Category Archives: Animals

Back In The Saddle

Posted on October 16, 2009 | Leave a comment

Here I am, to rock you like a…um…well, I probably shouldn‘t finish that, my luck I’d probably get sued or something for copyright infringement for using the lyric, so I’ll just say I’m here to rock you.  Deal?

Ok, deal.

I’m not sure how many of you will consider this rock worthy, but I’ll continue anyway.

For those that were unaware, my birthday was yesterday.  Woo  (That was sarcasm there folks).  Just another day out of the calendar year.  Nothing important.

Anyway, yesterday I went hiking.  It was the definition of a “crisp fall day.”  Cold yet nice.  I climbed Pigeon Hill in Steuben and got a few decent panoramic photos (my little Sony HX1 can do some amazing things!).

After returning from Pigeon Hill I went on to the Birch Point Trail in the Petite Manan Wildlife Refuge.  I’m a bit bummed because the foliage around here kind of sucked.  We didn’t get the bright vivid colors I was hoping for.  It was basically a tree turning a sickly shade of yellow here, another a bland red there, then bam…all the leaves fall.

Today I went hiking yet again.  This time closer to home.  I had started down the hiking trail of Roque Bluff’s State Park earlier in the year, around August or something but the bugs were out so thick that I had to turn back.  Today, I got to experience the trails, bug free.  And I must say, I’m impressed with them.  More so than I thought I would be.

I managed to get some very interesting pictures while I was there.

Let me set the scene for you.

I was walking down the trail, searching for wildlife (we all know how elusive animals can be when you’re looking for them), and any kind of tree in full fall bloom, when I heard the unmistakable chatter of a squirrel right over my head.  I looked up to see this plump little rust colored squirrel on a branch maybe two feet above my head.  It just sat there, staring at me and chattering its little head off.  I managed to get a picture before it ran off to warn its friends of my approach.

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 100mm, F-Stop: 5.2, Shutter Speed: 1/100, ISO: 125

Now, I just love how the lighting worked out in this photo.  A lot of people would disagree and say it was a bad shot, but I think it gives it a unique and neat quality.  I tried to sound all artsy and technical right there.  FAIL.

Moving on…

I managed to get another interesting picture while I was on this trail.  After I escaped the squirrel citadel, I came upon a portion of the trail that brought me up to the water’s edge.  The tide was out so there were a bunch of various types of birds frolicking about searching for fish.  I just happened to look in the right place at the right time and saw a bird I had never seen before.  I’m told, from a lady I passed on the trail, that it’s a heron.  If anyone disagrees with that, let me know cause I’m no bird expert.

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 100mm, F-Stop: 5.2, Shutter Speed: 1/320, ISO: 125

Not to sound conceited or anything, but I timed that pretty damn good to have the bird looking almost directly at me.

Now, on my way back out of this trail, I stopped and took a few random shots of some leaves that were still hanging on, and probably the only tree that was still in semi-decent fall bloom.

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 100mm, F-Stop: 5.2, Shutter Speed: 1/160, ISO: 200

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 100mm, F-Stop: 5.2, Shutter Speed: 1/160, ISO: 160

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 5mm, F-Stop: 8, Shutter Speed: 1/50, ISO: 125

Camera: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX1, Focal Length: 100mm, F-Stop: 5.2, Shutter Speed: 1/100, ISO: 125

If it’s a nice day tomorrow, I plan to head out for a third day’s hike.  Back to my favorite place, Quoddy Head State Park.

For now, that’s my update.

I’m back in the saddle folks.  The hike is on!  It’s just too bad it’s getting so late in the year.  I could use some more nice warm days before the bitter winter stakes its claim.

Keep on rockin’ on.

[^_^]

~A.M.

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Posted in Hiking, Photography, Wildlife

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Holy Double Hike, Batman!

Posted on September 3, 2009 | Leave a comment

Ok, go ahead and say it….I’m a slacker….

It’s true, at least in part.

I wish I had some profound and valid excuse for not updating this regularly, but alas, I don’t. I just simply haven’t been doing much in the way of getting out and taking pictures.

Recently some things have interrupted the usual flow of my daily routine. I’m not trying to sound melodramatic here cause not all said “things” are really bad. My brother’s birthday was last week so of course I attended that shindig…Yes, I said shindig. Then I used some downtime to work on a gift I’m going to give one of my professors for Halloween this year. That reminds me, I can’t forget to make one of the crucial pieces in the next two weeks. For the bad part, I’ve been struggling with a music download I purchased…A HUGE download. 280MB. Yeah. But luckily I was able to get in touch with the man that is responsible for the file and he was nice enough to break it into pieces for me. I’m still in the process of downloading said pieces (they’re still hefty files).

So now, with my pathetic attempt at explaining my lack of updating, I’ll get to the actual update. Yay? YAY!
I’ve grown just a bit bored with the beach near my house. I’ve been taking pictures of that place almost constantly since I moved here (and that was about 6 years ago) and until recently we had nowhere else to go. Now, as I’ve mentioned in earlier posts my mother and I have taken up hiking. In taking up said hobby, we’ve found some new places around here with some rather nice trails.

For example, Tuesday we went to the Bold Coast Trails in Cutler. We followed the shortest of the trails just to see what it was like since it was our first time visiting the place. We were pleasantly surprised. The trails were marked well, and they weren’t too strenuous. At the end of the coastal trail we were on, there was an overlook point. Out on a rocky ledge we got a clear view of Grand Manan (Canada). There were fishing boats zooming back and forth checking traps. But what really stunned and excited me was the seal sighting. I’ve seen one seal in real life before about seven years ago so to see this one, and have my camera all ready was pretty awesome.

Isn’t it cute!? I just wish it had been swimming toward me instead of away.

(Camera: Sony A100. Focal length: 500mm. F-Stop: 6.3. Shutter Speed: 1/500. ISO: 200)


After the little seal showed off for a bit, it decided it had had enough and swam away. At that point we had decided we had had enough so we hiked back. After that, we went to Quoddy, had some lunch, then hiked out to Green Point. I got some more pictures of the rock formations people make there. I’m thinking I could do my gallery show (whenever my professor gets back to me about it) just on the rock stacks at Green Point. Interesting notion, no? I’ll have to explore that further.

Anyway, yesterday, we went out yet again.

That’s right….Two days in a row.

This time we went back to Petit Manan Wildlife Refuge in Steuben. We hiked the Shore Trail again and I got a better picture of the lighthouse where I had my biggest lens with me.

(Camera: Sony A100. Focal length: 500mm. F-Stop: 22. Shutter Speed: 1/100. ISO: 100)

After we got back from the Shore Trail and had our lunch we set off to explore the Birch Point Trail. I was impressed with the quality of this trail. Granted there were a few muddy and marshy areas but that was to be expected since it was on the coast, in the woods, and after all the rain we had a while back.

The four mile loop was a really non strenuous hike which I was glad about (I’m still not in the best of shape). I managed to get a few ok shots of the water at different points but the big thing that happened was my discovery of a feather among the rocks on the beach. It wasn’t any seagull feather mind you, this thing is huge. It’s over a foot long. I’m not sure exactly what kind of feather it is but I’m thinking it’s either an Eagle or an Osprey feather. It’s cool regardless.

So in total, over the past two days, my mother and I hiked about 8 or 9 miles. And we’re planning to go back out again tomorrow, not sure where yet though. I just hope my arthritis doesn’t start acting up. Yes folks, I have arthritis. 25 and I have arthritis. Not the debilitating kind that requires constant medication but enough to cause discomfort when it acts up. Not fun. Not fun at all.

Well, I guess that’s all for now folks.

Take it easy.

[-_-]

~A.M.

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Blogging Consistency Challenged

Posted on August 20, 2009 | Leave a comment

Skipping right over my acknowledgement of my blogging consistency problem, here’s a bit of an update about what’s been going on since my last post.

So last Saturday I was set to go to Acadia National Park for a day of hiking and photo taking. I have to be honest here, I enjoyed the hiking but several things landed the whole trip in the “Failed” files for me.

First, the day started out tainted with the news that my father’s cat, Aurora, had to be put to sleep the night before. The poor thing’s kidneys were rapidly failing and she was in pain. Needless to say, my father was extremely upset by all this. We all were affected. But she’s in a better place now. Free of pain, fear, and negativity. The Goddess will watch over and care for her in the Summerland until she’s ready to be reborn. (I know, I know, I’m getting all pagan-y and new age-y on you guys but hey, It’s my blog!)

Second, it was hot. No, not the sexy type of hot, get your mind out of the gutter you fools! It was hot temperature wise. Granted it wasn’t a high humidity but even with the breeze at the top of Cadillac Mountain, it was hot. It’s not all that fun to hike when it’s hot.

Third, my stupid circular polarizer filter ended up causing a vignette on most of my pictures which in turn made me not like any of them enough to post for you good folks. I know you’re sad about that, I can feel your sorrow. I’ll try to do better next time. I’m not sure why my filter caused the vignette (for those of you that have no idea what I‘m talking about a vignette in photography terms is when a lens and/or filter is too small for the camera‘s film plane or digital sensor and creates a circular shadow in the corners of the frame). I’ll try to fix the problem when I figure it out. Maybe get a bigger filter or just rely on post production to do the job. I suppose I could hide the problem with frames in Photoshop but I’ve been feeling lazy.

Fourth, we visited what’s called Thunder Hole (Stop laughing. No, seriously. Stop laughing). This place was interesting and pretty enough but the tide was wrong to create the effect that gives the spot its name. Apparently, when the tide is right, the water rushing into the little canyon of rock creates a sound like thunder. Sound of thunder in a hole like canyon in the rock, Thunder Hole, get it now? Enough with the dirty thinking already!

Fifth, the place was overrun, I mean, overrun by people. Tourists mostly. I did manage to get a funny picture (even though it came out a bit blurry and with the vignette problem I told you about) of the people in one of the trolleys staring at me as I took the picture. I’m not sure if they felt like an animal at the zoo or if they thought I did. I guess we’ll never know.

Sixth, we only stayed a few hours. As a result, we didn’t get to see all that much of the huge park and I didn’t take that many pictures. My usual rate on outings like this is 200+ photos. I think I took maybe 110 to 150. A decent enough haul, but most of the photos were marred by my C-PL filter’s vignetting problem. Granted I can go through them and touch them up in Photoshop but that’s going to be a pain in the, well, you know.

The day wasn’t a total bust in my opinion though. I got to spend time with my family (mom, dad, brother and his girlfriend), get some exercise, see some pretty views (even though it was hazy), and visit somewhere new.

Now if all that weren’t enough, my mother and I went hiking again the very next day! Back to Quoddy. I took some photos there with my other C-PL filter and had the same vignette problem. Maybe my filter and lens don’t like each other all that much. So, needless to say, those photos didn’t come out all that great either. At least, not to me. Maybe I’ll tweak a few and toss them up sometime, but not today.

And, finally, to bring everyone completely up to speed, yesterday my parents and I went to Auburn. I found a nice red and black frame for my NYIP Graduation Certificate (FINALLY!) which was, luckily, on sale. So now, the certificate is all framed and proudly adorning my office wall. It makes the room look just a bit more professional I must say.

While we were in the craft store in Auburn, my father started coming up with ideas for his cat’s headstone. I offered my help, so the next time he comes to visit, we’ll sit down and design it. He’s going to do the actual construction of course which is good because I think it will be therapeutic for him. You know, help him come to terms with the whole situation. He needs the closure.

Well folks, again I’m sorry there’s no photos to gander at. I’m my own worst critic and I tend to not share photos I deem as “sub par.” If you ask nicely, then maybe I can be persuaded to fix up a few to show. But you’ll have to ask me real nice.

Until next time…

Keep on rockin’ on.

[~_~]

~ A.M.

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Wolf’s Neck Woods State Park

Posted on August 9, 2009 | Leave a comment

So my father and I are getting into these little photography outings for just the two of us. This was our second trip. After postponing a few times my dad brought me to a state park I had looked up a while ago in Freeport. Wolf’s Neck Woods State Park.

Now the main reason I even found this park in Freeport was because I wanted an excuse to go into LL Bean. I’ve been wanting a rather top-notch backpack for hiking and figured, with their lifetime warranty, LL Bean was the place. More on that later though.

So we get to this state park, and mind you we’re on a motorcycle, and the guy in the entrance/security shack looks at us, smiles, and says “Just two?” My dad shot back with a humorous “No, we’ve got a third folded up in the saddlebag.” Needless to say, we all had a bit of a That’s-such-a-bad-joke-but-it’s-still-funny moment.

So after paying the $6 to get in, getting a few maps of the place, and parking, we got our cameras and began our little trek.

Walking along the trail for a bit we came to an information post that was talking about Osprey and their nests out on an island not too far from where we were standing. Looking out through the trees we could see one sitting in a nest in the very tops of the trees.

I got out my 500mm lens and took a few photos. Here’s one of the better ones.

(I decided to try something new and put some fancy borders around the photos. Ooo, fancy.)

(Camera: Sony A100. Focal length: 330mm. F-Stop: 6.3. Shutter Speed: 1/500. ISO: 100)

When we moved on we headed toward some stairs that wandered down to a rock outcropping. We could really see the Osprey from there. I took a few more pictures, many looked like the one I just posted so I won’t repeat them, but while I was waiting for my dad to take the photos he was taking, I heard a little rustling in the brush behind me. Turning and looking I spotted a chipmunk stuffing his cheeks with berries. You just wanna pet him!

(Camera: Sony A100. Focal length: 500mm. F-Stop: 6.3. Shutter Speed: 1/500. ISO: 250)

By the time I had snapped a few shots of the chipmunk one of the Osprey had taken off from the island and flew over to light in the very tree I was standing under. While I was getting ready to take another picture of this one, it looked directly at me!

(Camera: Sony A100. Focal length: 500mm. F-Stop: 6.3. Shutter Speed: 1/500. ISO: 100)

Once the fun with the Osprey and the chipmunk was over I decided to play a bit with my circular polarizer filter. Now for those of you who don’t know, a circular polarizer filter is used to either remove glare from metallic and glass surfaces and/or deepen the color blue (hence the sky and water look perty!).

This was my result.

(Camera: Sony A100 w/ Circular Polarizer filter. Focal length: 20mm. F-Stop: 4. Shutter Speed: 1/800. ISO: 100)

Of course I took many other photos during this outing but I can’t say I’m all that enamored with them. Seems like I was having an off day when it came to the photography end of it all. Oh well. It happens.

Moving on…

On our way home that day we did stop at LL Bean. I looked at all the backpacks. Damn, shit at that store is expensive. But when you think about it, what you’re really paying for is that lifetime warranty thing so it’s not all that bad of a deal.

I tried on several backpacks until I found one that fit perfectly and was the style I wanted. It’s so cool. It’s made to carry the actual pack away from your back so there’s air flow between your back and the pack itself. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the money to get it (the thing was $150!) but my father said “Happy Birthday” and got it for me! Now, my birthday isn’t until October but you’re not going to see me complaining!

I’m telling you, I’m in love with this thing. I already have it loaded with some clothes, a rather well stocked first aid kit, my photography gear, and some hiking provisions and I swear, even loaded like that, this thing feels like I’m carrying an empty backpack! So now I have a “Freakin Sweet” (as Peter Griffin would say) backpack as well as a kick-ass pair of new hiking boots (they‘re actually the type of boots military and police use). I can’t wait for our trip to Acadia this Saturday.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Now, this past weekend wasn’t without it’s down point. Rewind to Friday. When I got down to my dad’s, we found out that one of my father’s cats was sick. We took her to the animal hospital in Lewiston. Luckily, we were the first ones there so they saw us right away. The vet checked her over, took blood from her, and ran some tests. It seems she was not only dehydrated, but her kidneys aren’t doing what they’re supposed to. They said they could keep her for the weekend and try to re-hydrate her and get her numbers back to where they should be.

So Aurora was hospitalized for the weekend. They weren’t sure if they were going to let her go home Sunday or Monday. Here it is, Sunday and they called my dad to let him know he could come pick her up. But, they said the vet wanted to “talk” to him. I’m not sure what to make of that. On one hand it could be bad and she’s going to have problems like this indefinitely, or, on the other, it could be just a little chat about maintaining her diet so this doesn’t happen again. We’ll see what the deal is when my father calls later tonight.

Everyone cross your fingers and hope that Aurora’s going to be ok.

Until next time, folks.

Keep on rockin’ on.

[-_-]

~A.M.

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“Tweet! Tweet!”…And I’m Not Talking About Twitter!…

Posted on June 28, 2009 | Leave a comment

So I’m not sure if I mentioned this in a previous post or not but there’s a little birdhouse outside my window that’s currently occupied. For the past couple of weeks now I’ve been watching the two birds living in it. I knew they had eggs in there cause one was always in the birdhouse and wouldn’t leave until the other one came back and took over the guard duty.

Today, I went out to take a picture of a little chipmunk that was swiping seeds from our birdfeeder when I see out of the corner of my eye both birds taking off. I watched one come back and stick its head into the birdhouse, then I heard some high pitched tweets when it took off again. Meaning, my friends…well, I’m sure you know what that means. The babies hatched!

Why is this important? Well, to some people, it may not be. I, however, find it cute. I like nature and all the little fuzzy, furry, feathered creatures. What interests me is that last year at this same time that same birdhouse was occupied by the same type of bird. I’m thinking that maybe the ones in the house this year is one of the babies from last year. So cool!

I can’t wait till the little ones start sticking their heads out so I can snap a few photos of them!

Oh and that chipmunk? I’ll have to get the pictures off my card and onto the computer soon to see better if they came out but I think I got some pretty cute shots of him…or…her…I’m not sure which.

Anyway, I guess that’s all I have to bore you with right now. I’m off to try and figure out how I’m going to accomplish a few tasks I have ahead of me. Wish me luck.

Per usual,

Keep on rockin’ on!

[^_^]

~A.M.

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Posted in Photography, Wildlife

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