Planning for March, Spring and Beyond

It is almost that time again, time for seasonal change and time for planning to see new thing, approach things with a fresh eye, and take new images.

There are going to still be some Snow Geese at blackwater and sunrise is getting earlier, so it is getting slightly 'harder' to make a sunrise... But then DST is going to kick in too soon.




March will bring the return, long overdue if you ask me, of some warmer weather and people and new chances for unique or different images... Walking around downtown along the mall and monuments was new to me once. I'd only really made it down there for snow or the cherry blossoms.



The above are from March, and the below are from April... Birds will be returning from their long Fall/Winter trips. Time to build nests, or maybe just freshen them up...



And with the Osprey back at Blackwater Refuge, the Bald Eagles will be ready to wait, and steal the fish of said Osprey...



What I plan to do in pursuit of new:
-- Go to new places, or places in months/seasons not done by me before. I've started by visiting Assateague Island a couple weekends ago.
-- Use a blind to hide from wildlife, disturb it less, and get even closer/natural photos
-- Think different, be open to new approaches or spots, take risk and not *just* do what's worked in the past.
-- Improve my long-lens-technique so I get sharper photos. Try with a converter on my 200-400mm some, but not *too* much.
-- Find more new *local* spots. Many of my local or closer spots, well there aren't that many. I have a few, and most of my so called spots are refuges that are 80-100 miles away. I plan to continue to poke around and look for good close spots. This is often fruitless work, effort with little or no reward. But it is still worth it. Last year I found a spot, after 10's of visits that proved to be a gold mine for Heron photos....






I may end up with a big new toy, but I keep going back and worth on that one. Until then I have more than enough gear to get good photos. I'm still kicking myself for that D300s I got - I now have a fully functioning Fuji S5, Nikon D200, D300 and D300s... The D300s has opened up new video opportunities, and I've gotten a few things I like... but I swore I'd wait for a next generation to upgrade again, a full next gen not just mod adding video...

This blog is to help me work through ideas, share that effort, and maybe help someone else in the process. One thing I've learned in the last few years - there is no easy answer to any of this. It is just too complicated. Seeing one photographer, reading one book, signing up for one newsletter, going on one photo trip, buying one new piece of camera gear - they may and should all HELP, but they will never provide 'the answer' or be a magic bullet. For what I like to do and shoot, it is all about being thoughtful, experimenting, putting in boat loads of effort, and seeing what works and course correcting along the way.

The fuel to all that is seeing new things, capturing new images, and sharing it in some form with some one - I mostly use flickr for the sharing part but have other means as well (photo clubs, in person, friends, at work, etc).



--50--

-Jon

Planning for March, Spring and Beyond