However, like many of my “little” projects, this proved to be a bigger job than I thought, and it continued well into the New Year.

I have only myself to blame for making this a challenging project by setting up rules for selecting the twelve monthly photos. (Everyone enjoys a challenge, right?)

I decided: rule 1 – that the photo selected for any month had to be taken during that month. (Photoshop keeps track of this and kept me honest.) And, rules 2 and 3 – these should be nature shots only, and not previously displayed in any of my blog posts or EcoGlimpse galleries.

These guidelines revealed several things about my photographic efforts in the past year. First, my best, or at least my favorite shots had already been posted. This was expected. However, I did not anticipate that some months in my organizer would contain more pictures of events or nonliving objects than of nature.

Looking back I can see that I was (and will no doubt continue to be) beguiled by carnivals, state fairs, balloon festivals and the like. Also, many of the pictures were taken for my local camera club competitions.

For example, I would not likely set out to take shots of “cars or car parts,” but since that was one of the assigned themes last year, off I went to car shows, and even parking lots.

No matter what the subject matter turned out to be, I have enjoyed the past year, the events, the places visited, the company of many friends, and especially, learning more with every picture taken and subsequently edited. My resolution for 2010… keep on shooting and learning, but be more mindful to look for nature shots… everywhere.

I have posted the photos in a special gallery called “year in review – 2009″ which I hope you will visit. I have scattered a few of the twelve throughout this blog post.

Happy New Year! Lyn

Ghost crab digging a burrow near a washed up coconut

However, crabs can deliver a nasty pinch as I have experienced often when I have tried to pick one up without using tongs, or have stepped on one half-buried in the sand.

Having a crab dangling from one’s digits is a painful and panicky situation. The first instinct is to shake your hand or foot like crazy, which is not a good plan since they just hang on for dear life.

Land Crab - posing nicely for me.

At least this works for aquatic crabs, I am not sure what I would do if a land crab were to latch on to me with no water in sight. And so, I try to keep a safe distance. Thank goodness for zoom lenses! No macros!

Usually, they will just scurry away before attacking as did these land and ghost crabs after they got tired of posing for pictures. Their sideways runs at lightning speed left me clicking the next shots of the places where crabs used to be.

But why do they run sideways and not go full steam ahead? A little internet research revealed that crab anatomy permits them to shuffle slowly forward, but to go full out sideways. (See: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/crab.aspx)

And, their flexible eyestalks allow them to look all around them so going sideways does not mean they cannot look in other directions. (Notice that Mr. Land Crab has one eye on me while the other looks elsewhere.)

Land crab after running away from me

The crabs pictured here are just two of the great diversity of crabs found in Florida. I have trapped and eaten blue crabs and stone crabs (yummy) and seen numerous other kinds, including hermit crabs, spider crabs, mangrove crabs, swimming crabs, and so many others, including my personal favorite, the fiddler crab.

The fiddlers live in large groups in burrows on mudflats. The male has one large claw which he waves around to warn off other males and to attract the female of his species. Hey baby… over here!

Ghost crab hiding in the washed up seaweeds

Henceforth, I vow not to call some grumpy human, “an old crab,” ever again. Lyn

Buccaneer

Hard at work!

March 07, 2009 not only commemorated the historic sack of St. Augustine (1668), but was also the date that twelve SEVCC “Raiders” stormed the city, cameras at the ready.

The group gathered first at the Colonial Spanish Quarter in Old Town. There we found an encampment site set up by colorful Sack of St. Augustine reenactment participants (Searles Buccaneers) dressed in period costumes and displaying historic weaponry, utensils and other gear.

Then the enthusiastic SEVCC group set out in various directions and spent the rest of the morning exploring historic sites in Old Town, Tolomato Cemetery, St. George Street, Flagler College and Memorial Presbyterian Church (built by Henry Flagler), to name just a few.

So much to see! Finding ourselves at different locations around lunch time, some dined at the picturesque Mill Top Tavern while others enjoyed a hearty meal at a Drug Store Museum / Restaurant.

A group of four tireless explorers, including me, remained through the afternoon. First, we visited the serene grounds of the Nombre de Dios Mission where we found an old cemetery, religious statues, and a vine-covered chapel.

The last stop was the Fountain of Youth Park, home to resplendent peacocks, both colored and pure white. Although all four of us drank the rejuvenating waters, only one reports any change in appearance. (Scientific evidence is still pending on that claim.)

Reports from the field indicate that hundreds of shots were taken by the dauntless SEVCC raiders, some of which I happily share with you! Lyn

Child's Grave, Nombre de Dios Mission

White Peacock, Fountain of Youth Park

Momentarily...still lilfe

I have already learned much but understand that I am crawling my way up the steep side of the learning curve with the very real possibility of sliding back down it at any given moment.

However, it is exciting to learn new skills by modeling techniques used by more competent photographers that are eager to share their experience with beginners.

The theme for the March competition is Still Life.

Still life? I associate this with studio work, in which objects are beautifully arranged for form, color, and especially lighting. Somehow, I just do not see me, an outdoorsy, nature lady, arranging vases, fruit, flowers, rich fabrics, or other traditional still life items, nor do I have a studio or lighting equipment.

I like a challenge! I pondered how to create a composition that might fit into the still life category, but still reflect my interests, using natural items and lighting. In a flash of inspiration, or perhaps desperation, I realized that the ocean could be a generous source of still life objects to a beachcomber like me.

Now, I have a valid excuse for picking up shells, sea beans, driftwood, coquina rock and other flotsam and jetsam that I have accumulated over numerous beach walks. Instead of a studio, perhaps I can artfully arrange these gifts from the sea right on the sand, in their natural setting?

Since I am probably missing the one, perfect item that will tie my composition together, I am required, I believe, to spend much time searching for it on the beach this weekend.

Stay tuned to see if this works out, or not.

In the meantime, I uploaded a photo that captures a somewhat different meaning of “still” life. Lyn

I just moved into a new home that has a backyard sheltered by trees and shrubs with the potential to be very “birdy.” I can hear them twittering and see them darting into the foliage even as I type this.

As you can see from looking at part of my backyard “jungle,” it would be SO much easier to view and photograph them at a feeder rather than in the bushes and trees.

I find myself wandering around and wondering (sometimes out loud) if I should put up a bird feeder and get some of those great shots, too.

Go for it, you say? But, unlike birders that live in cold climates, I am in east-central Florida, near the coast, where winter comes and goes in a few days. We have a few days or maybe a week of cold weather, and
then it warms up. And so it goes all “winter.”

Migrants winter in Florida for good reasons. Here they find warmth, food, and shelter to avoid freezing or starving in colder climates.

Do winter or year-round birds in Florida really need a bird feeder? Or, am I messing with nature somehow to serve my own (selfish?) desires to view and photograph them?

When I lived in the Boulder, Colorado in the Rocky Mountains, I definitely put up a bird feeder. I felt pretty good about it too. But at times, I worried that I might be creating an unnatural situation, and even gave this a name.

I called my feeder an ecological catalyst, because it was an attractant that promoted interactions among many species. My daughter, Karyn Lewis, as a young and developing artist, captured the concept in a drawing, which still hangs in my home office, nearly twenty years later.

Seeds nourished birds and Abert’s squirrels. Sometimes, sunflower seeds sprouted beneath the feeder, an odd sight in my neighborhood, for sure. However, my feeder also attracted bird predators, such as prowling cats or hungry, sharp-eyed raptors. But, at least my feeder visitors could find food in the cold, snowy Colorado Mountains, in both the winter and spring seasons.

Should I give in to temptation and take up backyard bird watching in Florida?




After all, I can walk on the beach or visit parks year-round to observe birds and wildlife in their natural settings. For example, a black vulture posed patiently for me near the banks of Mosquito Lagoon, in Canaveral National Seashore last December. Or, while walking on Bethune Beach, I snapped several shots of sanderlings trying to stay warm on a chilly November morning.

Do I need or deserve more than this? If I do set up a feeder, what are my responsibilities? Once started, can I stop? Am I required to ask folks to bird feeder sit when I leave town?

To feed or not to feed, that is my question. I need help! Lyn