Florida | The Nature of Things

This week, John, who is our guest host for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, has asked us to Go Back and take a second look at places we have visited in the past. My reason for wanting to go back and visit the first three places is that I was using a film camera at the time and was extremely limited as far as the number of pictures I could take. So, Niagara Falls (from the Canadian side,) Cypress Gardens in Florida and Virginia Beach are definitely on the list.

The same could be said of the Badlands in South Dakota, although we did go back eventually, one of the first places we visited after I acquired my original digital camera, but I couldn’t get out of the habit of being sparing with my shots and always regretted not taking more while I had the chance.

These days there’s no holding me back and I take literally hundreds of pictures when we’re on our travels, but time was against us on Antelope Island in Utah. We had already visited the Natural History Museum in Salt Lake City in the morning and by the time we got to the island a big storm was brewing so we had a quick look around and headed back to base. We had planned on going back to Utah the following year to visit our daughter but instead, she moved on to Texas. As it turned out, much of the island’s vegetation was destroyed by wildfires that year so it probably wouldn’t have been a good idea anyway but, if I had the opportunity, I’d love to go back to Antelope Island.

To be honest, I’m not sure who took these pictures but it was with my husband’s film camera nearly fifty years ago, so it could have been either one of us. These images represent my final memories of home in England. We’ve never been back, for various reasons, and will almost certainly never have the chance now. If I could magically transport myself back there, I would do it in a heartbeat.

Thanks to John for giving us the opportunity to Go Back and revisit some of our favorite places.

I really had to go out on a limb for Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge this week. Keeping to my chosen theme, animals, bugs and birds, I struggled to find anything in the photo files that started with the letters I or J especially the letter I, so I hope you will pardon me if I have jumped to any conclusions in identifying the following. Hopefully, anyone more knowledgeable about bird and animal species can correct me.

Could this be a glossy ibis? I captured the image many years ago in an avian sanctuary at Cypress Gardens in Florida. Unfortunately the b/w treatment has taken away all distinguishing colors but the original picture shows that the bird was grey with an iridescent sheen to the feathers. There was also a red strip on the upper part of the bill. If you have followed my blog for any amount of time you will be wondering why I was in a cage full of birds. Despite my life-long fear of our feathered friends, the opportunity to get some close-up shots of so many beautiful creatures prompted me, in a moment of insanity, to plunge in, so to speak. My husband accompanied me (someone had to be there to carry me out if I fainted!) and we crept around trying not to disturb the inhabitants. I was terrified!!! I only managed to take a few shots before my courage completely deserted me and had to be led out with my eyes shut.

The animals pictured above are, I’m fairly sure, Siberian ibex. This was a shot that I took on slide film many, many years ago at Brookfield Zoo when they had a high, rocky enclosure know as Ibex Island. It was demolished in 2008 to make room for the new bear exhibit. I don’t know what happened to the ibex.