White Rock Lake, October 2015: Part I

I've been meaning to visit White Rock Lake since we moved here last year, but could just never quite manage to get around to it. Then last weekend at our Heard Nature Photographers Club meeting our speaker was a gentleman named Robert Bunch who has been shooting at the lake for many years.  He not only shared some beautiful images, but also gave some great tips on specific locations around the lake to find certain things.  That was the extra help and incentive I needed!

Robert didn't talk about sunrise shots, but lately I always try to get one when I go out to shoot.  The moments are too special to miss an opportunity.  I checked some maps, picked an area on the west side of the lake so I could shoot back across the water, walked until I saw a nice break in the vegetation along the shore, and set up shop to wait for the magic to happen.  Which it did. :)

Even after I'd picked up to move on, I was compelled to stop again when the light and color were still pretty and I got some nice framing from overhanging tree branches.

A Great Blue Heron was preening along the shore.  I watched him for more than an hour, waiting for the sun to break through the clouds that had added so much to my sunrise shot.  It never quite managed, but I did get a nice look at a little feather pompadour it gave itself.

Next up was a stop at Sunset Bay, which Robert had raved about.  I was drawn at first to a collection of cypress knees, which looked like miniature hoodoos similar to those in southeastern Utah.

The bay was teeming with birds.  And had more than a few photographers, too.  One little pied-billed grebe thought things were too crowded for its taste and quickly swam off.

Great Egrets were out a good distance from shore.  Clearly the water was still fairly shallow, though, as this bird was making quite a show of striding along.

Killdeer always seem so timid to me.  Something about their big, bright eyes, their swift, skittish movements and their plaintive call.  I was glad one got close enough for a good shot, though.

The shallow bay made for a beautiful setting.  Coots, egrets and ducks covered the water.  I didn't stay long enough to get the chance to see its namesake feature -- a sunset -- but I'll definitely be back again to catch one.

Click here for Part II.