The month of June is one of the best times to see turtles out and about in the wild or your backyard. One afternoon as the rain was starting to wain I noticed one of my neighbors post a photo on Facebook of a snapping turtle. I grabbed my camera and my son hopped into his rain boots. At first my son took off running but I yelled at him that we need to approach cautiously and keep our distance. He didn't need to get bitten by a snapping turtle or disturb her when trying to lay eggs. He had grabbed his camera too. We gave our neighbor a slight fright as we walked around the area I suspected to find the turtle. I gave my apologies for startling him. We talked about whether or not it was laying eggs. My son to a few photos. I lined up a shot and......nothing! My battery was dead! So we raced back to the apartment to grab a full battery. She was on the move and the neighbor had gone back in. My husband had just gotten home from work and joined us. We had to move fast as she was headed back to the pond. Wouldn't you know I had the wrong lens on! Ughh, I felt so stupid! I snagged a few quick snapshots not my best work but here they are.! Then on another day when the sun finally appeared my son and I went outside. He rode his bike and I had my camera looking for birds or anything non-human to photograph. I had been looking into the bushes when I heard a bike tire. I turned out of the corner of my eye I noticed I medium sized painted turtle by the corner of the far corner of one of the storage buildings as my son came speeding by. I took a few shots. My son came over and checked the turtle out with me. I mentioned wishing I had my macro lens out with me and was afraid it would disappear if I left to get it. My son volunteered to fetch and was soon back with it dangling in its case from his handle bar. I can tell you it is quite painful kneeling or laying on gravel but I did it anyways in my attempt to get some good detailed photos at eye level. I will share the three best below. I saw another painted turtle tryin to lay eggs on another evening but all traces of light were nearly gone. Earlier in the spring I was amazed to see a dozen painted turtles at the far end of the pond tucked in the brush. If it were not for my big lens I would not have seen them.
Hope your had a turtle-iffic time today! Don't forget to check out our prints and gifts linked in the menu!
|
Julie MetottNature Photographer, wife, mother, lover of outdoor adventure! Archives
November 2022
Categories
|