From the cabin on the lake in the woods, there is a continual wildlife show. From otters, beavers, ducks, geese, loons, swans and fish jumping in the lake, to birds of all kinds nesting and feeding on the berries and apples I have planted, to deer bear, turkeys, squirrels eating the acorns and gleaning the harvested fields, and at the top of the food chain, coyotes, foxes, hawks, eagles and bow hunters preying on the plant eaters.
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| Ruffed grouse in the flowering crab apple tree next to the cabin a few tiny apples are left after a large flock of blue birds and another of robins came through this week an stripped the tree bare. I took it through the window which needs washing, but it looks pretty good anyway! |
I am getting a computer digitizing station setup for the Luck museum that includes a Nikon L810 digital camera with a 26 power optical zoom--and took the camera home to figure out how to use it for copying old books. I have tried it with a few wildlife photos too--and am thrilled at what you can see with the zoom. Of course, I couldn't afford the $230 Walmart price for it, but I do have a birthday coming up on December 10th and as it is close to Christmas, I suppose a good wife and good son might think it would be a nice gift for me.....
In the meantime, the L810 will be mounted on a tripod and aimed at the old church records and govt records to photograph them at 16 megapixel resolution and store them for folks interested in learning about family heritage at the Luck Museum. The equipment is part of the Ravenholt grant to the Luck Museum expressly for this purpose. I have started with the old Luck HS yearbooks--copying them page by page with the intention of making them available online through our museum or genealogical society website. The camera seems to do that quite well too!
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| Turkeys stroll on the lake shore |
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| Friday morning 20 degrees, frosty and leaves mostly gone. I have taken the photos here from the cabin--this one without zooming in. The rest are at very high zoom -- probably close to the 26 power optical zoom. The camera probably should be on a tripod at that high of a zoom, as I have a hard time holding it still when each little hand jitter is magnified too! |
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| Parents and one of the two trumpeter swan cygnets on the lake with full 26 power optical zoom and some additional digital zoom. The young swan appears to be full grown, but still darker colored. I think these swans don't start nesting for a few years -- get some time off to be teenagers before starting a family. If you look at the picture preceding this one--you see the normal view I have from my porch. The swans are in that photo too--along the shore, but really barely visible. I then zoomed in and took this picture from the porch too. Quite amazing! |