This holiday weekend brought an extra special reason for me to celebrate, for after literally years of trying to capture a breeding pair of American Oyster Catchers who nest at my favorite beach-Gilgo on Long Island-I finally was in the right place at the right time, with my camera in my hand.
These birds are unique looking shorebirds. They are about the size of a seagull, with yellow stilt-like legs about 6 inches long, and a long orange beak that they use to dig in the soft sand looking for, well, oysters, and other sand-dwelling crustaceans. In flight they are just as distinctive with a hooting, laughing kind of call that demands your attention. A very dear friend has admired them for several years, as he would often share the same tidal flats while clamming in Orient. I have been hoping to capture a usable image so I could convert it to a digital watercolor for him to enjoy.
And here are my results:
This was a photo that I processed in Photoshop, using filters and patterns. If you would like to know more about how, just send me an email and I’ll give you some pointers to start you off. Hard to believe it started out as photo, isn’t it?
