The Shot: Little Blue Heron

Oddly enough, the SC Aquarium provided two of my favorite aviary shots, while my adventures in aquatic life didn't prove to be so fruitful.  Lesson: Never assume that what you think you'll be shooting is what you'll come away with at the end of the day.

After spending time in the lobby with Liberty, I made may way through the galleries, learning about the Southeast Appalachian Watershed.  The Aquarium was arranged as a journey from the Upstate of South Carolina and its mountain streams down towards its coastal plain with its rivers and eddies.

Waterfowl in the aviary

Halfway through the exhibits is the aviary, which looks out over the Harbor.  Nearly three stories in height, the aviary is home to native coastal birds along with tanks hosting fish, crabs, and other crustaceans.  Herons, ducks, cranes, and songbirds flit about in the greenery, a few boldly venturing towards their visitors, but most remaining elusive in their perching. 

One of these elusive residents was a little blue heron.  I've been fortunate enough to see many great blue herons in the wild, but I'd never seen this smaller, darker cousin.  The deep color of its feathers contrasted with the bright grass in which it was hiding.  It stood mostly still, but every now and then took a moment to smooth its feathers, as if preparing for a close-up.

I steadied myself on the edge of the tank, perched on the ledge most likely meant to provide smaller and younger visitors with a better vantage point of the feathered residents of the exhibit.  Between my lack of a tripod and the fidgeting of my subject, I burned through a lot of shots that were never seen by anyone else.  Animals and children are two of the toughest subjects to capture, given their tendencies towards unpredictable movement, but this is where digital photography scores a major advantage over film.

As in many cases, patience is a virtue when waiting for the perfect shot - all that time eventually pays off:

Little Blue Heron; South Carolina Aquarium, Charleston, SC