08/03/16 Wildlife Prairie Park Zoo: Peoria, IL

"Our national bird" A bald eagle provides a photogenic shot at Wildlife Prairie Park in Peoria, IL 

On August 3rd, I decided to check out some zoo's in the local area in Peoria, IL. I first traveled to Wildlife Prairie Park to photograph some summer wildlife on a hot summer afternoon. I was able to photograph a bald eagle, owl, butterflies, a red-tailed hawk, deer, and a mallard. I ended up taking a few great shots at this park. I've added some of my favorites below:

A photogenic butterfly!

"Eyes looking into the soul"

Amazing!

This bald eagle was amazing!

A deer comes across my path along a trail...

"Summer beauty"

Hoot, hoot...

A very detailed butterfly!

A vivid mallard portrait!

Another eagle shot!

This butterfly was very cooperative...

A red-tailed hawk

"Vision"

Another butterfly!

Quite a beautiful animal!

Another amazing animal!

A deer close-up!

I also visited Glen Oak Park Zoo in Peoria, IL on this day and I'll add those photos to a future post in the coming days.

07/30/16 Galesburg, IL: The Great Balloon Race

"Evening glow" at the Great Balloon Race in Galesburg, IL

On July 30th, I attended the Great Balloon Race at Lake Storey in Galesburg, IL to once again photograph some hot-air balloons. I actually also attended this event the previous day on July 29th, but unfortunately the weather did not cooperate on that particular evening. Anyhow, I tried again on July 30th once I got off work since the weather conditions improved which allowed some of the balloons to launch and take part in the evening glow. It was another fun and productive night of photography. I've added photos from the evening below:

"Getting set-up"

Closer-view...

"Upright"

The first balloon launches...

Up, up, and away...

"Captains of the sky, waving goodbye"

More balloons getting ready...

Love the vibrant colors!

Here we go...

A close-up!

Another hot-air balloon gets ready to launch!

"Touch the sky"

Towering cumulus in the distance as the weather holds for this evening...

A neat shot with two balloons launching next to each other...

A wide-angle shot!

We have lift off...

Warm air rises as is the case in hot-air balloons as well!

A different kind of rainbow in the sky...

Another cool close-up!

Quite colorful!

Awesome colors!

One of my favorites!

This balloon actually landed in the lake...

A hot-air balloon reflection at Lake Storey

"Evening colors"

A wide-angle shot as they get set-up for the evening glow...

"Lift me up"

A colorful close-up!

Hot-air balloons are fun to photograph!

I really like this shot!

"Lining them up"

"Bursting flame"

Getting closer to the evening glow...

A neat arrangement!

"Bursting flames"

The evening glow begins...

"Light me up"

The evening glow is the most photogenic aspect of a hot-air balloon festival!

The evening glow can be chaotic, but also fun to photograph in the low-light conditions present...

Great stuff!

"Light it up"

Beautiful in the evening light!

"Light them all up"

Another favorite!

This was very enjoyable to find cool angles with the balloons so close to each other...

Awesome shot!

A neat close-up!

More great stuff...

"Showing off there colors"

"Darkness to light"

"The flames of balloons"

More good photography!

Another of many favorites during the evening glow!

One last shot before I head back home...

That concludes this post. I was very happy with several of the shots on this evening of the hot-air balloons. The evening glow is always a neat experience to photograph at these hot-air balloon events. On August 3rd, I ended up visiting some zoo's in Peoria, IL to photograph some wildlife. I'll add those photos to a future upcoming post.