For the Birds
In order to see birds it is necessary to become a part of the silence.
Robert Wilson Lynd
seagulls vying for a spot on the top of a lifeguard tower
A mockingbird between songs
Crow trying to out-sing the wind
Morning Coffee
Above me
The mourning dove sings,
the gulls cry out,
the mockingbird proudly
practices drills -
all of them
Unbothered by the disapproving
Clucks and coos of pigeons
Circling on the pavement below .
The herons mind their
Business, not making a sound
Or even acknowledging me
As an egret with a neck so thin
It can barely support his head
Picks his way silently
through the tall grass
And oh- here comes the crow;
my familiar friend
Calling on the wind
reminding me
everywhere i go
I am still home
Night heron watching the water at the marina
Great blue heron on top of the world
a tense green heron fishing
At the edge of the ocean, a crow walked beside me for awhile
A great egret gathering food from the tall grass in the park
Crow flying off a lifeguard tower
The sound of birds stops the noise in my mind.
Carly Simon
Coming from the quiet snowy retreat of my little house in Michigan to bright and noisy Miami Beach was a little bit of a shock to my system. I woke up the entire first week not knowing where I was. But after the initial adjustment, I found my routine here again and more importantly, where to go to be quiet and talk to the birds over morning coffee.
Thank you so much for being here! I will see you soon!
Seagulls watching sunrise
Framing
The magic possibility of framing a certain space and time is what brought me to photography. This process of recording elements of 3 dimensions in the flow of time, and fixing them in a 2 dimensional image, creates a new context for the elements of the photograph.
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
(See his photos)
What seems to hold you
Only frames you fleetingly
You were always free.
I have been thinking about and playing with frames in photographs.
How they can change an ordinary scene into something special.
How they can focus the eye, capture light, create intimacy with the vast.
You have escaped the cage. Your wings are stretched out. Now fly.
Rumi
Maybe this is something you can try yourself, if you’re interested. Go for a walk with your smartphone or camera and look for objects, doorways, fences, holes in walls, forks in trees - anything that you can look through to emphasize your subject beyond, within, or possibly even perched on your chosen frame. I would love to see what you come up with! You can either send it to me directly or just post it and tag me if you’re on Instagram @randomrho.
Thank you so much for being here! I am going to be traveling for the next couple weeks with unknown connectivity- so I might be posting on a slightly wonky schedule - but I’ll see you next week-ish 😊.
Potential frames are everywhere. Green Heron on the ropes at the Miami Beach Marina.
Small Struggler
Life is a beautiful struggle.
Talib Kweli
With its neck and feathers tucked in, the small green heron looks tense.
When he stretches his neck out - he can look pretty fierce.
Stress
Crouching Green Heron,
swiftly shoots forward to strike -
struggling, like me.
I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart.
Vincent Van Gogh
The green heron is a fierce little fisherman. Drawing its feathers in, tucking its neck into its body - it drops little lures on the water to bring its prey to the surface, and waits. Then, suddenly, it strikes out with that sharp pointed beak, extending its neck to catch them when they appear. It looks like two different birds from one moment to the next.
Last week, when I wrote about the night heron, I admired it for its patience and trust in the flow of things. The green heron seems to strive a little more. They are both following their natures, but I often think it would be better to be like the night heron - calm and graceful. Sometimes when things are harder though, I know I’m more like the green heron. I can almost feel the stress in its hunched shoulders when it’s standing on the edge of the water, and its striving when it stretches out its neck in the treetops. It’s like me when I’m doing my taxes. I guess it’s all an ebb and flow. Sometimes I struggle, and other times I flow.
I really appreciate you being here, reading my musings. Thank you so much for all your feedback. I’m thinking about doing another photography challenge…let me know if you’re interested, and I’ll see you next week!
Settling back into his perch. (If you want to know more about green herons, click here.)