Week 11 Day 75, July 14, 2009 "Sunset over Rich Lake"

Many of the Days were cloudy, but on this day the clouds began to break up as sunset approached. I grabbed my camera and went back to the beach on Rich Lake. The clouds and the light were great, and there were a few people out in canoes before the daylight completely disappeared.

Very often there are loons on these lakes. Loons are one of my favorite birds. I usually see them in pairs, and their calls are eerie, and beautiful at the same time. Did you know that a Loon cannot walk. They are designed to swim, and dive for long periods of time. Many of their bones are solid unlike most other birds.

This year I only saw single Loons swimming, and only heard their calls once. I wonder if they were nesting, and if one would catch fish while the other was watching the eggs? I did take a few photographs of Loons, but they were not very close. We did have one pop up out of the water about 30 feet from us while we were swimming. I was amazed at how large they are.

Lessons Learned:

• I was very curious about a polarized filter for this shot. I done have one, but wonder if I can take better photos with one. Do you have any thoughts?

Photo Details: Exposure time 1/50 sec, Aperture f/21.9, ISO 400 , Focal Length 80 mm, 35 mm equivalent focal length 130mm, Lens Canon 70-200mm f2.8L USM, tripod.