Tricolored Heron TranquilityTricolored Heron in still water – Nikon D200, f7.1, 1/500, ISO 160, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 360mm, natural light

There is a quality that feels very tranquil about this Tricolored Heron image for me. It may be the still, silky texture of the water or the soft pastel color of the water created by the early morning light. It might be the relaxed pose of the Tricolored Heron or it may be a combination of them all.

I had belly-crawled in the sand at Fort De Soto County Park in Florida until I was laying at the edge of a tidal lagoon when I photographed this to get a low angle and so that I wouldn’t startle the heron. As I recall this Tricolored Heron stayed in this location for at least half an hour and it gave me the opportunity to compose quite a few images. Some were vertical, some were horizontal and I also varied the focal length on my zoom lens. I came away very pleased with the pictures I had taken of this heron and then crawled backwards so that I wouldn’t cause the bird to take flight before I headed down the beach in search of more birds.

Mia