I photographed this Great Blue Heron two days ago when the autumn sky was gray with clouds on Sally Jones Lake at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma.
Adult Great Blue Heron on a gray autumn day – Canon R7, f8, handheld, 1/1600, ISO 2500, -0.7 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 271mm, natural light
There isn’t a whole lot of fall color at the refuge or pretty much anywhere between there and Arkansas. I think the current drought has a lot to do with the lack of colorful leaves on the trees.
Still, I couldn’t resist taking photos of this Great Blue Heron, as I haven’t seen or had many of them in my viewfinder for a while.
I’ve taken photos of Great Blue Herons at Sally Jones Lake before where I also had the heron small in the frame to show the habitat on the shoreline of the lake. Two of those images can be seen here and another one from the spring, here.
The fishing must be good for the herons and egrets at Sally Jones Lake!
It was great to get back to the refuge, explore the area, and spot a few birds and some wildlife. Finding eight Greater White-fronted Geese was a real surprise, and later in the day, seeing my first Snow Goose for the refuge was a joy.
The clouds were an issue for photography, but getting out and walking a trail helped; I needed to stretch my legs and get some fresh air.
Even though I didn’t take all that many photos, I’m still happy I was at the refuge. Cooler weather will soon bring in more birds, and I can hardly wait to have them in my viewfinder!
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my Great Blue Heron photos plus facts and information about this species.
I really appreciate the scale of the heron in it’s habitat!! Sad about the color being muted. Here in Colorado we’ve had an incredibly long and beautiful autumn. With magnificent colors. In Denver proper you still have the majority of the trees green. So the weather is definitely changing. Thanks again for sharing the magic of your art.
It looks like a glorious place – with birds as bonus.
What a beautiful shot of the refuge — with a bonus GBH! I’m so glad you’re enjoying your new home, Mia! 💜
Nice photo of the Great Blue Heron today. Getting some rain and snow on the Big Horn Mountains which will help put out the Elk fire we had this past month. Burning over 98 thousand acres. Feeding grounds and pine trees were burnt so not sure how all the wildlife will fair this winter.