Friday, April 8, 2011

BLOG GETS NEW NAME, WE'RE GIVEN AN AWARD AND THE CHICKS GET AGGRESSIVE WITH THE ADULT!

We have changed the name of our blog today. We are no longer JP Bandano Florida Wedding Photographers! Our name is now JP Brandano Florida Photographers (Not your usual Photography Blog). Why the change? Are we not doing weddings anymore?? Yes, we are still doing wedding photography, plus portraiture, family, infants and even pets. But with the move to Florida, we have been photographing much more of nature than before and did not want to confuse people. We still have our web site which is mostly dedicated to the wedding part of our business. We will still be doing postings on weddings and the rest of images non-nature. So not much has changed. We are just having our blog title match the content and not confuse people.

We keep getting people commenting that our blog is not like other photography blogs so we decided to add that to our title. We have purposely made our blog a little different from other photography blogs and appreciate that people have realized that. We want to cover a wide scope of photography but also add other content. We try to use photography and our writings to make a statement that interests, amuses and educates our readers. We do not put all of those points in each posting but we try. We were described as being a little whimsical on our blog. We were happy that people "got it". We want to be amusing, maybe a little off center at times. But we also want to bring the beauty of photography to people. Hopefully, you will continue to feel we are doing just that.

We were really honored to be selected by one of our fellow bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award. We were especially honored because this is the second time in 3 months that we have received this award. Charissa of  SEXY BITCHY FABULOUS http://www.sexybitchyfabulous.blogspot.com/  let us know this morning and we thank her for the honor. I will address it more fully next week in a blog posting devoted just to it.

I was at the nest site this morning at 8:30 and stayed for about 2 hours. When I first arrived only one adult was present, much like yesterday. After a while the other adult showed up and the chicks thought it was time for food. They started grabbing the adult's bill and pulling on it quite forcefully. At one point, both chicks were pulling on it and the adult's head was pulled so low in the nest that I could not see it. At that point, the adult had enough and moved out of the nest over to a nearby limb. I do not think it ever fed either chick. I am not sure if this is part of training the chicks for when it is time to be on their own or not. It would seem to be as the adult is away from the nest quite a bit of the time. I did observe the chicks in the upper nest flapping their wings which is part of the process of learning to fly.


There is a noticeable difference in the size of the chicks in nest two. They are bigger and I would imagine older. They seem more mature and I am guessing they will be leaving the nest soon. Leaving the nest the first few times can be very dangerous for the chicks. As I was watching them today, a local couple started speaking to me. They have lived here for years and said that these nests are here each year. Last year, one of the chicks tried to fly and didn't make it and got itself caught in a branch. It was hanging upside down and eventually died. Nature can be hard on young chicks trying to make it on their own.
      The adult is in the lower nest. I have never seen this nest without an adult present.

      If you look you can see a chick hanging its head over the nest looking down. It stayed this way a long time. I wonder what it was thinking? Something about the first step being a doozy!!!
Finally, the adult showed up in the upper nest. The chicks were very interested!

    You can see the size of the chicks in the upper nest (image above). They are much more developed  
    than the chicks in the lower nest (image below). They do not even look like the same type bird.

                          The two chicks in lower nest are touching bills, something they do a lot.





  You can see that the chicks are grabbing the adult's bill and pulling and twisting it. It might not be
  evident in these images but it was fairly violent actions.


  Here you can see that they pulled the adult's head down into the nest out of sight.
                    At this point the adult had enough and moved to a limb a few feet away.



  She did keep an eye on them and I watched to see if they would follow it to the limb but they did not.

  As I was watching the herons I saw this coming out of the bushes. At first I thought it was a rabbit but I am not that sure. Looks like a mix of a rabbit and a rat!! Anyone knows I would love to hear what it is!

22 comments:

baldychaz said...

Wow Jim i am actualy on a pc so get to see your photos as weel as reading your words. Truly cool photos they are. You are not like other photography blogs. I read yours and enjoy ;)

Ann said...

I like the new name & the amazing new photos!

Derek Jones said...

Fantastic photos as ever Jim and congratulations on your second award!

I think the name change is much better. Taking the "Wedding" out of the blog name will certainly help you reach a wider audience.

Keep up the fantastic work Jim :)

Derek
Derek's Home and Business Blog
http://www.derekjones.co

Melissa Tandoc said...

you could still improve on the title of your blog page jim... you have a wide range of subject interests and that's wonderful :)... you have a style that is called your own...

now back to the story :), they look all grown up even as young birds... i was trying to google on the questions that arose from your visual story and i still have to keep at it :P

it seems as though you've just taken the shots right up on the tree near them, :P... they're so clear :)... i truly like the sequence of your story and your photos... because i can use them for the children :)...

bellissime! thanks for sharing... even my comments are to be continued :P...

Unknown said...

JIM, Love the new name and the photos as always are awesome... hmmm a ratbit?

Anonymous said...

Hi Jim... =) I have to agree...the name change is much better!

Watching the chicks is amazing! Much more entertaining than golf could ever be, in my opinion! =)

I enlarged the last picture, and it definitely looks like a bunny to me. Maybe one frozen in the stretched out position because he saw you when he came out, and definitely a younger one by the looks of the face and ears. That is my not so expert opinion! =)

Mari Sterling Wilbur said...

I love the new blog name. Grand idea! This series of photos is amazing. I love the little guy looking over the side of the nest lol. Congrats on another award - you both deserve it!

Rimly said...

Congratulation Jim for being honored the second time with the Versatile Blogger award. You totally deserve it. Your photograph and your narrative is unique. I thoroughly enjoy visiting your blog. The pictures are spectacular as usual.

http://rimlybezbaruah.blogspot.com/2011/04/indifference.html

Jidhu Jose said...

like ur shots

Jorie Pacli said...

"Not your usual photography blog", this title speaks for itself Jim and it speaks for wholeness of your blog. Your a genius when comes to photography. I always admire every photos that you share and I can only wish I could do the same for my blog.... Thanks for the inspiration JIM...

P.S. Brilliant shots as always...;)

Nelieta said...

Jim, this is the first time that I am visiting your blog. Your photos are amazing! I am so glad I stopped by and you bet I will be a regular from now on :)

Healing Morning said...

Well, hmm. The critter w/ the big ears could still be a varmint of some kind. I know that mice in desert areas have bigger ears to catch sounds more quickly in the dry air (as dry air doesn't carry sound as efficiently as moist air does). But you're in FL and a humid environment. It didn't look anything like a rabbit to me in the face. I call it a mouse of some type, or SOME kind of rodent. Let us know if you find out what it is, because now I'm curious!

~ Dawn

JIM said...

Thank You Everyone.. I appreciate the comments on the name change.

Debbie a ratbit??? lolol I love it


Melissa I'll take any suggestions if you have one??

Ana said...

Jim, great, really great photos. You have talent and there is passion. So this connections gives success. Thanks for sharing. Good luck! Best regards from Poland :)

Jim said...

My favourite photography blog gets a name change, and an award. Well done! Yes the ratbit looks rather short in the legs, unless he's in a dip in the ground, but then even the ears look short also. You breed them weird in Florida. But then it may just be a natural adaption to living in denser undergrowth rather than their usual open field terrain. Would be interesting to see if you find others like this.

Anonymous said...

First off congrats on the name change and on the award.

Seeing as I am a new follower of your blog I had been wondering with all the non-wedding related photos I had seen, why your blog had wedding in it. I just figured wedding photos was your profession but, that you loved photography so much you shared a little of everything.

I enjoy looking at the photos and reading your take on them. It's almost like being there and thinking to yourself about what you see.

Again congrats and I look forward to more posts.

Savira Gupta said...

Amazing pictures. Congratulations on the award as well. I stop by now and again when you are not looking to feast my eyes on your photos!
Thank you for stopping by

Roy Durham said...

that rabbit looks like a pika only stretch a bit. how big was it. we have them here in the rocky, some time called a bush bunny or rock rabbit. but are a pika mouse.

Kriti said...

Congratulations you awesome man!!! i agree with the name wholeheartedly! Why limit your awesome talent. Love the pics as usual Jim - for the 100th time - you are fantastic!!!

Unknown said...

What a long title. I like the photos where in the birds were kissing. :p

Anonymous said...

Fabulous photos as ever and the name change will hopefully make people realise you are so much more than 'just' a wedding photographer. Good luck with it all!

macaco said...

Really lots of incredible images, compliments.