Charleston: Wetlands

[Mike Buckley]

The wetlands area of the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens was used as rice fields long ago. Weather conditions caused the fresh water to be replaced with salt water, which made it impossible to grow rice. I seem to remember that the area was eventually used to farm shrimp, but I'm not sure about that.

Please click to view in the Lytebox to appreciate the detail.

[John 2]

Nice shot Mike. I take it the water is covered in something (slime ?) by the look of the texture.

[Donald]

The lesson in this one, for me, is about getting the exposure right. The dark areas at the bottom left have detail, but so does the bright sky in the top right. That takes skill.

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you to John and Donald.

John asked about the surface of the water. It looks like algae at a glance but it's actually a tiny plant called duckweed that floats on the surface of still water. The presence of duckweed is a sign of a healthy environment. The duckweed cleans the water and is a source of food for aquatic animals, especially ducks. Animals swimming in the water can become covered in it, especially as shown below by the turtle at the alligatoar's side.

[bnnrcn]

I love this image Mike, super pose and composition

Thank you to John and Donald.

John asked about the surface of the water. It looks like algae at a glance but it's actually a tiny plant called duckweed that floats on the surface of still water. The presence of duckweed is a sign of a healthy environment. The duckweed cleans the water and is a source of food for aquatic animals, especially ducks. Animals swimming in the water can become covered in it, especially as shown below by the turtle at the alligatoar's side.

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks, Binnur! The wooden platform is probably more for the benefit of the tourists than the animals, as I'm sure it was added to the swamp to make it possible for tourists to view the animals.

[bnnrcn]

I wouldn't dare to stand on that platform after seeing the lovely ! guest in your image.

Thanks, Binnur! The wooden platform is probably more for the benefit of the tourists than the animals, as I'm sure it was added to the swamp to make it possible for tourists to view the animals.

[Mike Buckley]

Perhaps I confused you, Binnur. The platform was added to the swamp because the officials knew the animals would rest on it and, thus, become more visible to the tourists. That platform and other platforms are a safe distance from the tourists. As an example, I took the photo using a 300mm lens on a camera with a 1.5 crop factor.