The Aviary

We went through several of the aviaries. They are lovely places to spend time, complete with waterfalls and RAIN! I was in place to take some bird shots when to my surprise the rain came! My first thought was that it would be quick, but then I realized here was my expensive camera in a full rain! I stepped back. But I did manage an interesting bird shot with real rain for an effect.

It was afternoon, still hot, and we were tired. So we spent some time in one of the aviaries. I noticed that most people stroll through, glance around, and leave. While you do see some of the birds that way, I have found that if you linger, standing or sitting quietly, the birds come out and reveal themselves. Some come out of curiosity, to check you out. Others are just doing their bird thing, looking for dinner. Spending time just waiting will reward you with birds you might not have seen. I even got to see the birds "find" the dead mice left for their dinner.

My photography did not seem to be going well. In the aviary, the lighting differences from the sunlit areas to the shadow were too much for the digital camera's range. My goal was not memory snapshots of the zoo animals, rather competitive artistic shots. My gut feel was that I should shift my mental goal from getting great award winning shots to just enjoying my visit to the zoo.