Yikes!

I ran out late this afternoon to see if I could spot some tundra swans that were reported to be in a farm field near where I live. No luck with the swans ... but I saw this massive flock of common grackles and red-winged blackbirds. This is only one small part of the flock that I got in the frame when they took off - just to give you an idea as to the sheer number of birds! I am estimating somewhere around 1,000 birds... And, no, I was not standing underneath them. I was safely inside my car with the window rolled down and Big Daddy aimed out.

Four other shots on Flickr, starting HERE with a close up of Phoebe.

A busy day with not much time for photos. Although, I did take a few with the brand new Nikon 105 that arrived today! You may recall that I had purchased this lens, and then had a bad fall with it the first week I had it. I was fine; the lens was very broken. Thankfully, I'd purchased "drop" insurance on it and the company (Square Trade) just refunded me the ENTIRE purchase price of the lens this week! Deposited the money into my PayPal account, allowing me to quickly order a replacement from B & H. And, yes, I purchased another drop policy, too. I've got history with falls...

Tomorrow I'll get things rounded up for the Big Blip Adventure this weekend. I've decided to take Big Daddy and the 28-300 and probably the little 50mm lens, and the Nikon D600. Everything fits perfectly in my new camera bag, too. Two more sleeps...

Happy Hump Day, people!

Debbi