It Was a Good Day

[NCBobD]

It was a very good day in the kayak this morning. So far I've got some wild horse images worked up. I'll work on birds later. Canon 40D, Sigma 50-500mm, hand-held... did I mention from the kayak?



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[NCBobD]

A few more wild mustangs from Rachel Carson Estuarine Reserve.



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[Steve Sutton]

good to see em with their ribs not showing.....they look positively helathy......

and I think these are the first ones, or close to it, where they weren't head down and eating......

Almost time to go get some shots of the wild ones here....you kick started me on that one in the Spring.....this will do the same thing for the fall....

Steve

[obxguide]

Glad to see you're out taking advantage of the sunshine. Was just checking these out when your PM popped up.

I love the shots where the horses are checking YOU out, as if patiently posing... and NOT ignoring you, busy eating.
I gotta check out how big that 50-500 is.... from the kayak no less. Maybe in a Native Watercraft Ultimate, but not in mine. Hope I can make it this weekend. I gotta get outside some, and soon!

[Jared Lloyd]

Thats wild horse photography in a nutshell along the coast of NC. These horses consume between 30-50 lbs of food a day (depending up seasonal choices -sea oats, spartina, and centipede grass right now). With no natural predators or threats along this coast line, much time is spent waiting the animals out. Like all types of wildlife photography, its a game of patience as you wait for everything to line up just right.

[artsnimages]

Neat Captures Bob!

Always love you equine images!

Jim

[950]

These are great Bob - it has to be really cool to see in person!

[Caretaker]

Hand-held... from a kayak? Wow, great job!

I think the last one in the first series is the one that does it for me.

Very nice.

[NCBobD]

Steve, it's largely seasonal. Through the Spring and Summer food sources are more plentiful and the available foods are likely more nutritious than winter fare. I'm sure by early spring there'll be rigs showing again. Life on barrier islands is tough.

As for shots with their heads up/"posing"... the horses spend about 80% of their waking hours feeding. A large portion of the rest of their day is spent moving from one location to another. I'm sure you've seen other "heads up" shots, but not in a great quanity. As Jared said it's a game of patience: Locate some horeses. Take some heads down shot to insure you got something. Wait... follow... wait some more... follow... more waiting. ;) Occassionaly you get really, really lucky like the other morning. I was seeing a lot more with their heads up in short time span than usual. That's partially while I titled the thread "it was a good day."

Jim, "950," "Caretaker" thanks much for the kind words. I greatly appreciate them.

[obxguide]

I think the last one in the first series is the one that does it for me.

I have to agree on that. They're all great, as I know getting the heads up is a waiting game. But seeing such interaction between the horses makes you feel that you're being let into their world instead of you being on the outside looking in. I REALLY like that one.

[Steve Sutton]

of course.....get em on that good spring and early summer forage and they fatten up and get slick looking really quick.....come winter, when it all ice and snow and they have to feed on the wind blown ridges or kick holes in the snow and they get "gaunt" quick.....

They never get that "round belly" like the Island horses do though....forage is a better and they don't have the salt to deal with......plus don't have that "pony" influence so they can really look either "slick and healty" or "gaunt and dead tomorrow" depending on the season....

The "head up" thing is partly due, I'm sure, to the fact that there they have no predators and also know that you aren't going to mess with them......out here everything with canines wants a piece of them and while humans no longer "routinely" shoot them on site, they will run them off range that they think is better served making more sheep or cow poop....because of that if you see them they see you...and theres none of that "foraging behaviour" unless you're way off or in a blind......here its "fight or flight" mode and the body lanquage isn't one of "ease" like you have there...

Either side of the "big river" they're neat to watch......and I look forward to seeing your pictures of them....

Steve

[NCBobD]

I've never really thought about the predator thing before, Steve. Thanks for mentioning that. It makes a lot of sense. The reserve doesn't get a ton of foot traffic... especially in some of the areas I visit and photograph. I know the horses see Jared and his workshop participants, a few tourists on foot, but not as many people on foot as one might expect. The only time I've encountered another human over there it was someone in a pirate costume associated with a treasure hunt for school age kids. I really believe the horses in the Rachel Carson Estuarine Reserve have came to recognize me. They seem more at ease with my presence than they once were and often will stroll up a graze quite closer than they used to.

Recently I've been getting emails from the reserve's manager. She's become a fan! Occassionly I get a little insider tip. They rarely publicize the names of the horses... to the extent of denying the animals are given names... but the staff does have names for them. We were discussing one of my favorite stallions and she disclosed his name, the names of his mares and mentioned they're hoping for a foal from that harem in the next year or two. I've learned the exact herd size... 33 animals... and a break down on the number of mares and stallions (which I don't recall off the top of my head). Fun stuff, at least to me.

I need to work on a round of feathered friends photos. I got a first for me that I'm pretty happy with. ;)

[jckegley]

I like the clouds in the 3rd image a lot. For me that changes that image dramatically. Without the clouds I wouldn't have mentioned the image, with the clouds it is my favorite of this series.

I also like the affection shown in the 4th image. Stuff like this is always nice.