Blog Archives
Beautiful Heron in the Waterfalls Redux
Herons facing the same direction at the waterfall – babsjeheron
To love is not to look at one another: it is to look, together, in the same direction.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Wind, Sand, and Stars
Great Blue Herons at waterfalls have been a recurring theme in my blog. For example, this Heron dwarfed by towering, rushing, rippling tendrils of water flowing over a dam:
Great Blue Heron fishing in water falling over a dam in the Charles River Watershed – babsjeheron.
The photos in today’s post show the same waterfall and the same Great Blue Heron and the same waterfall at the dam in the Charles River Watershed, but on different days.
Great Blue Heron at Waterfall Nbr 2 – babsjeheron
What a difference a year can make in the same waterfall. Normal years, above, and in drought, below.
Waterfall in Drought with Log from Fallen Tree – babsjeheron
I’ve written here in the past about my dangerous waterfall experience. Every couple of years, we read news stories of people falling off cliffs or going into waterfalls while taking photos. I know how easily that can happen.
While photographng a Heron at a waterfall, I had become too absorbed by the scene within the viewfinder: I was so engrossed with following the Great Blue through my lens that I nearly stepped over the edge into clear air. One more step, and I would have been in the water below the falls.
All of the photos today were much more ordinary days fishing with my camera for Great Blue Herons that were, themselves, fishing at a local waterfall. Of course, my sense of the ordinary may be different than yours.
It’s not just water that cascades over the lip of this dam – the tug of gravity pulls with it hapless fish destined to become dinner for an eagle-eyed Great Blue Heron.
Most of the time, the Heron could be seen actively fishing at the base of the falls, retrieving those fish unlucky enough to have been swept over.
Sometimes, the Heron could be seen perched in a stand of trees just downstream, preening and even sleeping.
And sometimes, some very special times, the Heron would stand atop the dam, with the water rushing over his feet and stare off into the distance at the colors of the setting sun.
Those were magical sunset moments to share, Heron and human.
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About today’s post: Today’s post is prompted by Debbie’s Six on Saturday, Cee’s Black & White challenge, Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness, Jez’s Water Water Everywhere, and Denzil’s Nature.
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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, Bush Boy, Jez, 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.
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Great Blue Herons at TCAN Lobby January & February 2022 – babsjeheron
TCAN One-Woman Show Lobby Wall Two
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. 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.
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Art in the Park 2023 is coming in June! Watch this space.
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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.
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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!
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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
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Natick Town Hall – Current group exhibit thru January 3 2023
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Five Crows Gallery in Natick – Represented since 2013
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Audubon Sanctuary
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Be a fly on the wall! Please CLICK HERE to see the Great Blue Herons gracing the gallery walls.
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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
Mute Swan Bathing Beauty – Not Exactly Wordless Wednesday Redux
Mute Swan Bathing Beauty – babsjeheron
And did you feel it, in your heart, how it pertained to everything?
And have you too finally figured out what beauty is for?
And have you changed your life?
The secret is to stay present always, to not take nature for granted no matter how often we think we are seeing the same old thing.
That Saturday, I was tired, and the journey back to the home dock would take another hour and a half. I had already bagged a fair number of Great Blue Heron photos and was eager to take out.
From a distance, I gave a passing glance at the southern shoreline and saw the usual pair of Mute Swans floating in their usual spot, and so I paddled on.
Rounding the curve below the Natick Labs, coming closer to the Swans, I noticed an odd-looking thrashing and splashing unlike any Swan behavior I’d seen before.
Binoculars up, I sat transfixed, watching from across the channel as one of the Swans took a Saturday bath. Amazing.
Many of us have seen Robins, or Warblers, or other small songbirds splashing about in a backyard garden birdbath. Now, imagine a bird with a 7-to-8 foot wingspan behaving just the same – dunking their head and neck fully below the surface, coming back up to shake off the water, rearing up on legs, wings akimbo flapping and expelling droplets galore, and preening, preening, preening to sort out feathers. The Swan’s bath lasted more than 15 minutes. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
And so, as I said before, the secret is to stay present always, to be mindful and not take nature for granted.
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About today’s post: Today’s post is prompted by Cee’s Black & White challenge – remember when you were a child, running through a backyard lawn sprinkler? I think this photo captures the Mute Swan version of a sprinkler experience.
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Frequent readers may know that I have been nearly blind for many months and so have been largely absent from WordPress blogs. ten days ago, 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. In the meantime, I have been receiving eye injections. Ouch.
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, Bush Boy, 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.
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I do love a happy ending, and hope my eye surgeon delivers one for the Herons & me! Patience Grasshopper.
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Great Blue Herons at TCAN Lobby January & February 2022 – babsjeheron
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)
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, Mute Swan
Great Blue Heron’s Guest Bird of the Day: Beautiful Swan Taking a Bath
And did you feel it, in your heart, how it pertained to everything?
And have you too finally figured out what beauty is for?
And have you changed your life?
Mute Swan Bathing Beauty – babsjeheron
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The secret is to stay present always, to not take nature for granted no matter how often we think we are seeing the same ol’ same ol’.
That Saturday, I was tired, and the journey back to the home dock would take another hour and a half. I had already bagged a fair number of Great Blue Heron captures and was eager to take out.
From a distance, I gave a passing glance at the southern shoreline and saw the usual pair of Mute Swans floating in their usual spot, and so I paddled on.
Rounding the curve below the Labs, coming closer to the Swans, I noticed an odd-looking thrashing and splashing unlike any Sawn behavior I’d seen before.
Binoculars up, I sat transfixed, watching from across the channel as one of the Swans took a Saturday bath. Amazing.
Many of us have seen Robins, or Warblers, or other small songbirds splashing about in a backyard garden birdbath. Now, imagine a bird with a 7-to-8 foot wingspan behaving just the same – dunking their head and neck fully below the surface, coming back up to shake off the water, rearing up on legs, wings akimbo flapping and expelling droplets galore, and preening, preening, preening to sort out feathers. The Swan’s bath lasted more than 15 minutes. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
And so, as I said before, the secret is to stay present always, to not take nature for granted no matter how often we think we are seeing the same ol’ same ol’.
View other large birds bathing: Red Tailed Hawks aka Beauteous Buteo and a Great Blue Heron aka Rubber Ducky You’re the One.
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For the months of September and October, the Great Blue Herons are featured on the walls of the Natick Town Hall, located at 13 East Central Street in Natick, MA. Feel free to stop in during office hours Monday thru Wednesday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm; Thursday 8:00 am – 7:00 pm; Friday 8:00 am – 12:30 pm
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From May 1 through July 11, 2018, my Great Blue Heron photographs once again graced 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. If you’re in the Boston or Metro West area, please stop by to see the Great Blue Herons. As always, many of the photos were taken on the waterways of the Charles River watershed. The gallery is open whenever the box office is open, so please check hours here.
Thanks to Cee for her recent WPC: Black & White Challenge. The Mute Swan bathing beauty turned in gentle circles for more than 15 minutes taking that Saturday bath. It was mesmerizing. (And apologies to Cee for once again bending the rules.)
Thanks again to Paula for her earlier WPC: Black & White Sunday: Traces of the Past. This bridge and tunnel are from days gone by, using ingenious technology of the earlier era.
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Thanks to Erica V and WordPress for the recent WPC: Place in the World. My favorite place is where the Herons are, of course it is. And the Herons? Their place is near the water, but also on the gallery walls and my blog. How else can I share them with you?
Thanks also to Ben H and WordPress for their WPC Challenge: Liquid. The Herons are drawn to water, as am I.
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Through July 13, 2017 I was a Featured Artist at the Five Crows Gallery in Natick, MA. Drop in and see the work of the many wonderfully creative artists who show there when you’re in the area. Five Crows is on FaceBook.
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Remember: Walk softly and carry a long lens.™
The Tao of Feathers™
© 2018 Babsje. (https://babsjeheron.wordpress.com)
Great Blue Heron, Kayaking, TCAN, Five Crows, B&W
Babsje Heron 