I went to Yosemite with photographing Dogwood blossoms over the Merced on the top of my list. Planning a trip months in advance, no matter how much research and planning you might do doesn’t mean Mother Nature will accommodate your ideas. I purchased the Z180-600 in part with photographing the Dogwoods in mind, needing the reach and flexibility to photograph them over the rushing water (The lens is truly grand!). This is the first blossom I found and was so excited to get a sharp image as the dang thing kept bouncing in the wind, I had to post it. Thankfully, I know I have better ones on the hard drive, I just haven’t gotten to them yet. It was just fun to know that spring is in The Valley!

The F Seat coming out of MSO rarely if ever disappoints the imagination! And most of the time, it causes the camera to come out, which is such fun. We had rain at the house during the night and a slight drizzle as we walked to the terminal, so we knew we would not need deicing, putting us over the Rockies at sunrise. The camera was out and ready, the view was gorgeous, making it always fun flying the friendly skies!

You hear them long before you see them. The Keel-billed Toucan is a large bird, about the size of a Raven, yet they melt into the rainforest, disappearing with great ease. Perhaps that’s why they have those crazy colors, so they can find each other. It’s perhaps why they are so loud when they call. They are such a joy to watch as they go about gathering and eating the fruit high in the canopy. That massive mandible makes quick work of the protective shell on the fruit, you see it falling from the canopy as the Toucans feed. The aspect I love the most about them is when they do come down to our level, which is very infrequent, they appear to check us out as if we’re different, out of place in the rainforest. Of course, we are which makes me feel they are so big and we are yet small.