Nathan Gardner 
, Feb 02, 2012; 12:02 a.m.
Happy Thursday and February everyone! It's hard to believe it's February here in Kentucky/Indiana; the temperature was about 60 deg. F today and I'm not complaining. I've been taking advantage of the good weather and gotten out to shoot some ducks a few times this week. I finally saw a species I have wanted to see for a while now, and got a decent photograph too. I've always been amazed by the Hooded Merganser, but only from pictures. I have now seen them and can check them off the bird list. For me, certain birds almost have a celebrity status. When I see a bird as magnificent or elusive as a Hooded Merganser, or the Pileated Woodpecker, or the Whooping Crane, it's like seeing a celebrity; they're larger than life. They can take our breath away and make us realize that we are witnessing something special. What I always think is fascinating is that nature lovers all over the world spend lots of time and money, and travel great distances to view wildlife, but the animals have no idea of the esteemed status they hold.
Male Hooded Merganser, 1D IV, EF 500mm f/4L IS + EF 1.4x t/c, ISO 1000, f/5.6, 1/2000 sec.
Jeff Spirer 
, Feb 02, 2012; 12:03 a.m.
Robin Smith , Feb 02, 2012; 12:05 a.m.
24-70mm
James Farabaugh 
, Feb 02, 2012; 12:07 a.m.
Inspiration from a rubber band.
Produce of Addiction
David Cavan 
, Feb 02, 2012; 12:10 a.m.
We are back from a wonderful weekend at Daytona Speedway, for the Rolex 24-hour race there. Not much sleep, but lots of racecars and photos. I'm still working on organizing what we have, but here's an action shot from early evening on Saturday. We rented a 100-400mm lens for the weekend, and although it's a beast to carry around I'm very pleased with the results.
2012 Daytona 24-hour race; Canon 50D; Canon 100-400mm
Lupo Lobo , Feb 02, 2012; 12:54 a.m.
Swedish Meatballs on Noodles. I am finished.
Canon 7D - 100mm f/2.8 Macro
Phil Richardson , Feb 02, 2012; 01:21 a.m.
Nathan, I always enjoy your avian contributions. Thanks for bringing us the close up of the Hooded Merganser. I love that coloring. And Lupo, the detail in the sauce over the meatballs is amazing. I'm a vegetarian, but that looks to make me want to start eating beef again!
My shot is from the nearby park again. Still trying to get better at birds in flight after my first attempts a couple of weeks ago. I'm finding it very challenging to get results I'm happy with. And that's not even trying to get out to the wildlife reserves and other more rural areas where they are much more elusive.
7d, 70-200 f4L @ 149, f6.3, 1/1250, ISO 400
Vincent Bester , Feb 02, 2012; 01:22 a.m.
Jazz lounge 5D2 with 50mm F1.4
Dean Schreuder , Feb 02, 2012; 01:25 a.m.
Kenna
Larger view
Camera: Canon EOS 7D
Lens: Canon EF-S17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM
Exposure Program: Aperture-priority AE
Exposure: 0.025 sec (1/40)
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 45 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: +1/3 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Philip Wilson 
, Feb 02, 2012; 02:05 a.m.
5DII Mamiya M645 35 F3.5 on TS adaptor ISO 800 1/160
