I parked my car on the Conneaut Sand Spit near the edge of the water. Not only did this incredible bird show up, but it also posed perfectly still, broadside, in great light. I have had so many birds and animals give me brief intimate moments like this with them. Usually they are just that - brief moments. I believe I managed to get two images before somebody spooked him away, but two turned out to be one more than I needed. Having the ability to capture moments like this one is what being a photographer is all about.
Photographers often get bad reputations among non-photographers because in their attempts to get photos their actions are perceived as stressful to the subject that they are photographing. I had pulled off the road somewhere at Presque Isle when I saw families of geese hanging out. I got down in the grass and just watched them for a while. Casually and slowly I got closer and closer to the geese. Eventually I was ten or fifteen feet from them and they started to fall asleep. That is stress free photography.
