Dad and I spent some time today at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Naples. It's an Audubon facility, and I am told that it's one of the best places in the country to photograph birds. We went down there on a whim last year, and it was amazing. The drought was forcing all of the birds (and many gators) into a few small areas of water. The number of birds concentrated into these pools was just incredible.

The drought is worse this spring, so last year's wet areas have dried up considerably. Today we managed to spot a few birds and a couple gators. Fortunately, I have better photo equipment this year, so I was prepared. I think this is my best shot of the day.

Not bad for a midday shot of a white bird, but clouds would have made the lighting much less harsh. (It's a Great Egret if you're wondering.) I really need to start shooting RAW. It would be much easier to pull the details out of the brightly-lit plumage. Someday, I'll break through to the next level and learn this stuff. I just wish I had the time.

We also met Darrell Moll, a pro photographer from Ohio while we were there. Darrell is from Norwalk and this was his first visit to Corkscrew.