In Review - May 2023
May has come and gone, and we are officially into the summer season with the start of June! Where is 2023 going?!
This month we’ll keep the In Review episode pretty short and sweet as there wasn’t a whole lot going on to speak of. Just a lot of the usual - adventures around the Delmarva Peninsula, some real estate shoots, and shenanigans with Fisher.
While there wasn’t too much excitement going on in the world of Tyler Smiley Photography, the Birds of Delmarva Project saw some significant progress in May, jumping from 49 entries at the end of April all the way to a whopping 68!
Compared to April, which only had one new addition, May saw an incredible 19 new birds photographed and added to the list. This leaves the list needing just 32 more to reach the goal of at least 100!
Probably the largest adventure of the month was a trip up to Smyrna and a ride through Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge near the end of the month.
A real estate job to create a floor plan for a client took me to Smyrna, and I decided a ride through Bombay Hook would allow me to make the most of the day - and boy was that the case, as it was definitely the highlight of the day.
Admittedly, I was hoping to spot a northern harrier I had seen the last time I was through the refuge, but wasn’t that lucky. I did, though, have my first encounter with some black-necked stilts which was super exciting! It is very easy to see how they got their name if you ever have a chance to see them in person.
I also got this gorgeous photo of a blue grosbeak you see to the right here - that vibrant blue plumage was eye-catching, and I love how it is framed out by the white branches surrounding it.
Before we move into the photo of the month, I would like to take a moment to give a special shout out and thank you to Mary Peart, Vivian Rupp, and Robin Hobin for their support and purchases of the Assateague Island Greeting Cards last month, as well as Cindy Gelezinsky for her support and purchase of a 12x24 framed print of the Avalon Fishing Pier from the Outer Banks trip! Your support is hugely appreciated, and helps me to continue creating content to share with you all and pursuing my dream as a full-time photographer. Thank you all so incredibly much!
To wrap things up, we have the Photo of the Month, which is my pick for my favorite image taken in the previous month. For May, I decided to go with something different and pick the above black and white shot of the towers at Gordon’s Pond beach in Cape Henlopen State Park.
The morning I took this photo, Fisher and I had walked onto the beach via the drive on access, and the last bit of sunrise was obscured by some smoke from the Nova Scotia wildfires and low clouds. This moody scene, as it turned out when I was editing, made for a perfect black and white image of the towers.
When I’m editing, I do it all based on feeling - including the decision of color vs black and white. Most of the time, as you see on social media, I opt to keep images in color because they just feel better that way. But every once in a while, I get one like this that definitely should be in black and white to do it the justice it deserves.
Well, that’s all we have for May, and if you’re like me, you’re already looking forward to the excitement and adventures ahead for the month of June.
Thanks for tagging along, and see you all out there!
- Tyler
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