Shawn Thomas Photography

Two Hooded Mergansers, same focal plane, coming straight at me. At f4 that's either lucky or very lucky. It was very lucky.
#birds

Tried to keep my distance. The duck pond had other ideas. Mallard, golden hour, zero regrets.
#birds

Red-headed Woodpeckers have a habit of staying just high enough to be useless to photograph, mainly because I refuse to shoot into the sky. This one finally came down low and gave me my first keeper of the species.
#birds

Got low, found the angle, and that warm orange reflection wrapped right around him. The quiet shots are the ones that end up on my wall.
#birds

This is true :)

I do love a fancy duck.

First outing in over a month and this Hooded Merganser came in hot with airbrakes fully deployed and feet in full sploot. The rust shook off pretty quick after that.
#birds

Thank you!

Short-eared owl head on. They usually bank off before they get this close. This one didn't. #birds #shortearedowl #wildlifephotography #owl

Short-eared owl backlit at sunrise. All about the light on those wings. #birds #shortearedowl #wildlifephotography #owl

White pelican in the fog. Blackwater NWR, January 2025. #birds #pelican #wildlifephotography #minimalism

Short-eared owl, direct eye contact mid-flight. Blackwater NWR, January 2025. #birds #shortearedowl #wildlifephotography #owl

Juvenile bald eagles scrapping over the water. The reflection made it twice as chaotic. #birds #baldeagle #wildlifephotography #raptor

Sunrise silhouette on the drive into Blackwater NWR. Fuji X100VI out the car window. #landscape #sunrise #photography

Short-eared owl over the marsh at last light. Blackwater NWR, January 2025. #birds #shortearedowl #wildlifephotography #owl

Thank you!

Juvenile bald eagle on a dead snag over the marsh. Blackwater NWR. #birds #baldeagle #wildlifephotography #raptor

White pelican and pilings. Blackwater NWR, January 2025. #birds #pelican #wildlifephotography #minimalism

Short-eared owl working the marsh at Blackwater NWR. January 2025. #birds #shortearedowl #wildlifephotography #owl

Something special about that glow though. Nothing like the sunrises on a marsh. #birds #wildlife #photography #owls

Coming in for a landing #birds #eagles #photography #wildlife

How do you even respond to this? Also it's not just me right this is like a really rude thing to do?

Any insight from other folks who have had this happen would be appreciated, names removed because I'm not out to attack anyone or anything, just honestly shocked.

#photography

I spent the last 3 days out in the marshes of the eastern shore watching short eared owls, I trip I postponed last year but wasn't willing to miss again. #birds #owls #marsh #photography #wildlife

My first craft fair. Wish me luck :)

I spent a long time trying to figure out why I like this image so much. It took me painting lines on it to figure it out. Movement, tension to release, every bit of clutter and branches all flow to the same open spot. Y'all ever take an image you love and have no idea why? #birds

Challenge Accepted: A Month with OM System's Flagship Gear OM System saw my daughter's work, noticed I shoot Nikon, and sent me their flagship gear for a month. No sponsorship, just honest feedback. Could their best keep up with how I actually shoot? Challenge accepted.

New Blog out now:
OM System saw my daughter's work, noticed I shoot Nikon, and sent me their flagship gear for a month to see what I could do with it.
Challenge accepted. #birds

Different things for different folks. I loved trying the system it’s an excellent bit of kit, my daughter shoots it daily, the company was fantastic to work with. I could happily shoot with it, if they added a simulated electronic shutter sound :P

It’s a great camera, but the way I shoot, and where, I can’t zoom with my feet, so cropping and the deeper focal range for bokeh are very important to me. Plus high iso performance while maintaining DR. Again no real complaints it was great to use, I’m not ready to switch though. I’ll lug 10 lbs.

I also have to remember I’m on Bluesky. My thesis for this is much longer on instagram where I have character count lol :P

I get where you’re coming from. I think today with a super light pf lenses it’s a harder sell. But more than that, for me, I haven’t found my massive lens to hold me back at all, I still shoot handheld, I still move constantly, and full frame characteristics are very much my style.