Teco Manatee viewing center

For twenty-five years, one of the best Tampa Bay area getaways has been the Teco Manatee Viewing center.

You could spend as little as fifteen minutes or a whole day checking out the manatees for free.

The manatees show up every winter to lounge in the warm water coming out of the power plant.

The center has a deck above the discharge canal so the manatees have a good buffer away from all the people.

Did I mention that its FREE!





When the weather gets chilly there can be dozens of sea cows hanging out.
The center is open from November till April but the best time to visit is when its cold. Every year the manatees all over Florida head to warm springs and power plants as soon as the bay and gulf water gets to cold to survive.




Coming up for a breath.




Not only is this one of the best places to see manatees, its one of the only places I know of to see a coal fired power plant up close.
Teco has done a great thing making the viewing center available, I'm sure they did not have to do it. I'm also sure they would rather me not mention "coal" but the fact is everyone in this country gets power from coal and it's good for people to see it up close.

So enjoy the manatee show, and sneak a peek at a massive power plant, both very cool and a must see.




As usual, I shot a gopro time lapse movie with my egg timer time lapse panning unit.
Here is the result.




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Dali Museum Opening Weekend

There is a new jewel in the crown of St. Petersburg, Florida.

Dali!

I never had a problem with the old location, but the new museum looks amazing.
The location is perfect, a visitor can stroll right out of the museum onto the
waterfront park showcasing downtown St. Pete.




The Museum's exterior design is fun and connects perfectly with the Mahaffey Theater. Now truth be told, I did not make it inside this weekend. Long line, big turnout, see the video. I was content to take in the new facility from the outside. I have seen the collection several times, and will wait a few weeks for an interior look when the crowds subside.

If I were to make a short list of things one must do in the Tampa/ St. Petersburg area Dali would be near the top. You don't need to be a fan to appreciate this collection. While you're downtown, don't miss the waterfront. St. Petersburg has done it right, saving most of its waterfront for parks for all to enjoy.



These photos and video are from photo safari Sunday .... destination .... Dali.



The time lapses were shot with a GoPro Hero on a Gorillapod using my eggtimer time lapse thing-a-ma-jig.



I think Salvador would like his new digs, don't miss it.


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Monarch Butterfly Pupation Time Lapse

I finally got it.

The final piece of the Florida Monarch Butterfly life cycle.

Pupation.

Monarchs caterpillars don't stay still, they are always on the move.
With one exception, pupation. But it always seemed to happen when I was at work.
I found a victim that started the process on a movable plant, I put him indoors and set up my old Canon G5.

See him sneaking a peek?




Another Monarch inspects the camera and time lapse settings.
As I said, they are always on the move.

Monarchs Eat, shot with Canon 7d and 65mm MP-E

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, a new tool for my ever expanding camera bag.
In this case a super cool but really hard to operate lens.



As regular readers of this blog know I love to shoot insects and such.
For about a year I have been using a canon 100 2.8 macro.
The 100 2.8 is a great lens for the money but there comes a point when you want to get closer. That is where the 65mm MP-E comes in, this is a macro lens and only a macro lens. The 100 2.8 can substitute as a sharp telephoto, the 65mm is only useful inside a couple inches.



Did I mention this lens is a grower?
It starts at 4 inches, and the more magnification you get the longer it becomes, maxing out at 9.25 inches. Its focus starts at 4 inches an goes down to 1.6 inches.
Therein lies the problem, the outside lens element is always moving so you need to be able to slide the camera back and forth to compose your shots.
Did I mention shooting really small things is really really hard?
Especially when they are moving?




Well, here is my first attempt shooting
video with this really bad-ass
but challenging piece of glass.

Monarch Butterfly Birth

If you search Monarch Butterfly's on the internet you will find Petabytes of information and photos and such. Here is my contribution to the pile.

For the last several years I have actively raised Swallowtail butterfly's.
This year I planted a bunch of milkweed in hopes of adding Florida Monarchs to my garden full time. I think the first milkweed plant actually came with a few eggs on it. See below.



A week later they hatch and start eating.



And eating.



Then the caterpillars hang upside down and turn into a chrysalis.



The pupa or chrysalis of the Monarchs are very cool. Jade green with a gold necklace. A week later the butterfly will emerge.



These are Florida Monarch Butterflys (Danaus plexippus) they do not fly to Mexico, they stay here all year round or fly to the Northeast in the summer.
So, if you live in Florida be nice to Monarchs you may be looking at one of my babies.

Here is a video of the Monarch being born.

Aloe vs Plumeria

One corner of my garden is a free for all.
Everything that does not have a home ends up there.
Kind of a "lets see what happens" place for horticulture experiments.
Two long time residents are my purple plumeria.
And a patch of aloe.



One of the fun things about having your own green oasis are the unexpected things that happen.

Never, did I think there would be a cage match.

ALOE VS PLUMERIA

"Tonight an exclusive Getawaymoments premiere"

"A plant plastering"

"A bush battle"

"A rumble in ruffage"



ALOE WINS !!!!

With a stiff uppercutting spear to the leaves.

Ouch, that had to hurt.


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IT WAS RAINING OPOSSUMS

BANG

BOOM

POW

All good words to describe the quick precise din of a furry mammal slamming into the pavement.

What the @#$%@#^&@.

Exactly, what just happened?

While working on a shoot today the unexpected happened.

An Opossum tried to fly, unsuccessfully.

His perch was way up in a live oak tree his landing in the middle of a driveway.



and no, not the low part.

The Opossum laid there motionless.

We were all sure death was instant.

We went back to work trying not to think of the grizzly scene behind us.

A couple minutes later our interview subject declares "its gone"

Poof!!!

Now I have heard of cats having nine lives but opossums?

On closer inspection the failed skydiver was spotted hiding in the "Y" of the tree. Embarrassed and demoralized but still alive. Ready to raid your trash cans tonight.