City Park - Denver

Monday evening; on my calendar, the September meeting of the DFO at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. I had missed the August meeting while I was in New Orleans, so it was good to have a reason to head back down to Denver. As I try to manage when my schedule allows - I headed down early and walked with camera in City Park in the late afternoon. A Ring-billed Gull was enjoying the lakeside in the afternoon light.


Walking further I reached 'Duck Pond', where among a handful of species this Double-crested Cormorant was airing its wings with a few slow beats. Those blue eyes are great when they catch the light. Double click the photo if it doesn't show up in the blog formatting!


I continued my loop, cutting back over to City Park Pond, and spent some time with the Snowy Egrets that remained near the island that hosts their rookery. This one wasn't in the best light, but I really liked the patterns of the water in the background.


I unwittingly timed my walk to complete at the Museum steps just as the sun was sinking beyond Denver. Despite showing my need for a graduated neutral density filter, this picture managed to capture enough of the sky color while preserving the detail of the pond, pavilion, and capital dome. Below, an exposure set up to capture more of the color of the sky.


I am always pleased when nature and events come together to provide a memorable scene. Being at one of the iconic photographic views of Denver, on a mild evening in September, with colors abounding and people out enjoying the evening was just fantastic. Not having my short lens in hand, and not being ready with a filter are just reasons for me to keep trying for improvement!