Charles Bush Photography Newsletter – December 2024

Thinking of Spring

Roseate Spoonbill at Rip’s Rookery Jefferson Island

As the year winds down, it’s the perfect time to start planning for spring! Our Spring Bird Photography Tours are designed to capture the stunning nesting wading birds of Southern Louisiana. You’ll have the opportunity to photograph majestic egrets, herons, ibis, the vibrant Roseate Spoonbills, and Osprey in flight in their natural habitats.

Tour Highlights:

• Locations: Cazan Lake, Miller’s Lake, Jefferson Island, Lake Martin, and Henderson Swamp.

• Structure: Three half days by boat and three half days on land to ensure a diverse range of photographic opportunities.

Learn more and book your spot today—limited availability for this unforgettable experience!

Great Egret Courtship–Cazan Lake

2024 Fall Tours Completed

Lake Martin early morning

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this year’s fall tours! The stunning cypress trees with their fiery autumn hues and the golden-hour reflections made for some incredible images.

Want to see the best shots from this season? Click here to view the gallery.

Looking ahead, the 2025 Fall Tour Dates will be announced soon. Stay tuned for updates in early 2025 and be ready to reserve your spot.

Sunrise at Lake Dauterive

Photo Mechanic / Fast Raw Viewer Update

I’ve put Fast Raw Viewer and Photo Mechanic through their paces this fall during the tours. Here’s a quick update:

• Fast Raw Viewer: A fantastic tool for quickly checking exposure and sharpness, making it an essential part of my workflow. But it won’t replace Photo Mechanic as the import and keywording tools are lacking.

• Photo Mechanic: Still my go-to for downloading and keywording images efficiently.

I’ll publish a detailed comparison soon, including insights from real-world use on the fall tours. Watch out for this on the blog!

Photo Computer Backup Strategies

Backup strategies are a hot topic, especially as we handle ever-larger files. I’ve been working closely with a client to develop a robust backup system tailored to photographers, particularly those using Apple computers.

New options, including improved cloud integrations and hardware setups, are making it easier to protect your images. I’ll be sharing these insights in an upcoming blog post to help you create a backup plan that works for you.

Stay Connected

Thank you for being part of the Charles Bush Photography community. As always, your passion for capturing the beauty of nature inspires everything we do. If you have questions about tours, tools, or techniques, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Happy holidays, and here’s to another year of extraordinary photography!

Warm regards,
Charles Bush

November 17–20 Photography Tour Trip Report

With a fantastic group of participants, I had the pleasure of leading a memorable trip into the swamps of Southwestern Louisiana. During our journey, we explored three stunning cypress swamps: Lake Dauterive, Lake Martin, and Lake Fausse Pointe. Despite facing high winds and a day of intermittent rain, we returned with some incredible photographs that truly captured the beauty of the region.

Having led tours to Lake Dauterive and Lake Martin for many years, I’ve learned the best spots to visit and how to navigate around choppy water. However, the winds during this trip presented some unique challenges. Lake Martinturned out to be the most accommodating, with its numerous sheltered areas providing respite from the gusts.

This was my first year including Lake Fausse Pointe, and it proved to be a fantastic addition to the itinerary. Its serene beauty and photographic opportunities make it a place I look forward to visiting again.

If you’re passionate about capturing the magic of Louisiana’s swamps, consider joining us for one of the spring tours. I’ll also announce next year’s fall tour dates soon—don’t miss out! Check them out here.

Check out a gallery of images for this trip and the preceding one here.

Photographing the Roseate Spoonbill in Louisiana

General Facts and Appearance

Photographing the Roseate Spoonbill is one of my favorite activities in the spring. The Roseate Spoonbill is one of the most striking wading birds in North America. Its body is primarily pink, with red feathers on its wings and an orangish patch on its tail. The bird’s distinctive spatula-shaped bill is used for scooping food from the water. Measuring about 30 inches tall with a wingspan of approximately 36 inches, the Spoonbill becomes even more vibrant during spring mating season, when its reddish wing feathers are most prominent.

In Louisiana, Roseate Spoonbills typically mate in early spring (March or April), with chicks hatching in May or June. They nest alongside other wading birds in cypress trees growing in the water. Each mating pair produces 3 to 5 chicks, which are a much paler pink compared to adults.

During the early 1900s, the Spoonbill population was severely reduced by "plume hunters," who used their feathers for items like fans. Since they nest among other wading birds such as egrets, also targeted for their feathers, the disturbance of shared nesting areas further impacted their numbers. Today, nesting populations are concentrated along the coasts of Texas, Louisiana, and Florida. In Louisiana, the largest nesting sites are in the southwestern part of the state, within about 100 miles of the Gulf Coast.

Behavior

Roseate Spoonbills are often seen wading in the water, foraging for food with their spoon-shaped bills. Unlike herons, they walk in a crouched position, moving their tails back and forth as they go. In flight, they extend their heads straight out and flap their wings relatively slowly.

During nesting season, males are highly territorial, aggressively defending their nesting sites through displays and chasing rival males. Spoonbills are social birds and are often observed in flocks both during and outside the breeding season. When nesting, large groups engage in dramatic "upflights," where many birds leave and return to the nesting site together.

Migratory Behavior

In Louisiana, Roseate Spoonbills are non-migratory. While they disperse from nesting sites, likely due to food availability, they remain in the general area year-round.

For additional information, the best online reference can be found at Cornell University's Birds of North AmericaOnline.

Best Locations for Photographing the Roseate Spoonbill in Louisiana

Lake Martin

Lake Martin's Rookery hasn't returned to its pre-2006 status. While it still exists, it's not within photographic range, and only an occasional Roseate Spoonbill can be seen, usually high overhead.

Rip Van Winkle Gardens - Jefferson Island

Roseate Spoonbill Bathing at Rip's Rookery in May, 2024

The Rookery entrance is now along the main road into the Gardens, named Rip's Rookery. Previously, the best photography was at a small pond on the West side of the complex, but erosion has mostly submerged the Cypress Trees island. While a few birds, including Roseate Spoonbills, still nest there, their numbers have decreased. The best photography spot is now at the larger pond, requiring a longer lens for close shots. Flight shots can be captured with a shorter telephoto lens, but shots in the trees need at least a 600mm lens, preferably with a teleconverter. The afternoon is the best time to photograph, as the East Side of the pond is far from the nesting birds. This year was worth visiting, but it's not what it once was. Their web site can be seen here.

Talons Landing Road

Recent visits haven't yielded any birds.

Miller's Lake

Roseate Spoonbill in Flight at Miller's Lake, taken in April, 2024

In recent years, Miller's Lake has offered better opportunities to photograph Roseate Spoonbills. We've used a boat with an outboard motor to reach birds in the trees, though the shallow lake makes boating challenging.

Cazan Lake at PJF Farms

Roseate Spoonbill taken at Cazan Lake in May of 2024

Years ago, photographing Roseate Spoonbills at Cazan Lake required navigating a muddy road and hiking about a mile for limited access. Now, the access road is gravel, and the birds nest in a more accessible area, allowing for roadside photography. The best time to photograph is early morning. Note that boats are not allowed in the nesting bird area to protect them during nesting season. Access to Cazan Lake is bypassed either a single-day or annual pass. The Web site for the Rookery is here.

Miller's Lake and Cazan Lake are close, making it ideal to photograph Cazan Lake in the morning and Miller's Lake in the afternoon.

Please consider joining us in the spring of 2025 to photograph this beautiful bird. I've been leading tours to photograph the Roseate Spoonbill since 2003 and know when and where to go. Check it out here.