Great Blue Heron and One Magical Feather – (Not So Wordless Wednesday)

Great Blue Heron Fishes with Feather – babsjeheron

… I go and lie down where the wood drake rests
in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
or grief. I come into the presence of still water.

Wendell Berry
The Peace of Wild Things (excerpt)
The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry

Doesn’t this Great Blue Heron holding a seagull feather bring to mind a friendly dog playfully carrying his favorite toy back to you, wagging his tail?.

At the time, I wanted to say to her, “Who’s a good girl? You are! You are a good girl!” because the way she pranced the length of the submerged log seemed so playful – at first.

At first, it looked playful, but then I realized the seagull feather was not a mere toy to this Great Blue Heron – it was a tool, a fishing lure she repeatedly dipped into the water to entice fishes up to the surface, making it easier for her to spear them with her stiletto bill..

For some birds, it is dinnertime more often than not. Searching for their next meal, or that of their offspring, is a full-time job. A few Great Blue Herons at the lake have adapted tools to make fishing much easier, and dinner more of a sure thing.

She would pluck the feather from the water’s surface, and shake loose the droplets…

…And then carefully drop the feather back down into the water…

After a few moments, she retrieved it with that stiletto bill again, shook it dry, and then dropped it into the water once more.

Transfixed, I watched her repeat this for more than ten minutes.

It looked almost ritualistic – totemic or shamanic even – to see a feathered creature brandishing a feather from a different bird in such repetitive behavior.

And then it dawned on me.

Before she first picked up the feather, she had been fishing, staring intently into the water as though tracking a fish, from the half-submerged pine trunk.

And once she picked up the feather, she continued her fishing – using the feather as bait to attract her prey up to the surface. Her prey: the fish.

How smart a bird and how alluring a lure she chose.

The internet is rife with accounts of animals using tools, such as a news piece that featured dolphins using tools to catch fish. Crows are the master tool users of the bird world, but as this experience shows, Herons are very smart birds, too.

I’ve observed herons using tools for fishing on other occasions, but there’s something magical and special about her choice of a feather lure.

After all, don’t human fishermen – especially fly casters – often fashion their lures with feathers?

Why should a Great Blue Heron choose any differently?

Ingenious Heron!

That day, I took more than 925 photographs at the lake.

The Great Blue Heron you see here is one of only three I’ve named: Juliette.

While Juliette and I were in the middle cove, her suitor Romeo was just over the ridge in the long slender cove, oblivious to the mysterious joys of fly casting with a feather.
.
Romeo missed all the fun that day.
.

Great Blue Heron Fishes with Feather Nbr 8 – babsjeheron

.

.
.

.

.

About today’s post: Today’s post is prompted by I.J.’s Bird of the Week, Jez’s Water Water Everywhere, the Lens Artists Art in the Park challenge, and last but not least Terri Webster Schrandt’s Sundays Stills: Appreciating our #Pets and #Playgrounds (this Heron acted like a friendly dog playfully carrying his favorite toy back to you, wagging his tail).

.
.

Because of my near-blindness, I’m not able to link in my posts to the various host sites for WP challenges/tags in the way I have always done in the past, but please know that I value the sense of community here, especially among the Lens Artists, Cee Neuner, Debbie Smyth, Leanne Cole, BeckyB, Denzil, I.J., Restless Jo, Tofino Photography, Dan Antion, Terri Webster Schrandt, Bush Boy, Jez, Fandango, and so many more, who all encourage the entire international network of photographers and writers. Sorry that I cannot link directly at this time – this is the best I can do for now.
.
.
.
.

Audubon One-Woman Show -babsjeheron

Audubon One-Woman Show Lobby – babsjeheron

TCAN One-Woman Show January through February 2022 Lobby Wall With TCAN Sign Reflected; TCAN Stained glass art by Carol Krentzman, framed by Jay Ball

My Great Blue Heron photographs were once again on display on the walls of the lobby and theater in a free one-woman show at the Summer Street Gallery, of The Center for Arts in Natick. The Summer Street Gallery provides an opportunity for accomplished visual artists in the region to have their work prominently displayed for TCAN’s diverse and loyal audience. If you’re in the Boston area, please stop by TCAN to see the wonderful gallery displays of artworks by many talented visual artists, as well as excellent live music performances and stage plays. The gallery is open whenever the box office is open, so please check hours here.

.
.

.

.

.

Art in the Park 2023 is coming: June 11 at Shaw Park!
Watch this space.

.
.
As always, many of my own photos were taken on the waterways of the Charles River watershed.
.
.

Natick Center Cultural District logo

Folks, now that some areas have opened back up in a new normal, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past THREE years and they still need your love more than ever.

.

The Natick Center Cultural District is situated in a friendly, classic New England town hosting a vibrant, contemporary fusion of art, culture and business. Click here and here to learn more!

.
.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick:

• January thru February 2022 – One-woman photography show
• December 2019 thru January 2020 – One-woman photography show
• May, June, July 2018 – One-woman photography show
• July 2016 – One-woman photography show
• March 2016 – One-woman photography show
• May 2015 – One-woman photography show

Natick Town Hall:

• July 2022 to January 2023 – Group exhibit
• January thru June 2022 – Group exhibit
• September thru october 2018 – One-woman photography show

Five Crows Gallery in Natick – Represented since 2013
.
Audubon Sanctuary:

• July 2018 – One-woman photography show

.

Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

A Patience of Herons™

© 2003-2023 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Share the love, but please respect the copyright. No reposting of any photos without permission.

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick Center Cultural District, Fishing

Who’s a Happy Heron? Not Entirely Wordless Wednesday Redux

Great Blue Heron Diving beneath the Surface – babsjeheron

“Do animals feel emotions? We can easily identify joy when we see it on the face of another person. But what about animals? Can they feel joy and other emotions?

What a happy face! Great Blue Heron lands huge Pike – babsjeheron.

If you smile at me I will understand,
‘Cause that is something everybody everywhere does in the same language.

David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Paul Kantner
Wooden Ships
Crosby, Stills & Nash

How about a round of applause for this joyful Great Blue Heron? – babsjeheron

.
Do animals feel emotions? As humans, we can easily identify joy when we see it on the face of another person. But what about animals? Can they feel joy and other emotions?

A quick Internet search will reveal a lot of anecdata about emotions in animals and birds, and many pet owners will attest to their own dog’s or cat’s or horse’s capacity to “feel.”

I’m not aware of “scientific studies” that prove the emotional capacity of birds and animals, but there are fascinating accounts of wild creatures “grieving” dead mates – Elephants and even Herons have been observed staying with their dead, Crows and Ravens are reported to have “funerals”for the departed.

What do you think – have you seen a pet or a wild creature show “joy?” I’d love to read your comments about animals showing emotions.
.
.
.
I think we can never have too much joy!

.

.
.

.

.

About today’s post: Today’s post is inspired by Ann-Christine’s Lens Artist prompt “Backlit.” The golden hour sunlight illuminates the water bubbles from behind in the top photo, as well as the stunning Pike in the Heron’s jaws.

.
.

Frequent readers may know that I have been nearly blind for many months and so have been largely absent from WordPress blogs. Last Thursday, I learned that instead of three retina laser surgeries, I will need only two – one for each eye. I’ll take that news as a win! Scheduling is still delayed, and until then, Patience is the word of the day.

Because of my near-blindness, I’m not able to link in my posts to the various host sites for WP challenges/tags in the way I have always done in the past, but please know that I value the sense of community here, especially among the Lens Artists, Cee Neuner, Debbie Smyth, BeckyB, Denzil, I.J., Restless Jo, Tofino Photography, and more, who all encourage the entire international network of photographers and writers. Sorry that I cannot link directly at this time – this is the best I can do for now.
.
.

I do love a happy ending, and hope my eye surgeon delivers one for the Herons & me! Patience Grasshopper.

.
.
.
.

TCAN One-Woman Show Lobby Wall

Once again, the Great Blue Heron diving beneath the water’s surface graced gallery walls.

TCAN One-Woman Show January through February 2022 Lobby Wall With TCAN Sign Reflected; TCAN Stained glass art by Carol Krentzman, framed by Jay Ball

My Great Blue Heron photographs were once again on display on the walls of the lobby and theater in a free one-woman show at the Summer Street Gallery, of The Center for Arts in Natick. It was great to see so many of you there.

Since 2001, the Center for Arts Natick has been housed in the circa 1875 historic Central Fire House, where the Summer Street Gallery provides an opportunity for accomplished visual artists in the region to have their work prominently displayed for TCAN’s diverse and loyal audience.

If you’re in the Boston or Metro West area, please stop by TCAN to see the wonderful gallery displays of artworks by many talented visual artists, as well as excellent live music performances and stage plays. The gallery is open whenever the box office is open, so please check hours here.

As always, many of my own photos were taken on the waterways of the Charles River watershed.

.
.

.

Art in the Park 2023 is coming in June! Watch this space.

.
.

Natick Center Cultural District logo

Folks, now that some areas have opened back up in a new normal, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past THREE years and they still need your love more than ever.

.

The Natick Center Cultural District is situated in a friendly, classic New England town hosting a vibrant, contemporary fusion of art, culture and business. Click here and here to learn more!

.
.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick – One-woman photography show through February 2022
.
Natick Town Hall – Current group exhibit thru January 3 2023
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick – Represented since 2013
.
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

A Patience of Herons™

© 2003-2023 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick Center Cultural District, Dragonfly

Epic Great Blue Heron Rescue Redux

Great Blue Heron lands a large fish – babsjeheron

If i could talk to the animals – just imagine it,
speaking with a Chimp in chimpanzee!
Imagine talking to a Tiger, or chatting with a Cheetah –
what a neat achievement that would be!

If i could talk to the animals, learn their languages –
maybe take an animal degree…
I’d study Elephant and Eagle, Buffalo and Beagle,
Alligator, Guinea Pig and Flea!

[first bridge] I would converse in Polar Bear and Python,
and I would curse in fluent Kangaroo.
If people asked me, “can you speak Rhinoceros?”
I’d say, “of course-eros!

Can’t you?”

If I Could Talk To The Animals by Leslie Bricusse
Doctor Doolittle

Raise your hand if you talk to the animals.

Now raise your other hand if the animals talk to you.

You over there – put your other hand up, too. You and you, too.

Animals communicate with humans in many ways, some oral and others non-verbal.

Who doesn’t know what a dog’s growl portends? Or the sweet purring of a tabby cat? Frequent readers of this blog may recall my stories of Great Blue Herons’ greetings: arrrh and goooh, and their guttural frawhnk of alarm.

And as for the non-verbal, animal body language can be very telling. What is a cat saying with ears flattened back and tail swishing from side to side? Or a dog wagging its tail so enthusiastically that its entire rump is wagging, too? Readers of earlier posts here may recall learning that a Heron standing in a ramrod-straight posture, with neck fully extended and head held high, is a Heron on high alert.

Today’s post is the true story of an heroic Great Blue Heron rescue capped off by the Heron communicating with her rescuer, saying “thank you” in an unmistakable way.

When I posted about the rescue earlier this year, Wayne of Tofino Photography suggested that I send the hero a photo of the beautiful rescued Great Blue Heron.

That was easier said than done – I had met him only once years ago in a taxi and didn’t know his name or how to reach him. All I knew was that he was an avid Bass-fishing aficionado, a retired police officer, and part time taxi driver in town.

This was shaping up to be a needle in a haystack quest.

I took a chance and reached out to the owner of the taxi company. A few weeks went by before she called me back, curious about the story. I explained about the heroic rescue and that I wanted to thank him. A couple more weeks went by before I heard back – she found him by going back more than ten years in the records. She said she spoke with him and he remembered that day very clearly.

Fast forward many more weeks until this past Sunday morning, when my phone rang. It was a call from the fisherman hero. His name is Dennis.

We had a lovely, warm chat. It warmed my heart to hear Dennis retell his experience: the day after the Heron rescue, he went fishing again in the same cove and discovered that the Heron was gone, she wasn’t on the shore where he had placed her the day before.

And then a Great Blue Heron flew low and slow right across his bow, nearly touching his shoulder. Dennis told me he was convinced it was the Heron’s way of acknowledging him, thanking him. And I agree.

Hearing Dennis tell his story again brought tears to my eyes.

I want to again thank Dennis for rescuing my favorite Heron from certain death. How many other boaters on the water would bother with an entangled bird I wonder?

I want to thank the excellent wildlife photographer and videographer Wayne for encouraging me to find and thank fisherman hero Dennis. Please visit Tofino Photography to see outstanding photos of Eagles, Bears, Orcas and more.

And I want to thank Joanne of Tommy’s Taxi for caring enough about the story I had told to dig through ten years of records to find, and connect me with, Dennis, the hero of the tale below. How many busy company owners would take the time to do that kind of research?
.
.

Young Osprey perched amid pinecones – babsjeheron

When the fire alarm sounds grew ominously closer, I was photographing an immature Osprey nestled high up amongst the pinecone clusters just down the channel and around the bend from the boathouse. 

Quickly, I stashed the camera below deck and paddled rapidly back to the dock. Judging from the black billowing smoke, it seemed possible that the boathouse was the scene of the fire, and I was concerned for the dockhands there. 

I arrived at the dock and discovered a van engulfed in flames just at the moment the driver escaped through the back door. The sirens from the fire trucks were getting louder as they grew closer, but the firemen weren’t yet on the scene. 
.
.

.

Van fully engulfed in flames on the road next to the boathouse – babsjeheron

A speeding motorboat swerved in alongside me and the driver launched himself over the bow and hit the water running like a military commando, dashing toward the vehicle, taking charge of the scene. It was a striking action scene like something from a film.

The firemen soon arrived and doused the flames in the van and the utility pole, and Alex and Jason had the boathouse under control – the electrical system was toast due to the burned utility lines, but no fire damage otherwise.

It was the last day of the season for the boathouse that year, and so I slipped back down the channel for a final circuit of the lake, a final good bye to the Great Blue Herons for the season – always a poignant afternoon for me.
.

Fast forward nearly a year. New England was experiencing one of its blistering July heat waves, so hot I took a taxi to the lake rather than walking there with all my gear. 

The cab driver and I got to talking as people are sometimes wont to do in taxis, and he started to tell me about his bass fishing tournaments and then about the time he was at the lake and there was a fire.

Great Blue Heron fishing near the reeds and pickerel weed – babsjeheron

I took a closer look at his cab photo then and realized that he was the speedboat commando who had pulled alongside me the day of the fire. Just to be sure, I asked him to describe his boat, and it was the exact boat I had seen that October day, and he confirmed that he had indeed dashed out of the boat to assist in the rescue. As it turns out, he was a retired police officer, so that sort of action in the face of a fire was ingrained by his training and experience.

We marveled a bit at the coincidence of having witnessed the fire together that day, and I mentioned that I had spent the rest of my time there that day photographing and saying goodbye to the Herons for the year.

And what the taxi driver Dennis told me next made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

After I had gone in for the day, and after he was done assisting with the fire, he went back out fishing on the lake, and headed into the small cove between the two tunnels. There are a couple of semi-submerged pines laying on the surface, where there is often good fishing.

Great Blue Heron shaking a Seagull feather. She is standing on the same partly-submerged pine log where she had been tangled in fishing line – babsjeheron

That day, however, he came across a Great Blue Heron caught in fishing line on one of the pine logs. The line was caught in the Heron’s wing and foot, and the Heron was struggling and obviously very weakened by the time he got there.

Dennis idled his boat, and pulled up as near to the Heron on the pine as possible, and got out of the boat. He cut the tangled line, freeing the Heron, but the Heron was too weak to take off, it was too weak to even lift its head.

He then picked up the Heron, and took it to the shore. He laid it down on the ground and cradled it, placing its head and neck in a good position so it could breathe easier.

Dennis stayed with the Heron as long as he could, but had to leave before the boat ramp access closed for the day.

The next day, he went back to check on the Heron.

It was gone, not on the ground where he had placed it.

He went about his fishing for a while.

Great Blue Heron preening two years after her rescue – babsjeheron

At one point – I don’t remember how long he had been out by then – a Great Blue Heron flew low and slow right across his bow, nearly touching his shoulder.

They don’t do that, you know.

Dennis was convinced it was the Heron’s way of acknowledging him, thanking him.

And I agree.
.
In the taxi the following July as Dennis told me his tale, he showed me the photos he had taken with his cell phone of the Heron, while she was entangled on the pine log and then on the shore.

If I had them, I’d share them here. Since I don’t, I’ve posted four of my own photos here of the same Great Blue Heron he saved that day.

What a magnificent creature she is.

And what a hero Dennis is.

.
.
.

Cee Neuner and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya all encourage the community of photographers and writers. Please click the links below to see the beautiful offerings from these wonderful photographers.

The focus for this week’s Lens Artist challenge hosted by guest host Lindy is “Follow Your Bliss.” Frequent readers here should have little doubt that the Great Blue Herons bring me bliss

.
.

Thanks to Cee for her Hunt for joy. I don’t know if this challenge is still on, but I really like the idea of searching for joy. This Heron has brought great joy.
.
.
.
.
From guest host Lindy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 175: Follow Your Bliss .
.
.
From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 175: Follow Your Bliss .
.
.
From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 175: Follow Your Bliss .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 175: Follow Your Bliss .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 175: Follow Your Bliss.
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and a half and they need your love more than ever.
.

Natick Center Cultural District

.

The Natick Center Cultural District is situated in a friendly, classic New England town hosting a vibrant, contemporary fusion of art, culture and business. Learn more!

.
.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

Please watch this space for news of my upcoming Winter 2022 gallery show.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
.
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick

Great Egret for Not-So-Wordless Wednesday

Egret lunging from the shore to catch a fish – babsjeheron

The fisherman and the Egret stared at each other. Clearly, the fisherman was the more surprised of the two.

He didn’t miss a beat, though, following through on the cast he had just played out with a flick of his wrist.

Soundlessly, he reeled in a small fish, and as though guided by instinct, he unhooked it and tossed it back…

Back Into the waters directly in front of the Egret, who lunged after it in an explosion of white, wings-akimbo, feathers flying.

Egret flips fish inside her bill – babsjeheron.

Nature presents us with scenes of exquisite beauty.

When it comes to wildlife photography, so many of those experiences are never caught with a camera. Wildlife is shy and fast and elusive and unpredictable. Weather conditions don’t always cooperate. Digital film cards fill up at inopportune moments. Lens caps left on the camera inadvertently cause missed shots. Sunlight can be too bright or too dim. Insensitive gawkers scare off the wild creatures. I could go on and on.

On this day, however, the universe conspired with the Egret and fisherman and served up a tasty morsel for the Egret, and an unexpected photo opportunity for me there along the shoreline.

Egret submerges her head to land a fish – babsjeheron

It was thrilling to watch these two interacting, fishing man and fishing bird. How I wanted to be fishing with them, fish fishing instead of camera fishing. How I wanted a fish, myself, to toss to the Egret like the fisherman, who was practicing catch and release. How I wanted to know the feeling of the bird coming to me for a fish, the way Border Collie Rogue gambols up for a Milk Bone at the boathouse.

Just once.

But that would be wrong.

Which brings me back around to catch and release fishing. I’m sure that for as long as man has been trying to catch fish throughout the millennia, opportunistic birds have been trying to get man’s leftovers. Is there ever a fishing trawler that pulls into port without a flock of birds trailing along after it’s stern? How about the gulls circling and lurking above the sea walls up and down our coasts where anglers try their luck? It’s not the fishermen’s fault – the birds are very smart.

Egret fishing intently – babsjeheron.

There is a socialization between man and wild bird that has been taking place for eons, whether we’re aware of it or not, whether we like it or not. Speaking for myself, I am a little disheartened when I hear photographers talk about how tame the birds are in such-and-such a place and encourage others to come on down to see the tame birds up close.

There in the cove that day, I felt torn. While the photographer that I am was thrilled by the photo op served up, I felt concerned to see this magnificent Egret so very tame. It wasn’t the fisherman’s fault – I’m sure that Egret has been panhandling fish for a long time. The Egret has been lucky so far, but the risk of being snagged by a wayward fishhook from a poorly-cast line is real. The risk of being entangled in fishing line is very real, as I blogged in the story of a Great Blue Heron ensnared by fishing line: Happy Ending to Beautiful Great Blue Heron Rescue .

And so I love this gorgeous, graceful Egret as an artist loves all of her models, but I can’t help thinking: wild birds needs to be just that to survive safely.

Wild.

.

This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers. Please click the links below to see the beautiful offerings from these wonderful photographers.

The focus for this week’s Lens Artist challenge hosted by Tina is “Interesting Architecture.” One of the boathouses has interesting architecture. During the late 19th century, canoeing was very popular in the area. The boathouse building shown was previously a police station and jail! Amazing architecture for a 19th century jail.

Charles River Boathouse – babsjeheron

.
.
.

Thanks to Cee for her Hunt for joy. I don’t know if this challenge is still on, but I really like the idea of searching for joy. The Herons and Egrets bring joy.
.
.

.
From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture .
.
.
From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture.
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and a half and they need your love more than ever.
.

Natick Artists Sidewalk Chalk

.
Please join Natick Artists on November 13 on Zoom from 2-5 pm ET for a Virtual Exhibition & Sale. The Natick Artists deferred their scheduled Open Studios until Spring 2022 due to COVID, but didn’t want to wait to see you again. They’re all looking forward to sharing artwork with you in this safe virtual environment. Zoom link: November 13 2-5pm ET
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85739018397?pwd=MDlGbXpPMitTZklERE1oR1ozMmRmZz09

.
.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

Please watch this space for news of my upcoming Winter 2022 gallery show.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
.
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick

Great Blue Heron in Warmer Days

Great Blue Heron in Warmer Days – babsjeheron

And when I’ve reached the end of my days, may I be found with a Great Blue Heron nest built within my ribcage.
With apologies to Robert Macfarlane
The Old Ways

Great Blue Heron has caught a small Pickerel after stalking it like a cat – babsjeheron.

(Frequent visitors to my blog know that some posts are Art-with-a-capital-A, some are more scientific, and some are my personal photojournalist observations from the field. This post is not capital-A-Art, although the Great Blue Herons, themselves, are decidedly works of art in and of themselves as far as I am concerned.)

Great Blue Heron about to strike – babsjeheron.

Have you ever watched a cat stalking something? You might have noticed the cat “triangulating” on the prey if the prey is still. Because cats can’t see motionless critters well (or perhaps at all), the cat will move in order to pinpoint the precise location where it needs to pounce.

And just before the cat pounces, you may notice that often the cat hunkers down, raising its butt while lowering its head, then shifting its weight on rear paws from side to side.

Great Blue Herons sometimes do that same maneuver before striking. As you can see in the animation here, the Heron’s head is very nearly motionless, while its neck and body sway from side to side as it fixes on the location of the Pickerel it is stalking. The Heron then lowered its head, raised its tail, and struck with lightning speed.

It was a lucky strike because, as the photo shows, the Heron just barely caught the Pickerel – the fish was easily a foot long, but the Heron only was able to grasp the end of the Pickerel’s snout. The Heron easily swallowed the Pickerel in one gulp. Happy Great Blue Heron!

I can remember the first time I observed a Heron stalking a fish using that cat-like sequence as though it was only yesterday. Watching through the binoculars, I saw the Heron sway from side to side, raise its butt, lower its head and then strike below the surface, and I broke into a big smile when I realized it was hunting just like my cat. Who knew?!

.

This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, Debbie Smyth, Jez Braithwaite, and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers. Please click the links below to see the beautiful offerings from these wonderful photographers.

The focus for this week’s Lens Artist challenge hosted by Tina is “Interesting Architecture.” While photographing Herons in Boston one day, I captured the Museum of Science. From the vantage point of my kayak, the building looks very interesting, as though it has airplane propellers on the roof and the pilot is just waiting to hear the control tower declare “Museum, you are cleared for take off.”

Museum of Science, you are cleared for takeoff – babsjeheron

.
.
.

Thanks to Cee for her Hunt for joy. I don’t know if this challenge is still on, but I really like the idea of searching for joy. The Herons bring joy.
.
.
Thanks to Debbie for her Six Word Saturday. The title is the requisite six words long.
.
.

Thanks to Jez for the Water Water Everywhere Challenge. Quite a bit of water today.
.
.

.
From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture .
.
.
From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 172: A Day of My Week .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 173: Interesting Architecture .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 172: A Day of My Week .
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and a half and they need your love more than ever.
.

Natick Center Cultural District

.

The Natick Center Cultural District is situated in a friendly, classic New England town hosting a vibrant, contemporary fusion of art, culture and business. Learn more!

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

Please watch this space for news of my upcoming Winter 2022 gallery show.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
.
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick

Beautiful Great Blue Heron Gets Lucky

Great Blue Heron Fledgling Sticks The Landing – babsjeheron

.

Great Blue Heron With Pickerel Weed – babsjeheron

Boat traffic was ominously heavy that morning at the lake.
.
.

Old Blue the kayak and I had put in later than usual, and it was dismaying to see motor boat after motor boat cruising down the channel towards us.
.

.
.

Great Blue Heron Territorial Display – babsjeheron

Their wakes were tricky to navigate in a 15 foot kayak.
.

Everyone seemed in a hurry to reach their favorite spots.
.
.

The water churned from boat wakes crashing at me from different directions simultaneously.
.
.

I was feeling the way the Great Blue in this image looked.
.
.

.

Young Osprey perched amid pinecones – babsjeheron

.
.
One boat rushed by to my left, very nearly swamping me in Old Blue.
.
.
.

.
So much for seamanship and courtesy.
.

.
.
An Osprey watched us from high above.
.
.

Great Blue Heron Camouflaged – babsjeheron

.
.
The adults in the speeding boat were all facing forward, chatting away.
.

.
.

But the young boy sitting in the back was facing aft.
.

.

.
.
.

Great Blue Heron preening Columbus Day weekend – babsjeheron

Facing aft and silently pointing as he caught my eye.
.
.
And then it dawned on me.
.
.
.
The boy was directing my attention to the beautiful Great Blue Heron perched on the branch just above the water to my right. How lucky I was.
.
.
.

Great Blue Heron lands a large fish – babsjeheron

.
Thanks to the young boy’s keen eye, I was able to take many Great Blue Heron photographs that day.
.
.
.

.
.
Until he pointed out that Great Blue, I was discouraged by how crowded things were on the water.
.
.
.

Great Blue Heron carrying large Pike – babsjeheron

And I had considered turning the kayak around for home.
.
.

.
.

Instead of leaving, I was able to watch this Great Blue catch the ginormous Pike.
.
.

How lucky I was.
.
.

.

.

Pteradactyl catching prize fish – babsjeheron

.
.
.
.

You can read the story of Great Blue Heron’s Jaw-Dropping Day with a Fisherman CLICK HERE.
.
.
How lucky she was.
.

.
.
.

How about a round of applause for this plucky Heron for swallowing the huge Pike? – babsjeheron

.
.
.
.
You can read the story of the Epic Great Blue Heron Swallows Ginormous Fish CLICK HERE.
.
.
How lucky she was..

.
.

.

Van fully engulfed in flames on road next to boathouse on Columbus Day weekend – babsjeheron

.
.
This was also the day the boathouse caught fire, and a few hours later, an heroic boater saved the life of the Great Blue Heron shown in today’s photos.
.

You can read the story of the Happy Ending to Beautiful Great Blue Heron Rescue CLICK HERE.
.

Thanks to him, this Heron was lucky to be alive!
.
.
.
How very lucky she was!

.
.

.

.

This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, Dawn Miller and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers.

The focus for this week’s LAPC is The Ordinary. This week, the Lens Artists have invited blogger I.J. Khanewala here as guest host. Welcome I.J.!

The day shown in my post, Columbus Day – now Indigenous Peoples’ Day – started out as an ordinary holiday day at the lake. The second Monday in October is the traditional closing day for the boathouse for the year.

Please click the links below to see the beautiful offerings from these wonderful photographers.
.
.

Thanks to Cee for her Hunt for joy. I don’t know if this challenge is still on, but I really like the idea of searching for joy. The Herons bring joy.
.
.
Thanks to Dawn for her Festival of Leaves . Autumn leaves are subtly reflected in the Preening Heron photo.
.
.
.
From I.J. Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 169: The Ordinary .
.
.

From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 169: The Ordinary .
.

From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 169: The Ordinary .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 169: The Ordinary .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 169: The Ordinary .

.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and they need your love.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
,
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! You can CLICK HERE to see the gallery walls with Herons .
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick

Beautiful Great Blue Heron’s Guest…Osprey Fish Tail Lore

Silhouette of Osprey Carrying Half a Fish Nbr 1 – babsjeheron

Silhouette of Osprey Carrying Half a Fish Nbr 2 – babsjeheron

.
.
Some birds are more egalitarian than others when it comes to incubating their eggs and attending to their chicks in the nest.

Mute Swans for example? Both males and females have been observed sitting on their eggs during their five-to-six week incubation. Click to see the male Mute Swan incubating eggs.

Great Blue Herons share the care and feeding of their chicks. Click to read about the Great Blue Herons’ shift change at the nest.

And what about Osprey? One bit of Osprey lore is that they always carry fish with the fish head facing in their direction of flight, for better in-flight aerodynamics. In the photos today, although the fish has no head, the Osprey is indeed carrying it with an invisible head forward. I find that aspect of the headless fish photos amusing.

Incubating eggs is largely the job of the female Osprey. It is the role of the male to bring meals back to the nest for the female during the one-month incubation period. I’ve read that the male Osprey shares his catch with his mate at the nest: when he catches a fish, he brings half the fish back to the female.

Until that October day, I had often seen and photographed Osprey carrying fish, but those fish were always whole fish. In both photos today, the Osprey is carrying half a fish. Presumably he has already given the other half to the nesting female.

I am moved by his heartwarming pair-bonding gesture.
.

.

.
And since this is a Great Blue Heron blog, obligatory Heron photo:

Great Blue Heron with broken leg wings her way across the lake – babsjeheron

.
.

.
This post is prompted by Cee Neuner and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers. The focus for this week’s LAPC is Seen Better Days. That half a fish being carried by the Osprey was once a whole and very alive fish swimming through the lake. Those were certainly better days for that fish. Even the Great Blue Heron with her broken leg had seen better days!
.

.

Thanks to Cee for her CBWC: Half of Anything. The Osprey is carrying half a fish. The image is straight out of the camera (SOOC), as-is except for cropping and was not artificially manipulated to become B&W. The skies were a beautiful October leaden grey.
.
.

From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 168: Seen Better Days .
.

From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 168: Seen Better Days.
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 168: Seen Better Days .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 168: Seen Better Days .
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and they need your love.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
,
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! You can CLICK HERE to see the gallery walls with Herons .
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick, Osprey, Mute Swan

Blue Heron Guest…Osprey’s Epic Fail?

Osprey in Autumn- babsjeheron

.
.
The tall dead White Pine is favored by Bald Eagles, Red Tail Hawks, and Osprey that perch on branches offering excellent views of two coves. Great Blue Herons often fish the base of that tree, and it is one of my own favorite spots to fish for wildlife photos – more than a few of my favorite images on this blog were captured there.

I always scan for birds atop that tree with my binoculars before passing through the tunnel that separates the Middle and North lakes. That day, an Osprey carrying a very large fish was just about to touch down on the tree, and so I backpaddled the kayak to stay put on my side of the tunnel, and quickly retrieved the camera from beneath the cockpit deck.

Osprey Drops Prize Fish – babsjeheron

Looking at the above sequence, you can see the Osprey – with its wings fanning for balance – trying mightily to secure that large fish, which swings like a pendulum beneath the branch. The above sequence took only 53 seconds, from landing on the branch with the huge prize fish to losing his grip and watching the fish plummet.

Incredulous Osprey After Dropping Prize Fish – babsjeheron

Poor Osprey! The expressions on its face ranged from surprise to disbelief that the fish got away. It just seemed stunned and stood there staring downward, as though looking everywhere for that fish, angling its head this way and that for a better view.

Osprey Looks Down for Dropped Prize Fish – babsjeheron

The Osprey stared down at the surface of the water for a long time after losing his prize catch, before taking flight nearly twelve minutes later.

Osprey Flying Away After Dropping Prize Fish – babsjeheron

.

.
There’s a symbiotic relationship among the birds that perch high up in that tree and the birds that fish at the base. The Eagles and Hawks and Osprey watch for and intercept fish that elude birds fishing from the shore. And vice-versa.

And what of the fish that got away from the Osprey? You may remember that I wrote that Great Blue Herons often fish the base of that tree. I like to think that a Great Blue Heron had a tasty free lunch that day.

.

.

.
.
.

.
This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, Debbie Smyth, Dawn Miller, and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers. The focus for this week’s LAPC is Colors of Autumn. The lead photo on this post has vibrant reds.

.

Thanks to Cee for her CMMC: Autumn or Spring. Autumn leaves fit this topic.
.
.
Thanks to Debbie for her Six Word Saturday . This post title has the requisite six words!
.
.
Thanks to Dawn for her Festival of Leaves . This post has bright muted red autumn leaves.
.
.

From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and they need your love.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
,
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! You can CLICK HERE to see the gallery walls with Herons .
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick, Osprey

Beautiful Great Blue Heron in Autumn and a Large Mouth Bass

Great Blue Heron by Falling Waters in Autumn – babsjeheron

“Lie still in a stream and breathe water. Climb to the top
of the highest tree until you come to the branch
where the blue heron sleeps. Eat poems for breakfast…”

Advice to Beginners (excerpt)
Ellen Kort

If I Had My Life to Live Over: I Would Pick More Daisies, Sandra Martz, ed.

Great Blue Herons and Red Tail Hawks often frequented this spot, fishing for the Trout, Bass, and Pickerel in the pools at the base of the falling water. Finding a Heron there when the Autumn colors were in full display was challenging and I spent many hours over 7 or 8 years hidden in my kayak across the channel in hopes of capturing a Great Blue with the striking autumn leaves. Good things come to she who waits.
.
.
The Herons have plenty of other fishing holes nearby. And so do the humans. Bass Fishing Tournaments take place frequently – some with big bucks in prize money.
.
.
I don’t think the Great Blue Heron in the photo sequences below paid a tournament entry fee, but he didn’t use any illegal bait to land that Largemouth Bass. I know the Bass he caught didn’t get properly weighed at take out what with having been gulped down mid-tourney, but I bet the size of that fish would have made some of the fishermen weep.
.

Great Blue Heron Lands Largemouth Bass – babsjeheron

Great Blue Heron Walking Down the Shore Carrying the Largemouth Bass – babsjeheron

The Heron Put Down the Bass for a Moment, then Picked it Up and Turned Around – babsjeheron

The Heron Once Again put the Bass Down then Retrieved it – babsjeheron

.

.
The bulge in the Heron’s elongated neck in the last frame above? The Largemouth Bass. The total elapsed time between landing the Bass and the final frame above was only two and a half minutes. I’m not sure how to estimate the weight of that Bass, but I’m pretty sure any good fisherman reading this can weigh in.

I think this Bass is a bigger fish in terms of weight than the large Pike shown below. What do you think?

Great Blue Heron with large Pike – babsjeheron

.
.
When I returned belatedly to the dock after one Bass tournament, the boat departures had already begun, yet there were still more than 30 boats lined up on the shore.

Bass Tournament with 30 Boats Remaining on Shore – babsjeheron

.

.
This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, Dawn Miller, Jez Braithwaite, and the creative and inspiring Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community of photographers and writers. The focus for this week’s LAPC is Colors of Autumn. The lead photo on this post has vibrant reds.

.

Thanks to Cee for her Hunt for joy. I don’t know if this challenge is still on, but I really like the idea of searching for joy. The Herons bring joy.
.
.
Thanks to Dawn for her Festival of Leaves . This post has bright red autumn leaves.
,
,
Thanks to Jez for the Water Water Everywhere Challenge. This post has quite a bit of water.
.

From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 167: Colors of Autumn .
.

.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and they need your love.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
Natick Town Hall
.
Five Crows Gallery in Natick
,
Audubon Sanctuary
.

Be a fly on the wall! You can CLICK HERE to see the gallery walls with Herons .
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick, Large Mouth Bass

Beautiful Great Blue Heron Gone Fishing

Great Blue Heron Catching Large Fish – babsjeheron

Fresh beauty opens one’s eyes wherever it is really seen.

John Muir
The Mountains of California

Are there any artists who don’t fall in love with their models, their muses? I am enamored of them all, the Great Blue Herons I’ve been observing for the past two decade in the watershed here. 

Our winters can be harsh, so generally I’m not able to be out on the water from December until April. Once back on the lakes each spring, I survey the area, looking for each of the individuals in their usual territory of years past. There is one active nest visible by kayak, and another two that I’ve pegged based on observation of flight paths and satellite photos, and the two main rookeries are three to four miles distant.

Inventorying the Herons once the brooding of eggs has started is a challenge. During nesting when at least one parent adult is with the chicks at the nest round the clock 24/7, the number of birds to be found foraging along the shoreline is cut in half. 

By early August, though, when the year’s crop of nestlings has fledged and the adults are no longer needed at the nest, its easier to find the whole population.

Each year brings great relief when I find the individuals I’ve been following over the years, and also some anxiety around the missing Herons. And of course, it’s an interesting exercise to identify immatures who have gone through their molt, taking on adult plumage that alters their appearance markedly since I last had seen them the previous autumn.

Great Blue Heron with flowering grasses in small pond – babsjeheron

The Heron shown in the long shot above is one I was anxious about that previous summer. It first started letting me photograph back in 2006, but was absent all during 2012, not a single sighting. Herons can live upwards of 15 years, with some reportedly as old as 23. It was fully adult back in 2006, when I would have pegged the age around 7, give-or-take, which might have put it around 13 that previous summer. I wondered about survival.

In my secret fantasy, the Herons who have gone missing have merely moved on to one of the other lakes or ponds in the watershed, although I know that the reality is that some simply are no more.

Imagine my elation one afternoon, then, realizing that my fantasy came true for this Great Blue Heron: for the first time in two summers, I found the Heron – plying the grassy shores of a small pond about a mile and a half from the large lake where it used to feed. I was thrilled.

However, sightings of this Great Blue Heron after the one day at that small pond continued to be elusive.

Fast forward four years and 6.6 miles. In the intervening four years, I had moved houses and with that move came walking distance access to the Charles River dam and the scenic fish ladder you can see in the photo at the top of this post.

The purpose of the fish ladder is to give fish the means to travel upstream to their spawning ground, since they cannot jump over the dam along side the ladder. I have never observed any fish swimming up the ladder, but I have seen fish tumbling down.

Which brings me back to Great Blue Herons. They love to wait at the base of the dam for unlucky fish swept over the edge.

Great Blue Heron at the Dam – babsjeheron

And what about the Great Blue and the Salmon shown in the top photo?

There is no problem so complicated that you can’t find a very simple answer to it if you look at it right.
Douglas Adams
The Salmon of Doubt

The Great Blue Heron tenuously worked her way up the fish ladder, scanning the rushing waters for lunch. The river was in drought conditions that subdued the usually-robust waterfall to a trickle, and her customary fishing hole at the base of the falls proved fruitless.

For more than an hour, she stalked the waters for Salmon, climbing the fish ladder slowly, intently scanning the pooled water at the base of the dam, then pausing to rest, perched there on one leg. All the while, she faced away from the torrent gushing down the ladder behind her.

I could see fish in the rushing waters and wondered if the Heron would shift her focus.

True to that Douglas Adams quote, she finally turned around and looked right at the fish ladder, and left no doubt at all about that Salmon.

Great Blue Heron Has Gone Fishing – babsjeheron

Fortunately for the Great Blue Heron, the ‘no fishing in fish ladder’ sign and policy don’t apply to Herons.

And fortunately, too, for this photographer who watched the exciting scene unfold.

And this is where my inner-Heron-geek gets unleashed. I have written recently about the many ways wildlife lovers can identify specific individual birds or animals: unique behaviors, specific territories, distinguishing features, scars, and more.

Remember the Great Blue Heron pictured above in that small pond with the tall golden grasses? The one I was elated to see after a two-year absence from the big lake? Four years later and 6.6 miles south, on an entirely different body of water I found that Heron again – catching a Salmon in the fish ladder.

So, sometimes birds that we think are no longer alive are still with us – they have simply moved on to on new territories.

I love happy endings.
.
.
This post is prompted by Cee Neuner, Debbie Smyth, and the inimitable Lens Artists Tina, Amy, Patti, and Leya, all of whom encourage the community. This week, the Lens Artists focus on gorgeous photos with the theme of Feet and Shoes. What a fun topic!

In the case of this Great Blue Heron, the scarred legs and damaged toes gave it away for me:

Great Blue Heron Has Gone Fishing – Note inset of toes – babsjeheron

.

Thanks to Cee for her CMMC: Black and White challenge
.

Thanks to Debbie for her Six Word Saturday . This post title has the requisite six words!
.

From Patti Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 161: Feet and Shoes .
.

From Tina Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 161: Feet and Shoes .
.

From Amy Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 161: Feet and Shoes .

.
From Leya Lens Artists Weekly Photo Challenge 161: Feet and Shoes .
.

Folks, now that some areas are opening back up, please consider supporting your local Arts communities – whether music, theater, crafts, visual arts venues, and others. All have been impacted over the past year and they need your love.

My brick & mortar presence in Massachusetts dates back to 2009 in several local venues/galleries.

2015 (May), 2016 (March and July), 2018 (May, June, July), 2019 (December), 2020 (January) several one-woman photography shows at TCAN – The Center for Arts Natick
.
2018 (September, October) one-woman photography show at Natick Town Hall
.
2013 thru now 2021 Five Crows Gallery in Natick
,
2009 one-woman photography show at a local Audubon Sanctuary
.

.

Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™

May the Muse be with you.™

The Tao of Feathers™

© 2003-2021 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)

Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, Natick, B&W