the primary purpose of these trips is as the name suggests - a field trip with a bird photography focus. You can find out when these are scheduled on the Tampa Audubon website. I currently have one scheduled for Fort De Soto Park on May 6, 2023. You can sign up for these trips through the TAS website.
Bird Photography Workshops. During these workshops we will go to location where I will provide detailed instruction about bird photography related to that location. Group sizes are limited. Signup is here.
