Great Blue Heron in the Marsh

Large birds are one of my favorite subjects. The Great Blue Heron is perhaps the largest water birds in North America. I see them frequently in the rivers and ponds in just about every state I visit. They slowly step through shallow water looking for fish or frogs, then strike like lightning.

In the San Joaquin March wildlife reserve in Southern California I spotted this heron on the edge of a creek, partly visible through the trees. Every shot was partly blocked by foliage.

Eventually I moved to a spot with a clearer view of this big bird, hoping he would not be spooked and fly away before I could get some good images. Fortunately he was calm and allowed me to approach to within about 25 feet. From a distance they look all smooth and gray and white, but this close we can see the rich blend of tawny colors and textures of the feathers. 

This full standing image is available for sale on our Picfair site here. It's available at a large scale which will print well and preserve the incredible details of the plumage. If you are interested in the extreme close-up above, you can find that on our Pixels web site here. (We're moving from Picfair to Pixels.)