Which Way is Up?

We were back to our favorite place, Yosemite,  recently and I took my lensball to the bank of the Merced River.

The reflection of the trees in the river which would be upside down is now right side up.

When flipped in post processing the image is less confusing to the brain.  Which is right?  Whichever the viewer finds most pleasing.

In this view towards Half Dome the inverted view of that iconic rock seems a bit hard to pick out but the blurry image in the background can only be Half Dome.

 

When inverted the blurry image becomes just a shadow but Half Dome is obvious in the lensball.  I recall an experiment I once read about where subjects wore glasses that inverted the image.  Eventually their brains  accommodated and turned the image right side up.  I don't think I would like a topsy-turvy world but in photography it can be interesting.

The lensball is a fun addition to my camera bag but will never replace my Canon lenses.

You can find more reflections at Weekend Reflections.

Some Local Birds

It really isn't necessary for me to go out to the rice fields as I did for an earlier post.  We have wetlands right here in Sun City and Jules and I took a walk there to see who we could find.

Northern Flicker

Many birds were perched in the trees at the edge of the wetlands.

Don't know who this little guy is but it sure is cute.

I'm pretty sure this is a yellow-rumped warbler.

Nothing unusual about these two, robins and hawks can be found everywhere.

Blue Heron

It is the birds of the wetlands that I most enjoy.  Growing up in Los Angeles I had little contact with birds like these.

female bufflelhead

pied-billed grebe

It was a cloudy day and this group was on the far side of a pond so it was hard to get a good shot.  In addition to the ubiquitous mallards I spotted northern shovelers, American wigeons, and green-winged teals.

Green-winged Teal

Of all the birds I saw that day, the one below would be worth the walk even if I had seen nothing else

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This green heron was hunting just a few feet from the path.  He slowly rotated allowing me several views.

Find more views of our amazing world at Our World Tuesday.
Find more birds at Wild Bird Wednesday.