Species: Heron | Location: Amazon Basin, Near The Amazon Lodge, Ecuador
This photo was also taken on a boat excursion in the Amazon basin, close to the Amazon Lodge. It first appeared in front of us maybe 15-20 yards ahead of our boat. The boat stopped and I took a series of shots as it approached us never knowing when it might fly off as the river was quite narrow after the dry summer and that put us quite close to each other. This shot was taken as it was directly perpendicular to me and as it paused for a moment conveniently centered between the fallen leaves both behind and in front of it.
I like the composition of this shot because the background feels as important and interesting as the subject itself. The coloring of the wall and the reflection in the water compliment the heron's own coloring while the rough and rugged wall contrasts nicely with the smooth and calm waters that the heron's legs intersect. I also really like the fallen leaves in this photo, their coloring, texture and state of decay, and I don't think I could have found any better leaves nor planted them in any better position had I prearranged this shot. It's almost as if this photo has the look of a painting to me.
About The Photographer
I have been a passionate photo hobbyist on and off for over 50 years. My primary interest has always been nature and wildlife. After retiring in 2013, following a 39 year long career at Warner Bros, my retirement gifts to myself were a new set of golf clubs, a fancy new road bike and some new Nikon photo gear. I have been playing golf 3 days a week for most weeks of the past several years. I rode my bike about a half a dozen times and it has been gathering dust in my basement ever since as I still think about taking it out again but never do. And photography remains a dear hobby passion growing more satisfying than ever as I move on into my seventies. Over the past couple years I updated my Nikon gear again and found my interest in photography take another leap. I found myself devoting more time with it as I became more critical of what it took to satisfy my vision of what defined a "good shot" for me. At my local Marin County Fair in Northern California this year I entered a photo competition for the first time and got 2 honorable mention ribbons. And for the first time one of my photos went up for sale and sold (for $250). A little validation can go a long way, and yet like my bike that I think about riding again but never do, I continue to think about setting up a photo website of my own, or an Instagram page, or a Flicker page, or even a Facebook page but never do. Maybe one of these days, just not yet, not today, maybe tomorrow. This summer my wife and I went on our first Natural Habitat trip and it was the best vacation a photo hobbyist who loves taking pictures of birds and wildlife could possibly imagine. We spent nearly a month in Ecuador and Peru, visiting The Cloud Forest, the Amazon, The Galápagos Islands and Peru. I literally took almost 20,000 photos. I have spent the past month going through them all, deleting most, and trying to find the "good ones". The ones where good natural lighting, good camera settings, good subject and a special moment in time and place all converge, Today I am submitting 5 of those that I think are amongst my good ones from that trip in this contest.Vote for this photo, and you’ll be entered for the chance to win a $500 Visa Gift Card or a $500 WWF Donation!
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Vote for this photo in the Nat Hab's 2024 Guest Photo Contest People’s Choice Awards! You can vote once per day, and each time you vote you’ll be entered for the chance to win a $500 Visa Gift Card or a $500 WWF Donation.
