It was a dark and stormy night… This is a tree frog at night clinging to a rain-dropped, sliding glass door, shot at night from inside my studio by room light. I’d been editing photos all evening and enjoying the spring rainstorm. It was midnight and I was ready for bed. Then I noticed shiny little blobs of underbellies slithering up the glass doors - five tree frogs creeping their way up the wet glass. I hesitated - I had to get up in five hours. But it was too good an opportunity to pass up. It’s not often that a photo-op you can shoot from the comfort of your home and pajamas literally comes knocking at your door. Sleep could wait. Frogs hang around the doors at night because the light from the room attracts insects. It’s movement that attracts frogs not light. But nothing was flying in that downpour. My theory is the backlit raindrops sliding down the glass looked like a potential meal and that is what drew them in. They hung around while I played with exposures, compositions, and avoiding my reflection, then one by one they flung themselves off, away into the night. We entertained one another for half an hour, and then it was lights out. When I finally made it to bed I told Terrie it was still raining cats and dogs – and frogs.
It seemed easy enough… I read about the new polar bear cub at the zoo and immediately decided to go while he was still in the “cute” stage. Didn’t know what to expect but figured it’d be relatively simple to get a few “aw” pictures. The only special game plan was to wait for a snow day. Perfect. A snowstorm arrived in a few days and as I worked my way through morning rush hour, clichés of “shooting fish in a barrel…” rang in my ears. Slightly mistaken. There were two viewing areas. One from behind a barrier and chain link fence – not gonna work. The second was a half-enclosed shelter with glass - but only five meters wide for an overflowing crowd of families. The challenge. - The glass was covered with condensation on both sides from all the warm bodies making it difficult to focus. - There were dozens of kids plastered against it scrambling for a view and parents with strollers packed in behind them. I didn’t want to hit anyone swinging around 20 pounds of camera nor get in the way of them enjoying the cub. - The storm brought a cold snap and I’m a wimp when it comes to numb fingers, metal objects, little buttons, and fingerless gloves. Eventually. I contorted myself into a corner and with the sounds of kids laughing and cheering at the baby bear’s antics, settled in for one of the more enjoyable shoots I’ve done. … Not as easy as planned but more fun than I expected.
