For years I tried to sneak up on Great Blue Herons in my canoe in order to get a photo. Most of the time the photos were poor; it was hard to get close to these wary birds. Then I visited Florida and found GBHs were very easy birds to photograph. Down south they would hang around fishermen waiting for a handout so people with cameras normally didn’t faze them.

During a recent canoe trip on Lake Sunapee with my wife, Jann, we were able to get fairly close to one and capture a few photos.  I was impressed by the coloration and patterns seen in a front view. Bird books rarely show this and most times these birds don’t seem to want to face directly at me.

Digital cameras make it easier to capture flight photos, mainly because one doesn’t have to worry about the cost of taking a lot of photos. Digital also allows excellent quality at higher ISO than film (these were at 400 and 800). Plus modern AF lenses certainly help. But it seems there is little need anymore to convince people to make the switch; almost all have.