No, not the Mexican border. The New Yawk/New Jerzee border is more like it. Me and Dina wanted to get out and do something. Being inside can drive a person nuts. As a compromise between me wanting to photograph water and her search for mammals as motivation we met in the middle. We started our tour at Wawayanda Lake State Park, moving on to Sterling Lake State park, trans-versing Harriman State Park and finally finishing up at Rockland State Park. There was a trip to Whole Foods on the way home, but that doesn’t count. Our goal at Wawayanda (probably an indian Native-American name, but still quite funny) was to search for black bears. The entrance fee to the Park is 5$. I showed up at a back entrance that was supposed to be open at 8am, but the ranger took their sweet time so I had to find the main entrance. Thankfully a local shared some info with me. Asking locals and really help. Especially when it comes to the rhythm of an area. I will warn you not to travel up Cherry Ridge Rd. to Laurel Pond Rd. as it is private property though (as the GPS recommended.) That wasn’t the biggest problem. It was more that it was the private land of a shooting club who doesn’t take kindly to trespassers. Hearing the rounds go off through the morning air wasn’t all to comforting. We made our quick U-turn and heading for a different entrance . You can drive through some of the park, but the majority of it is trails. We were taking our time and looking from the car using it as a blind. Black bears scare real easily and normally aren’t found along trails. Cars are an object many animals get used to to break up the human figure. Unfortunately we had little luck. I definitely want to keep searching and am constantly looking for new locations.

Although Wawayanda (origin of the saying ‘wild wild yanda’?) has a pretty lake shore with lots of tourists and a nice facility, my interest laid with this pond in the back. Ignored by the public and left alone in its natural state (The way I like it .) I snapped with this my point and shoot real quick. The light was becoming real tough as the sun rose above our heads.

There was a muskrat hanging out enjoying the local vegetation. Unfortunately his interest in letting us get closer never happened. Not even a look to say hello.

As the day moved on I decided Sterling Lake would be our next destination. This was a park that has a close proximity to Harriman and I wanted to scout it for the up and coming fall season. Sterling lake is a large park with a beautiful center. The kind of center that shows where a lot of our funding went . It was a fantastic example of what they should be though. Loaded with all sorts of info, electric cars for transport and a huge scenic view from a deck looking out onto Sterling Lake.

The view from the deck. It was the perfect day to just stand and take it all in.

After visiting the visitor center we learned about Eagle Lake. More like eagle pond to me, but there were a ton of dragonflies and a pair of male mute swans. I am making the assumption of two males based on their behavior fighting over territory.

One male got a tad too close and the other went for him. Looking to clamp down and give a bite to remember.

After grabbing some lunch (We used ShopRite’s prepared meals for a cheap buy. Sure was tasty.) we headed on to Harriman. Harriman is a favorite park of mine. It is only an hour away and has a myriad of lakes that each hold their own unique beauty. Do keep in mind when driving through the park that the road is closed between Little Long Pond and Lake Kanawauke. It’s been closed for a while and I have no idea as to when it will open. There are however bathrooms/a nature house and a great set of foreground materials. Here are some HDR and normals shots taken at the location:

This HDR was shot over a 5 shot range. I underestimated it as you might tell from the clouds. Overall I really enjoyed the image. There is something about this stone nature center that feels very ‘of the landscape.’

Using a 9-shot, 8-stop range was close to being not enough. The outer ledge stayed quite hot, but stayed just under the radar. This is Lake Kanawauke seen from the small nature center.

Although the sun was high; the light fell evenly. Noon light can be harsh and is definitely a no-no for photographing people.However when the light falls evenly over a landscape it can be very capable of a strong image. There was no wind which I really was looking for as these puffy clouds set in. I used my polarizer to take off a lot of the harsh reflections and the rest just fell into place.

Rockland State Park was a destination we went to in search of deer. On our way there we saw a yearling. She must have been just a few months old. So adorable, yet packed way back into the woods and without an image to be made.

So don’t forget to venture to new places. You might be surprised at what you may find, locations revealed for a future shoot, or just spend quality time with someone you care about. With a GPS unit in hand it also makes the wandering a bit more care free

Two spiders found at Rockland State Park mating or so it appears. Any suggestions? This was shot at a slow speed to maximize depth of field, might have been better off boosting the ISO for a little more speed. An awesome interaction to observe…at a distance; haha. (click for a Zoomify image)