By Ted Grussing
… at least it was the end of the day, the sun was low in the sky and the crows were gathering, grabbing a last bite and heading to wherever it is that they roost around here. This guy had just been feeding in the grass and took off to join the rest of the group … a murder of crows. Somehow over the years, crows became associated with death, showing up at battlefields, attacking another crow and killing it, scavenging … well you get the idea. Personally I like these creatures and the name is a bad rap … at the least we could upgrade them to squads of nature’s waste management team. Once crows make it past the first year of life they live on average six to nine years as they have very few predators, but in the first year of life there are many predators that can get the young crows and the mortality rate is about fifty percent during that first year.
Like all creatures who ply the sky, crows in flight have a special kind of beauty … in this shot he is just finishing a beat of his wings and tucking his feet up for the flight ahead and he doesn’t need checklists before he flies.
I Flew over the weekend and again tomorrow morning … early before it heats up. Enjoying the cool from the evaporative cooler, sweet moist air and keeping about a 20 degree differential between outside air and inside air. The monsoons and higher humidity are coming, but in the interim I can use the evap cooler and not resort to the AC yet. One is developing a lack of interest in going out in the heat and when out, she is spending most of her time in the shade under a bush in the yard. I stick to the shade too.
Have a beautiful day, smile at those you meet and greet … and keep breathing!
Cheers
Ted
A bird flies through the sky, and I fly with it. I am each pearl of moisture sparkling in the sun.
I lie lazy on the clouds. And I acknowledge my kinship with each winged thing.
I see all as one, and nothing repels me, as this new day climbs noiselessly out of the valley of the night.
Peace lies over the world and over the world of my soul.
— Max Ehrmann
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The easiest way to reach Mr. Grussing is by email: ted@tedgrussing.com
In addition to sales of photographs already taken Ted does special shoots for patrons on request and also does air-to-air photography for those who want photographs of their airplanes in flight. All special photographic sessions are billed on an hourly basis.
Ted also does one-on-one workshops for those interested in learning the techniques he uses. By special arrangement Ted will do one-on-one aerial photography workshops which will include actual photo sessions in the air.
