Posted in Art, Flowers, Gardening, Nature, Photography, spring, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, columbine, columbines, Fairfax County, green spring gardens, Tamron 180mm on May 9, 2020| 12 Comments »
Columbines are one of my favorite spring flowers and I was excited to have the chance to capture images of some different varieties during a short visit to Green Spring Gardens, a county-run historical garden, this past Tuesday with my friend and photography mentor Cindy Dyer. When I started working with Cindy almost eight years ago, flowers were often our target subjects and this garden was our favorite location to photograph them.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Animal Control Services, Bald Eagle, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Fairfax County, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, injured Bald Eagle on November 5, 2015| 7 Comments »
A year ago today my heart was breaking as I informed readers that the injured Bald Eagle at my local marshland park had been euthanized. It was a really difficult posting for me to write, particularly because I had been so hopeful the previous day’s blog posting when I described the heroic rescue of the eagle.
The emotions are still pretty intense, despite the passage of time. I felt something really special when I was privileged to look into the eyes of the eagle at close range, a bird that somehow retained a sense of majesty despite the pain she was obviously feeling.
I don’t often re-blog my own postings, but today, I want to remember and treasure the moments that I chronicled. (If you want to know more details about the experience, there are links in the text below).
Text of my posting from 5 November 2014:
We all like to believe in happy endings, but unlike fairy tales, real life does not always turn out that way. I was saddened this afternoon to learn that the female Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that was rescued on Monday at Huntley Meadows Park had to be euthanized.
The dislocation of her elbow was chronic and so severe that eventual release was not a possibility. The doctors at The Wildlife Center of Virginia determined that humane euthanasia was the best treatment.
I was happy that the work of the Fairfax County Animal Control Services officer that I chronicled in an earlier posting were featured today in the on-line editions of local media, including the Washington Post, WJLA (ABC television), WTOP radio, and Inside NOVA. The sad ending in no way diminishes my respect and thanks to Officer Kathy Prucnal for her extraordinary efforts to rescue the injured eagle.
This photo that I took during the rescue is how I want to remember the female Bald Eagle, appearing strong and alert.
RIP, beautiful eagle.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Autumn, Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Animal Control Services, Bald Eagle, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Fairfax County, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, injured Bald Eagle on November 5, 2014| 41 Comments »
We all like to believe in happy endings, but unlike fairy tales, real life does not always turn out that way. I was saddened this afternoon to learn that the female Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that was rescued on Monday at Huntley Meadows Park had to be euthanized.
The dislocation of her elbow was chronic and so severe that eventual release was not a possibility. The doctors at The Wildlife Center of Virginia determined that humane euthanasia was the best treatment.
I was happy that the work of the Fairfax County Animal Control Services officer that I chronicled in an earlier posting were featured today in the on-line editions of local media, including the Washington Post, WJLA (ABC television), WTOP radio, and Inside NOVA. The sad ending in no way diminishes my respect and thanks to Officer Kathy Prucnal for her extraordinary efforts to rescue the injured eagle.
This photo that I took during the rescue is how I want to remember the female Bald Eagle, appearing strong and alert.
RIP, beautiful eagle.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Art, Autumn, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Animal Control Services, Bald Eagle, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, eagle, Fairfax County, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, injured Bald Eagle, rescue on November 5, 2014| 13 Comments »
I received an update from the Animal Control Officer who rescued the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) featured in yesterday’s posting and the prognosis looks positive.
The eagle had a low heart rate, according to the attending veterinarian, likely from pesticide poisoning, and they treated it with atropine. The eagle, an 8 pound (3.6 kg) female, also had a dislocated joint in one wing, which is treatable as well. It is likely they will be able to release her after some rehabilitation at a specialized facility in southern VA, which I assume is The Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro, Virginia.
I took the first photo when the eagle was trying to swim away while being rescued. The image is not quite as sharp as the photos from yesterday, but I just love the reflection of the eagle in the water as it struggles to swim. This was in a wooded area of Huntley Meadows Park, my favorite venue for photography, that is now flooded as part of a wetland restoration project. The second photo shows the eagle as it was when I first came upon it, perched on a pile of brush, unable to fly away.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Flowers, Gardening, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Fairfax County, green spring gardens, lotus, lotus flowers, Tamron 180mm macro lens on July 16, 2014| 15 Comments »
I simply love the exquisite beauty of lotus flowers. A sense of tranquility seems to fill me during those moments when I am able to drink in their beauty, especially when I am alone.
I took these shots in mid-morning at Green Spring Gardens, a county-run facility that has two small, man-made ponds, in addition to the extensive gardens. The ponds are one of my favorite places to shoot when my time is limited and in the past I have captured some wonderful images of turtles, frogs, birds, and dragonflies. What makes the ponds really special for me, though, is that there are water lilies and lotuses at this time of the year.
I am experimenting with presenting my photos in the Gallery format. If you click on any one of the images, you can scroll through each of them in succession in full size. Let me know if you think it works better than presenting each shot individually.
When the lotus flowers are completely open, it is a real joy to be able to look inside the flower and glimpse the cylindrical seed pod, which contrasts wonderfully with the delicate pink petals in color as well as texture. I took these shots in the middle of the morning, which is usually a less than optimal time of day for lighting. In this case, though, the light, which was often coming from behind the flowers, helped to highlight the flowers and created some interesting shadows.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 