Picture Of The Week 07-09-07

Bodie Island Lighthouse
Outer Banks, NC

Where: Outer Banks, NC • Bodie Island Lighthouse Trail

Notes: There is a pathway in the back corner of the parking lot at the Bodie Island Lighthouse Visitor Center that I discovered one year on a summer vacation to the Outer Banks. Of the few times I have walked this trail, I have always seen and heard these two foot tall, short necked Herons. They have usually flushed from the Myrtle Bushes or from the shore along the canals that border the back (eastern) part of the narrow pathway, especially in the late afternoon. These stocky birds typically become active in the early evening hours and continue to forage for aquatic invertebrates, fish, and amphibians well into the night. I was actually on the return trip back towards the lighthouse when a White Ibis flew past me just above the marsh brush. I turned to see if it was going to land nearby or not when I caught a glimpse of this pair of herons watching me from their bare perch. I slowly ducked behind the bushes just in front of me and checked my camera settings. I knew the light from the sky background would have my light sensor adjust for too much light, so I bumped up the exposure compensation to decrease the shutter speed a little. I also moved my aperture from f 5.6 to f 7.1 to give me a little extra focal length. Then I slowly stood where I could get a couple of shots between the hedges and they remained long enough for me to get a few clear shots.