Category Archives: St. Augustine Alligator Farm

Two ‘Oldies but Goodies’

April 29, 2024Casey Key, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbeach, birds, black and white, infrared, landscape, panorama, Spoonbill, wildlifeEd Rosack

Lynn and I are moving next week, so we’ve been busy and I haven’t been on any recent photo field trips. I did have a little time though to browse through my Lightroom catalog and found two older images that I decided to re-visit.

The first one is a two frame, vertical panorama made with an IR modified Olympus E-PL5 way back in 2015 at Casey Key on the gulf coast of Florida. It’s two Raw frames that I’d ignored at the time. I made it with a 14mm (28mm equivalent) lens at f/5.6, 2.0 sec, ISO 200. Here’s my current work flow:

Initial processing of the Raw file with DxO Photo Lab 6 DeepPrime XD Noise Reduction
Lightroom: color and exposure settings and panorama merge
Photoshop: cropping, final adjustments, sharpening with Topaz Sharpen AI
Lightroom again: B&W conversion and publish

Beach view

I was really happy with the result, especially the detail and how the light looks in the clouds. It was nice to rediscover this one in the archives!

I don’t know how interested you’d be in more detailed processing steps, but I’d be happy to answer any questions you have in the comments. Here’s a before and after comparison of the Beach View photo (Raw on the left and final on the right):

The second one is from even further back: A single frame from the St. Augustine Alligator Farm in 2010, made with a Nikon D90, at 150mm, f/6.3, 1/640 sec, ISO 640. I used a similar work flow (except no panorama merge or B&W conversion).

Spoonbill Touchdown

I’m very happy with this one too. The Nikon D90 was quite capable for its time and the files look pretty good, especially when processed with current software.

I often return from a photo op with too many photos. I’ll delete the obvious bad frames or duplicates. But I try not to delete too many because it’s a little hard to predict what the processed versions will end up looking like. Sometimes I’m very glad I saved images – even 9 and 14 years later!

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Stay positive, be kind, take care of yourselves and each other. And if you have time, make some photos – or at least process an old one!

Red, white, and blue (birds)

May 14, 2011INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Cattle Egret, Little Blue Heron, SpoonbillEd Rosack

Lynn and I visited the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Bird Rookery this morning. Breeding season is in full swing and there are nests, eggs, and chicks of all varieties. Check the Native Swamp & Rookery blog for their latest status.

Here are three photos I made there this morning:

Spoonbill

Cattle Egret

Little Blue Heron watching people

You can see many more photos that I’ve made in St. Augustine in this set on Flickr. By the way, I took a “new” camera and made some photos with it for a future blog post. It should be interesting if they turn out.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos!
©2011, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved.

St. Augustine Alligator Farm Rookery Update

April 9, 2011INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Cattle Egret, Great Egret, Snowy EgretEd Rosack

I visited the Rookery in St. Augustine for the first time this year with two other members of the Photography Interest Group. Things are really hopping!!!

Cattle Egret pair in breeding colors: These go from plain white to very colorful during breeding season. This pair was hiding back in the bushes and it was difficult to get a clean image, but they eventually moved a bit right before I made this photo.

We saw Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Cattle Egrets, Woodstorks, Spoonbills, Little Blue Herons, Tri-Color Herons, and of course – alligators. Some are just starting to build nests and breed. Others (the Great Egrets) already have good size chicks in the nest.

Great Egret and chicks

There are very few places that you can get this close to tolerant, wild birds. It’s wonderful for both experienced and beginner bird photographers. If you haven’t been by yet, now is the time.

Snowy Egret Portrait (in breeding colors)

You can read previous posts I’ve written about the rookery here, here, here, here, and here. And you can see many of my photos from St. Augustine in this set on Flickr.

Thanks for visiting – now go make some photos!

Gatorland cancels early entry program

November 15, 2010Gatorland, INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine Alligator Farm, VARIOUSreviewsEd Rosack

Update (1/8/2012): Gatorland has re-instated their photo pass. See their blog post here.

Gatorland in Orlando announced on their Blog that they’re canceling the 2011 Photographers Pass Program. This is very unfortunate for bird photographers, since the early entry / stay late times are during the best light of the day and when there are no “civilian” crowds.

The Alligator Farm in St. Augustine has issued an announcement in response on their mailing list saying that they will continue their Photo Pass / early entry program.

I’ve updated my post comparing Gatorland to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm as I think having a photo pass gives the Alligator Farm a strong advantage for photography.

There’s some discussion of this on Flickr in the Gatorland Group (this discussion has since been deleted).

Alligator Farm Spoonbill Chicks Take Off!

July 6, 2010Cameras and Photography, INSIDE FLORIDA, Must do list, St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Spoonbill, wildlifeEd Rosack

I’ve found that one of the pleasures of bird photography and bird watching in general is the repeated observation of locations over the course of a nesting season. When you return to a place regularly, you can watch the behavior of the parents over time as well as the young birds as they develop.

I’m fortunate to live relatively close to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Bird Rookery and I was able to visit four times recently. This was the first year that Roseate Spoonbills have nested there and the farthest north that they’ve been recorded nesting. In this post, I’ll show you a sequence of photographs made over about six weeks of the two easily seen Spoonbill nests at the Rookery. Nest 1 is on the right side of the boardwalk closest to the entrance. Nest 2 is the one you can see from the far end of the boardwalk close to the large tree.

This first photo was taken at the end of May and shows one Spoonbill above and to the right of nest 2. At the bottom left you can barely make out one of the very young and small Spoonbills. This is the first photo I managed to make of the chicks. Sorry about the quality. The chicks didn’t come out in the open at all when I was there that time.

Mother Spoonbill keeps an eye on chick, nest 2. May 30th, 2010

Here is the same nest (#2) two weeks later. The chicks have grown a bit, have some beginning feathers, and are more active.

Roseate Spoonbill Mom and chicks in nest 2, June 13th, 2010

And this photo shows how large the chicks had grown yesterday when I visited – quite a difference in only 16 days!

Roseate Spoonbill Mom and chicks near nest 1, July 5th, 2010

Several of the young Spoonbills have fledged and I was able to capture this photo of one of them trying its wings:

Juvenille Spoonbill tests its wings, July 5th, 2010

So you can see how fast these Spoonbills develop. From just hatched and barely moving to flying in about 6 weeks. I’ve enjoyed following their progress this year. What a wonderful opportunity!

The bad news for those of you that haven’t yet visited the Alligator Farm is that you’ve missed most of the nesting season. Make your plans for next year!

St. Augustine Alligator Farm – Bird Rookery Update

June 13, 2010INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Cattle Egret, Spoonbill, Tri-colored Heron, wildlife, Wood StorkEd Rosack

Lynn and I paid another visit to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm this morning to check on things at the Rookery. Things are hopping!

After a somewhat slow start (cold weather?), the Rookery has had a very active and varied nesting season. If you haven’t visited yet, you need to get over there before you completely miss your chance until next year. You can still see many species in the nest with chicks, although there are also many juveniles that have grown very large and are even flying around.

According to Gen Anderson – who is the Bird & Mammal Curator at the Alligator Farm (~~via the birdrookery@yahoogroups.com mailing list~~ – no longer available), there have been over 250 nests with more than 700 chicks counted in the rookery. That’s a tremendous number of birds in a relatively small area! The following species are resident:

Wood storks:

Mama Woodstork preens one of her chicks

Cattle Egrets:

Cattle Egret nest with chicks

Tri-colored Herons:

Tri-Colored Heron nest with chicks

Roseate Spoonbills:

Mother Spoonbill with eggs

Great egrets, Snowy egrets, Little Blue Herons, and Green Herons are also in residence.

There are four Spoonbill nests in the rookery and since I’ve never seen Spoonbill nests or chicks, these have been very exciting for me. This is the first year that they’ve nested at the Alligator Farm and the farthest north they’ve been recorded nesting. Two of the nests are well hidden at the back of the property, but the other two are easily viewed. All four contain chicks although it is difficult to see them, since they’re still so small. The chicks in the easily viewed nests will only be there for about another 5 weeks before they fledge.

I’ve also posted a video I made this morning of one of the spoonbill nests. In it, you can see Mama feeding one of the two babies. You can also listen to all the noise at the Rookery as the chicks demand food from their parents.

You can see other photos I’ve made in St. Augustine in this set on Flickr.

Comparing Gatorland to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm

February 28, 2010Gatorland, INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Black Crowned Night Heron, reviews, Tri-colored HeronEd Rosack

Intro

Tri-color heron at Gatorland

A few weeks ago, I promised to compare the St. Augustine Alligator Farm to Gatorland from the point of view of a nature / wildlife photography enthusiast. And in this post, I’ll do it.

This entry is only a top-level summary of what you can expect at each place. For more information, please look at earlier posts I’ve done, which you can find via the blog table of contents or by using the search box at the top of the page.

Black Crowned Night Heron roosting at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm.

Summary table

Both of these parks have rookeries where wild birds come to roost. This concentration of avian visitors is very handy for the bird photographer. Why would you pick one over the other to visit? Both cater to photographers and try to make it easy to capture images of wild birds. This table lists other factors that I think are important when comparing these parks. I’ve listed each along with a comment to explain and a + or – rating to show which place I think comes out ahead on that factor.

Factor:	Gatorland	Alligator Farm
Birds
variety:	Herons, egrets, spoonbills, wood storks, anhinga, limpkins, vultures, others+	Herons, egrets, spoonbills, wood storks, vultures, others+
number of birds:	Many+	Many+
Distance:	Birds can be quite close and are used to humans, with some nesting within feet of the boardwalk. Some species are high in the trees.+	Birds can be quite close and are used to humans, with some nesting within feet of the boardwalk. Some species are high in the trees.+
behavior:	Natural and varied. Courting, brooding, nesting, hatching, fledging, etc.+	Natural and varied. Courting, brooding, nesting, hatching, fledging, etc.+
Other wildlife:	Large variety, with most of the animals easily accessible to photographers.+	Large variety, with most of the animals easily accessible to photographers.+
Information available:	Lots of info available on the Website. There is a Flickr group where you can see the types of photos possible.+	Lots of info available on the Website, There is a Flickr group, where you can see the types of photos possible. ~~A Yahoo group used to post rookery updates, but has~~ now been replaced by an Alligator Farm Blog.
Exhibits and shows:	Several, good for the kids.+	Some, good for the kids.
Price:	$20 – 100 (adults). Some discounts available.	$20 – 70 (adults)
Photo pass available:	Yes: re-instated in 2012. February through July, 7:30am to dusk. $99.99.	Yes, $70 – with early entry at 8:00am+
Proximity	~40 minutes from Winter Springs. Closer to Orlando.+	~1 hour, 50 minutes from Winter Springs. Farther from Orlando.-
Other photo ops in the area:	Gatorland is a little isolated from other photo opportunities in the area.	Historic St. Augustine has a huge number of photo opportunities.+
Other attractions in the area:	Many attractions and parks in the Orlando area within a short drive.+	A few smaller attractions are close by.-

Conclusions

Which one should you go to? For nature and wildlife photography, I would say you probably can’t go wrong with either place. If you haven’t been to either one, choose the whichever is most convenient for you.

If you’re going for more than just photography, then Gatorland is also probably a little more well-rounded, with more to do. On the other hand, the Alligator farm makes for a nice day trip from Orlando when you combine it with a stop in the historical district or the fort.

You can capture stunning images at both places, so pick the one that is most convenient for you.

Re-processing older photos

November 13, 2009Cameras and Photography, INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Farm, TechniqueReprocessingEd Rosack

Today, I had some time and a new computer I wanted to try out, so I went looking for a photo to reprocess. Take a close look at the two images below. The differences aren’t as obvious in these smaller versions, so if you click on them, you can go to Flickr and look at large resolution versions of each so you can see the changes in detail.

Nikon D80 @ ISO 100, Nikon 70 – 300 lens @ 260mm, f/5.6, 1/320 sec.

I made this photo back in April of 2007 in the bird rookery at the St. Augustine Alligator farm. The version above is “straight out of the camera (converted to JPG with Lightroom 2.5). It has potential, but the blown sky is bad and the levels and sharpening need work.

The version below was processed in CaptureNX2 for levels and curves. I also created a version that was sharpened, and a third version that adjusted the sky. I then opened all three in Photoshop and used layer masks to choose the portions of each that I wanted in the final photo. After saving the result, I imported it into Lightroom, tweaked clarity and vibrance, and cropped it slightly before once again exporting this JPG.

Same, photo: re-processed and slightly cropped.

I guess you can tell I’m not a straight out of the camera, photo journalist type photographer. I like the second version much better than the original. Do you?

The interesting thing to me is that almost 3 years after I made the photograph, I can go back and reprocess it with better software and better techniques. Since I captured it in RAW, I have much more flexibility in what I can change. Processing RAW is like having the original light and framing fixed, but being able to tweak the camera settings. Do I need Photoshop, CaptureNX2, and Lightroom? No, but each has strengths and I believe that if you want the best image you can get, you need to have SW and understand how to use it.

Or at least shoot in RAW so that when you do get the software and techniques, you can go back and have another go at things.

Return to the Alligator Farm

April 20, 2008INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine Alligator FarmsculptureEd Rosack

Mary was in town last weekend and Lynn and I took her to visit the St. Augustine Alligator Farm before our annual passes expire. The bird activity seem a bit slow now, compared with last year (at the end of April 2007). It was also overcast with light rain, but we still had a good time.

My photos for this post are here.

the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Bird Rookery

May 28, 2007INSIDE FLORIDA, St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Farmbirds, Tri-colored HeronEd Rosack

For my birthday this year, Lynn gave me a photographer’s pass to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. While you can take photos of alligators, the special thing about this park is that they’ve expanded the Alligator Swamp exhibit. The extra area includes a boardwalk where you can stay safely above the monsters in the water and get within feet of nesting birds. These wild birds have learned that the gators keep predators out of the trees, and as a result the park has become one of the largest natural bird rookeries in the state of Florida.

From March 2 – July 18, the annual pass allows you to enter the park early (~8 am) before it opens to general admission. May is the prime time for nesting and breeding. Lynn and I have been back several times.

Since they’re accustomed to people, you can get quite close to a variety of birds, although you’ll still get the best results with a long telephoto lens and a sturdy tripod. I get by with my 70 – 300 zoom, but there are people there with monster glass! Many use flash with a “Better Beamer” magnifier for greater range.

There’s an annual photo contest, with the winners used for a calendar sold at the gift shop.

For more information, visit the St. Augustine Alligator farm website .

My bird rookery photographs are here.

Central Florida Photo Ops

What and where they are and how to photograph them.