R. David Breithaupt 4/8/25 R. David Breithaupt 4/8/25

You never know what the wind and the water will blow up…

R. David Breithaupt 4/7/25 R. David Breithaupt 4/7/25

I did not plan an exciting photo excursion this morning, and only bring my Nikon ZF and a couple of small lens. The weather is cold and dreary with misting rain and a driving wind.

I end up lost (a bridge is out and no detour is marked) and drive aimlessly it seemed for hours (though only a few minutes) and finally find myself in Downsville, LA. I decide to go on to Lake D’Arbonne in Farmerville, LA, to check on the nesting osprey. As I turn off onto Ramp Road I can see that the wind is blowing unimpeded across the lake and white capping near the shore.

A great egret fishes near the shore. Breakfast is served. Thankfully I have a telephoto lens that I left in my truck.

As I’m watching, waiting for the decisive moment, I notice the egret crouching and then flying away.

I don’t know why the egret is leaving, but I continue shooting, hoping to capture it all. I continue shooting as the egret flies out of the frame…

I am surprised by the osprey who immediately fills my viewfinder. I press the shutter and capture my only image of the osprey this morning. Now I know why the egret flies away. My day is made!

BONUS: After leaving Lake D’Arbonne I drive to the Saline Wetlands area in D’Arbonne NWR to check the water levels and capture this image of a killdeer. The floodwaters cover the road.

R. David Breithaupt 4/4/25 R. David Breithaupt 4/4/25

Columbia Lock and Dam, Columbia, LA. Taken with the Nikon ZF and Nikkor 20mm f/1.8 lens.

The view downriver from the locks towards Columbia and Jonesville.

R. David Breithaupt 4/3/25 R. David Breithaupt 4/3/25

Testing out a new 20mm f1.8 lens from Nikon. Forsythe Park, Monroe, LA, USA

R. David Breithaupt 3/30/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/30/25

The Green Door, downtown West Monroe, LA. It’s another overcast day that makes the colors sing!

R. David Breithaupt 3/29/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/29/25

Downtown West Monroe, LA, on a rainy Saturday morning. The colors of the garden sculptures and the red bricks stand out against the drab gray skies.

R. David Breithaupt 3/28/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/28/25

Looking up from the steps of Stanton Hall, I saw the jarring juxtaposition of the 150 year old cypress and stucco columns against the vapor trails of a jet. The bee seems quite insignificant amid such grandeur and technology.

R. David Breithaupt 3/27/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/27/25

Looking straight up at the unfinished dome of Longwood in Natchez, Mississippi. Longwood is the largest octagonal house in America. It was never completed due to the outbreak of the most uncivil Civil War.

R. David Breithaupt 3/25/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/25/25

Pied Billed Grebe, King’s Lake, West Monroe, LA.

R. David Breithaupt 3/24/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/24/25

Sunrise, Cheniere Lake, West Monroe, LA.

R. David Breithaupt 3/24/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/24/25

Pastoral scene from western Ouachita Parish, LA.

R. David Breithaupt 3/23/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/23/25

Blue Jay eating Haw berries, Bawcomville Recreation Area, West Monroe, LA, March 18, 2025.

R. David Breithaupt 3/22/25 R. David Breithaupt 3/22/25

Abandoned house in Union Parish, near Downsville, LA.