Majestic...

On the way to see this thing my friend told me was 'majestic'
I saw a small deer in the road...

As I came closer I can see it's a young buck with some
horns sprouting up

A little further up the road I see a doe...

She probably had a fawn hidden somewhere as cautious
as she was acting...but I didn't see it

Now, 'majestic' will mean different things to everyone and
when I came upon the natural gas well that was being
burned off... I said ok.... maybe when it gets darker..
I did notice you could smell the gas burning and hear
the roar of the fire.

I continued a short distance and encountered this sign

Turning down the road I saw what the sign thinks is
'majestic'

An Elk farm with elk grazing in the field.

I looked around and was not seeing 'majestic' through
my lens..yet

until....

I spotted this Bull Elk closer to the fence and holding
his 'majestic' rack high

His rack is in velvet and beautiful...

Turning his head and flaring his nostrils I can tell he has
gotten wind of me along the fence

Coming back to the gas well.... I see it's getting darker and
the moon has shown it's face in the right side of the sky

My friend had told me it looked like a giant torch like the
Statue of Liberty would hold... well, maybe but....
the Bull Elk was the picture of majesty for me

And this country church with the turbines in the background
on the mountain was majesty

There was beauty in the sky and majesty in what the
Lord had made

As the moon was rising in the sky I was headed home
having had a lesson in what is "Majestic" .

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

Just when you were sure......

Never say NEVER!!

Yesterday afternoon at work... about 2 o'clock I walked outside
to water a few potted plants and low and behold I thought
I heard the Killy killy killy call of a Kestrel.
I looked over into the tree where they USED to always sit
and low and behold there was none other than a Kestrel.

I ran upstairs to my office and grabbed my camera...yes!
I always have it with me. and started shooting through
the rather old blue tinted windows of the Historic Building
where our funeral home is located.

I found when I got home that I could crop much better with
the DSLR than the old Sony H50 and retain some detail.

Soon the Male landed on the top of the building

and the crop did confirm it was the male.

As she waited in the tree he flew away and soon....

He was back carrying a mouse in his talons....
Looks like a courting gesture to me...but
let's wait and see.
Click to see the mouse...

Quality of these pictures suffer when taken through windows
and really far away, but hopefully if they nest I will have
opportunity to get close up and personal.


To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

The Missing Kestrels....

Some of you have inquired about the Kestrels lately.
I wanted to let you know that they are gone. Where?
I surely do not know...

So, no sweet young baby out of the nest acting like
a brat and calling for mom.

no darling little face trying out legs and flexing his wings

No dad in the top of the tree exercising his muscles

Not one but three babies on the ledge at the site of the
nest hole (click for a closer look)

No fledgling tree with babies all over it...

No play time on the antennae on the rooftopNo mom watching every move that anything makes

Instead.... on March 9th I saw both Kestrels in the top
of the leafless tree outside work

On March 10th I caught a glimpse of both on the pole on
the rooftoop... not clear or detailed... this was before
the new camera!

Mom was calling

and Dad came to the answer..... but

sadly I never saw the female again. The male hung
out on the building for a few more days and was gone.

Maybe something happened to the female... and the male
moved on. I'll be watching again next year...
Thank you for inquiring..

To God be the Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

A Step up for me

With my best friends prodding I broke down and bought my first DSLR...
a Pentax K-x.

I had been using a Sony H50 point and shoot...
I was accustomed to using Manuel settings so it wasn't
too hard to make the change to a DSLR. the one thing
that I wanted to do is capture birds in flight. So I sought
help and practice from the many Blue Jays in my yard.

OK you heard her.... Lets give her a show...
So she can try out that nice new camera

Wheeee I'm a glidder

Wind me up and get me going

Look out below.. I'm coming in

just catching some air

Oops.. I'm banking for a landing

Looking like a hummingbird

Getting those feet down is the tricky part

I was amazed at how this camera stopped the action....

followed the bird through the flight

and captured the moment

This is my Indian dance.... feathers all a -flow

Now for the real test with a real BIF adventure. I met
Birdgirl at the lake and the Osprey came by....

I caught him coming in throuigh the clouds

flying over head I locked on

If you click you will see it has a fish in its talons

I think I should have gotten a DSLR a long time ago.
I was always afraid I would not be able to learn how
to use it. Thanks to my friend for finding me this
gem of a camera!!

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done