Five Photos: Birds

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned how good it would be for me to revisit some of my favorite photographs and share the where's and why's with you. Well, here you go! These are some of my favorite photos of all: the birds.

Pictured above: Pigeon love on the Charles Bridge, Prague. This one was taken on a jet-lag induced early morning prowl on my first ever visit to Prague. It was literally just me and these birds on the bridge at 5 am, and if anyone's ever been to Prague you'll understand just how precious that kind of solitude is since most of the time the place is a madhouse of tourists, punters, ex-pats, street performers, beggars, stag do's, drug dealers, party goers, puppeteers and other various onlookers and passersby.

Familiar? You saw this little wagtail on my roof earlier this autumn. I absolutely love this photo, it's probably my favorite of all the lucky shots I got this year. I am in love with the sense of movement that the blurred last remains of the sweetgum tree in the background provide. It was only a fleeting moment that the little guy alighted and in this photo you can sense his panic when he saw me in the window behind him.

This little Sawhet Owl turned up to roost on my parents' porch in the weeks leading up to my wedding last year. My folks have a ranch bed out on their back patio, and I like to sleep out there when I come to visit. For whatever reason, I never sleep sounder than when I'm sleeping outdoors. Even when I'm camping I usually just use my tent as place to stash my backpack away from the dew and the ticks and mozzies, while I prefer to sleep under the stars. This little fella woke me up in the early hours one morning when his wingtips brushed my face as he swooped in and perched on the vines only about 4 or 5 feet above, staring down on me with those suspicious and knowing eyes all the while.

Superstitious me discovered that it's a bad omen to see an owl in the sunlight, but an owl visiting in the days before your wedding is meant to bring good fortune. Particularly an owl seen on your rooftop. Leave it to us to just break even with superstition. Go figure!

Another Czech bird, a european Jackdaw (a relative of the crow and the blue jay) eyeing me up for a tasty snack.

And the grand finale, a guardian of Warwick castle here in my neck of the woods.

A final note: you may have noticed that my blogging basically sucks lately. Things are just a bit bananas for me at the mo and I'm hoping to be back on track soon. Think good thoughts for me! Rub your bellies and wish mine better. A little collective healing prayer and energy would do me a world of good!