Southwest Florida bird photography (page 2)
Ding Darling National Wildlife refuge

This was the first location we hit in the morning at sunrise after arrival in Fort Myers the previous night. The first morning was very productive birding-wise, encountering many new species not found in California.  In the first lagoon on the left past the entrance ($5 fee good for all day) we encountered rosette spoonbills, wood storks, various egrets, some little blue and tri-colored herons. The tide was on the higher side on a relatively cold morning with scattered clouds at the time when we encountered the most birds within photographic range. Based on ancillary data from visiting this place on two separate mornings, it seemed the birds tended to be further out on the mud flats and thus not as easy to photograph when the tide was lower.  Some of the other lagoons also had similar species including anhingas, belted kingfishers, black and yellow crowned night herons, and double-crested cormorants.  Given the road through this refuge is one-way, it requires multiple-passes to thoroughly cover the area, taking about an hour on each pass.  Some of the birds tend to move about during the morning hours, transitioning to some of the smaller pools surrounded by the mangrove trees just off the side of the road as the climate warms up. 

On two of the mornings we found one particular pool just before the cross dike road before the tower lagoon was visited by about 30 various egrets, and acting very tame around people, allowing you to get within 5-10 feet if you wanted.  On multiple occasions we also found we could capture some nice bird images in some of the more secluded pools behind the row of mangroves adjacent to the road. This required getting out of the car, walking along the edge of the road, and peeking through some of these groves of trees and sometimes climbing through them to get a sufficient angle for a shot. Through this technique we found many of the same species, but more isolated and under more interesting lighting conditions. It helped to have some clouds on the first day to minimize the amount of contrasty lighting for this type of photography.

During the slow time at the middle of the day, be sure to stop inside the visitors center near the entrance to the preserve.  You may want to check with the docents on any information on interesting/unusual bird sightings. Also pick up a free copy of the South Florida Birding Trail booklet.  It covers 116 different locations, describing what have been seen, and how to get to each, including map information.  But I have found the guide to be on the optimistic side, so don't get your hopes up to high. Nevertheless it is a handy companion for birding trips to southern Florida.

You should also be warned, attempting to reach Sanibel Island from the mainland in the middle of the day can be problematic due to the heavy traffic and constriction of the road to just a one lane road in each direction. The bridge toll to the island is also fairly steep at $6.  For these reasons you are better off getting here earlier in the morning, and if you plan on photographing later in the day, to just hang loose on the northwest side of the island to avoid having to get through this traffic gauntlet or having to repay the bridge toll. The Sanibel Bean coffee shop nearer to Ding Darling can be a good place to hang out to cool your heals in the middle of day for coffee or a sandwich, while checking your email or doing a little internet.

Nearer to sunset, the best opportunities tended to be at the larger tower lagoon.  This was more conducive lighting-wise due to the more open area to the west, allowing the sun to strike lower in the lagoon, creating more opportunities for silhouettes and golden reflections on the water.