Sloshing through the swamp in pursuit of swamp sunflowers.

With all the rain we have had lately, it is no surprise that the Marl Bed Flats at Lake Jesup would be underwater. After purchasing a pair of rubber rain boots, we were ready for anything. Arriving just before sunrise, we trekked through the water, mud and cow patties to arrive out on the flats to photograph the sunflowers. The flowers are not completely in bloom but probably will be peak by next weekend.

 

 

Sunrise at New Symrna Beach

Actually the sunrise was hidden by storm clouds and rain storms. Despite the rainy forecast my photo buddies are dedicated and we went to the coast in hopes of finding a sunrise. Even though it never came to fruition, we still had fun photographing the rock jetty, rough surf and ominous clouds and a few dedicated fishermen.

Jetty - New Symrna Beach

Sunrise over St. Augustine, sort of....

 

The beach at Marineland

 

We have been waiting for the sunrise to be a little later so we could make it over to Marineland for the sunrise with the coquina rocks on the beach. The tide was low, in fact very low so the rocks were mostly way above the water level. I was having some camera malfunctions while using my Lee Big Stopper. So, I reverted to shooting without any ND filters. After the sun was up, we headed for breakfast and then on to St. Augustine to find some more photo ops.

Details from some of the historic houses.

  鲍恺熙 
(Joyful & Healthy)

Piers, Pilings and U-Turns

A Groupon deal came along for a hotel in Dunedin, a place I have been wanting to visit for awhile. So, I jumped on the deal and booked a room for a quick weekend trip. My main objective was to shoot the sunset at Honeymoon Island State Park and also the old wooden pilings in Dunedin. With only time for one sunset location, I choose Honeymoon Island and thought I could photograph the pilings in the morning.

Reddington Fishing Pier

On the journey to Dunedin, I did some scouting of other areas close by. I actually started in St. Petersburg at Reddington Pier. It's a nice old wooden fishing pier. After that I stopped at the Seacoast Seabird Sanctuary. Many birds are being rehabilitated there but there are many free roaming birds hanging around. A few steps away on the beach were numerous species of shore birds who are not bothered by people. It was also beastly hot so I moved on.

Next was Clearwater and Pier 60, but by now the beach was way too crowded and I was not interested in paying $5.00 to park for a few minutes. The last stop before Dunedin was the Heritage Museum in Largo. I wanted to go back and take some HDR photos of the old garage with the wide angle lens I had rented for the weekend.

Heritage Museum in Largo

Dunedin is a nice small town on the water and really close to Honeymoon Island State Park. The Pinellas Trail runs through the town, but I will wait until cooler weather to bring my bike. After checking into the hotel and getting some early dinner, I drove over to Honeymoon Island. I checked out several spots before I ended up at the end of the island that is less inhabited and more rocky. I found the spot I wanted for sunset just as the sky changed from clear to dark, ominous looking clouds rapidly moving west. Pretty soon the sky was overall grey and the torrential rains came. Sitting in the car I watched as everyone there eventually left. I decide that I had no where to go so I waited out the storm. Ten minutes before the sun was supposed to set, it started to clear a bit. I grabbed my gear, wrapped in plastic, my umbrella and headed to the beach. I wasn't leaving without a few shots. The state park closes ten minutes after sunset so I was rushing to get shots and get leave.

Honeymoon Island an hour before sunset

North beach at Honeymoon Island as the storm clears.

The next morning I got up early to try and get some shots of the old pilings in Dunedin. I parked close by and set up to get some long exposures. The sun was rising behind me so the light was mostly flat. The sky was mostly cloudless and the water was fairly still. One solitary sailboat was anchored out in the harbor.

It's Finally Complete!

I have been watching this mysterious looking building being erected along I-4 east of Lakeland. My first guess was some type of athletic facility. Actually, it is the brand new Florida Polytechnic University. I went there Saturday night with my photography buddies. The building is awesome and even better after dark. The unique structure of the building is surrounded by large, shallow pools, seven in all. Each pool is higher than the next with a walkway between them. Here are a few of the photos. It will definately be a return location as the campus evolves. Also looks like a good birding spot.

The upper level

One of the ponds

Some close to home photo ops

Instead of going to a far off place, we decided to just explore close to home late in the day. That place was Winter Park and Rollins College. Since the sky was looking interesting we headed down to Lake Virginia on the Rollins campus. There was a nice sunset and in the distance some lightning strikes.

Merritt Island Adventure

Rather than getting up at zero dark thirty to shoot sunrise and birds, I decided to wait until the afternoon to check out Merritt Island Wildlife Preserve. My thinking was that the birds off shore would not be back lit. Unfortunately there weren't many birds. No ospreys diving for fish, very few wading birds and the ones I saw were in the wetland areas and too far away. I did find some stilts and other shore birds. It seemed like the vegetation had grown and the views were more obstructed than before. When I got to the end of Bio Lab Road (after driving for 6 miles) there was a gate across the road. I had to turn around and drive the 6 miles back and hope they didn't block the other end as well.

The last stop was at the Max Brewer Bridge to wait for sunset. The sun actually sets to the side of the bridge making the possible compositions limited. Fortunately the sky opposite the sunset was much more dynamic and colorful. I was wishing there was a spot on the south side of the bridge to shoot but there is a condo complex which is private with no access to their docks. The bridge is quite impressive with just the lights on it. This will be a repeat location to look for more possiblilites.