There is a man-made pond at Mountain Park Park in Lilburn. The area includes a one mile asphalt jogging path and several softball, baseball and soccer fields and a children's play area. I've counted up to 36 Canada Geese who reside there at one time or other although there were only five last Sunday. There were 7 adult ducks and 5 little babies following one mother duck. A Blue Heron also resides there but he was absent last Sunday. The waterfowl are very tame, being used to the walkers and joggers and the same can be said for the numerous birds and squirrels. The park has placed birdhouses around the area. The Geese left rather early last Sunday and by 7:45 the mother duck had hidden the babies. They develop quite fast and I would hope that they would stick around longer this coming Sunday. In the absence of any other suggestions, I would like to test my new 300 IS there and meet at sunrise, about 7:00 AM. Any of you who are interested in meeting me there please let me know on this board and I will post directions and PM you with my home and cellphone numbers.
Bob, I'm out for this Sunday (Mother's Day), but if you're interested in making a zoo trip one day next week (or the next), let me know. I'm thinking of going either Wednesday or Thursday morning.
Either morning sounds good, John. If you are flexible, we can check the weather forecast a day or two in advance. So far no takers for the Sunday AM outing. My wife said I made it too early but I told her that morning light and feeding times are essential for wildlife shots. I'll probably take my long run there Sunday if no response and then shoot on Monday. I'll PM you with my home and cell numbers. My 300 f/4 IS and 1.4xII TC are due to arrive this afternoon. I think I'll sit in the driveway and wait for the UPS truck.
Tuesday I was planning on testing some new equipment at Zoo Atlanta. It's my "free" day from working on the new house. If it works out, I'd welcome the company. I can also admit a guest with my membership if either of you don't have membership to the zoo. I'm planning on arriving when the gates open at 9:30am.
Gary, count me in. I can't resist a freebie John, If you can't make it on Tuesday, I'll go with you on Wednesday or Thursday, whichever is best for you. I'll find plenty to shoot in two days.
Nice pictures Bob. That poor squirrel's ear sure has been nibbled on by someone a lot. I have chinchillas and they like to nibble on each others ears. I always have to stop them when I see them doing it. I tell them they have to pretty of ears to do that to.
I just got my Tamrac Expedition 7 backpack in and wow! I need to workout more if I am going to carry that thing around loaded. I am just sitting now waiting on UPS to bring me my studio lights now. I can tell tonight will be another sleepless night while I play in the garage with my toys. Man, I wish I could win the BIG GAME so I could really afford all of this.I think photography is more of an addictive and expensive thing than drugs.
Due to Sunday being Mothers Day I will not be able to meet up either. I work M-F 3:30 to 12am but that may be changing to 12-8am here soon. Then I could go in the mornings to the zoo trips :-)
Edited by mike774u on May 24, 2005 at 12:04 AM GMT
What a fun day at the zoo with Gary and John. Gary knows everyone and everyone knows him there which made the experience that much more special. They put on a bird exhibition for just the three of us and we took shots of the flying eagle and very large hornbill, who was even bigger than the eagle. Being rather new to the hobby this was my first chance to use servo mode and I hope they came out. Just wanted to share with the rest of you that if you haven't met either Gary or John, you couldn't meet two nicer guys, in or out of the hobby. I'm sure they will post some shots and I will too, if any of are halfway decent.
A fun day it was, I enjoyed meeting both you and John, two excellent guys to photograph with by the way. I'm sure both of you got some great images from today. The lighting was good most of the day. The animals were cooperative and having the keepers go out of their way made it even better.
The zoo and most other public place are not so crowded during the week.