Laura
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I submitted these because of the reflections on the water. In the female mallard photo, it is hard to tell what branches are above the water and what is reflected. That made it interesting to me. I also liked the look of the wavy reflected lines from branches in the photo of the male mallard. The hooded mergansers were the ducks on the pond I was most interested in this day, so I included the photo of them, even though they were more distant. These photos were better than a lot of photos I have taken this fall of ducks on ponds, where the distance and lighting at different times of day have resulted in less than satisfactory images. I am working on it. :) -
I went to an urban lily pool near me and sat on the stone ledge for 30 minutes in one place. A few juvenile ducks wandered through the lilies, coming closer to me over time. At one point, a wood duck rose up, wings spread, when he realized he was only a few feet from me. Otherwise, it was a peaceful time together. I moved around the pool to its other side, and a scruffy juvenile mallard approached me, at one point so close I could not focus my camera. He even walked right behind me, less than a foot away. I would like to think it was my calm presence that made him feel welcome, but more likely is that at a young age he is already habituated. I enjoyed the closeness and that he purposely came near to me. In this spot, I also observed a green heron for a long while, hoping to see him fish, but he did not while I was there. I enjoyed watching the green heron sitting still and attentive for long periods of time, moving only slowly, as that was also what I was practicing!
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I enjoyed your photos of herons, as I also am fascinated by them. A recent surprise for me has been to learn that there is a large rookery of black-crowned night herons not too far from where I live in urban Chicago. I had seen a small number of them in past years near the Lincoln Park Zoo, but the number is quite large now -- possibly even a few hundred. I have grown to appreciate the diversity of birds and other wildlife in the city, which gives me a lot to observe right here without traveling too far.
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I have loved Sandhill Cranes for their exotic appearance. In the past I've driven to watch them in fields where they have been known to congregate in migration season, and I have also been thrilled to come across a few or large number of them unexpectedly. They are one of the few birds I can identify by voice as they fly overhead. I used to think they only passed through my midwest area to more northern summer grounds, but my research shows that they spend the summer here, too. I have been seeing them more often. I was taking a walk through a forest preserve I had not visited before, and I came upon two sandhill cranes in a field. I was surprised how close they let me come, as they seemed oblivious to cars nearby and to me. I didn't want to scare them, so I stayed about 50 away.
I submitted these because of the reflections on the water. In the female mallard photo, it is hard to tell what branches are above the water and what is reflected. That made it interesting to me. I also liked the look of the wavy reflected lines from branches in the photo of the male mallard. The hooded mergansers were the ducks on the pond I was most interested in this day, so I included the photo of them, even though they were more distant. These photos were better than a lot of photos I have taken this fall of ducks on ponds, where the distance and lighting at different times of day have resulted in less than satisfactory images. I am working on it. :) 
Viewing 4 posts - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)