I love the tranquility of the early morning, especially when I am alone with nature. It fills me with a sense of inner peace and helps me to slow down and appreciate better the world around me.
It is difficult to convey that inner feeling in a single photo, but this image of an Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) from last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge comes pretty close. The bluebird was perched on some reeds in the middle of a marshy field. There was no way that I was going to be able to move closer, but I was ok with that. I focused on capturing a sense of the bird and its autumn environment and I am pretty happy with the way that the shot turned out.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Sweet! I will be thinking of this bird as I bake pies!
Pies? Growing up, I remember my Mom spending lots of time making apple, pumpkin, and mincemeat pies for Thanksgiving. There were nine children in my family, so there were lots of pies ( and other wonderful foods).
And so you should be – lovely lines and soft colors, and a lovely pose!
Gorgeous photo. I love the composition and the mixture of cold and warm colours.
Thanks, Laura. The scene set it itself up for me in many ways and all I had to do was capture what I was seeing. Of course, it was a little more difficult than that, but this was not one of those images where I had to work hard to achieve the output that I was looking for.
Benjamin was just preparing to leave for home with his Mommy and he spied your email. He recognizes “Mr. Mike’s” posts by your name! He was ecstatic to see his favorite Orange-Bluebird and even more so when I enlarged the photo. “Look how beautiful the sky is, just like my bestest bird friend!” Indeed, I must agree! Thank-you, Mr. Mike!!
Thanks to you and to Benjamin for this wonderful comment. I know that he loves Bluebirds, but I am perhaps even more impressed by his appreciation of beauty. Happy Thanksgiving
Nice shot, Mike. I like the way the background colors echo the bluebird’s.
Thanks, Eliza. I too saw the bluebird’s colors in the background, but I wasn’t sure if if was just my imagination.
Another stunning bluebird, Mike. Smiles …
Thanks, Bonnie. Somehow my recent bluebird shots have been among my most “artsy” images.
Great capture, Mike. I’m late, so Happy Thanksgiving !
Well put, Mike, and a very nice capture of the Bluebird!
It’s a lovely capture, Mike! I’m glad you didn’t get closer, it’s so nice to see the bird in its environment and the colors are stunning. A very nice autumn picture indeed!