User: `Rhododendrites`

Long-time Wikimedian who decided, a few years ago, to try to take better pictures to contribute to Commons. I feel like I've learned a lot from this community, and continue to do so. Always welcome photography tips/constructive criticism.

Though I take pictures of lots of things, a few areas of concentration are the New York City area in general, protests, conventions (not so much in 2020), and birds (much more so in 2020). If you're in NYC (or coming to NYC) and want tips or to plan a photography outing, let me know. There are several Wikimedian photographers here.

My main camera is an Olympus OM-D E-M5 mark ii (micro four-thirds format). I like it, but don't know if I can recommend the format any longer. Olympus announced in 2020 that they plan to get out of the camera game. The future of its camera business seems unclear at the moment, possibly being transferred to another company, and Panasonic is the only other company making the gear (with some compatibility issues around the way they do their image stabilization). I hope it'll look up, but we'll see.

This is my main account for contributing to Wikimedia projects. From March-July 2021, I contracted with the Wikimedia Foundation, researching the impact of Suggested Edits on Commons. My WMF account is User:Rhododendrites (WMF), which is now inactive. Edits I make through this account are strictly as a volunteer.

Rhododendrites

rhododendrites AT gmail DOT com
@Antisomniac

[gallery] (FP-VI-QI)

 
Featured Pictures - the birds
Image 1A rescued American kestrel that couldn't be released so is now serving as an "ambassador" bird
Image 2Baltimore oriole (immature/female) in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 3Ospreys in a nest on Sandy Hook, New Jersey
Image 4Pine siskin in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 5Immature herring gull manipulating a clam in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 6Wood duck drake vocalizing in Central Park
Image 7American robin making a dog whistle-like alarm call in Prospect Park
Image 8Great black-backed gull in Quogue, NY
Image 9Tree swallow on a nest box in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 10Red-tailed hawk rescue
Image 11White-breasted nuthatch on a suet feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 12Three ring-billed gulls in Red Hook
Image 13Common grackle showing off its iridescence in Central Park
Image 14Rehabilitated eastern screech owl
Image 15Northern mockingbird on a fence in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
Image 16Tufted titmouse floofed up in Central Park
Image 17Bay-breasted warbler in Central Park
Image 18Palm warbler in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 19A rescued Eurasian eagle-owl
Image 20Gray catbird in Prospect Park
Image 21Juvenile yellow-bellied sapsucker in Prospect Park
Image 22European starlings on a birdhouse on Staten Island
Image 23Mute swan and cygnets on a duckweed-covered pond
Image 24Chipping sparrow on a grave in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 25Anna's hummingbird in Pacifica, California
Image 26Northern flicker looking out from its nest in the Central Park North Woods
Image 27Fish crow cawing in Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 28Veery in the Central Park Ramble
Image 29Red-tailed hawk yearbook photo, class of 2022, Central Park
Image 30Marsh wren singing at Hammonasset Beach State Park
Image 31Female brown-headed cowbird chattering in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 32Cape May warbler in Prospect Park
Image 33Northern rough-winged swallows in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 34Short-billed dowitcher in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge East Pond
Image 35Ring-billed gull preening/bathing in Marine Park
Image 36Northern shoveler pair "shoveling" together in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 37Blue jay fledgling calling for its parent in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 38Ring-billed gull in Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 39Piping plover in Queens
Image 40Juvenile American robin
Image 41Yellow-bellied sapsucker in Central Park
Image 42American coot in Prospect Park
Image 43Purple martin in flight in Cape May, New Jersey
Image 44Northern mockingbird in a "tail up" display in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 45Brown thrasher (snow-nosed variety) in Central Park
Image 46White-breasted nuthatch doing its nuthatchy pose in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 47Mourning dove perched in Prospect Park, Brooklyn
Image 48Song sparrow on Lookout Hill in Prospect Park
Image 49Red-necked phalarope at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 50Golden-crowned kinglet
Image 51Lesser yellowlegs wading at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 52Marsh wren singing at Hammonasset Beach State Park
Image 53Great blue heron on frozen pond in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 54Northern waterthrush in Central Park
Image 55Snowy egret in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 56Ruby-crowned kinglet in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 57Redhead in Central Park
Image 58Blue jay in Prospect Park
Image 59Western tanager which popped up in NYC, far from its usual range
Image 60Canada goose gosling in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 61Winter wren in Prospect Park
Image 62House wren doing its best eel impression guarding its nestbox.
Image 63First winter laughing gull in Riverhead, New York
Image 64Gray catbird with a chokeberry in Prospect Park
Image 65Great blue heron in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 66Immature cooper's hawk in Prospect Park
Image 67House sparrows in Central Park
Image 68Female hooded merganser resting on the Central Park Reservoir
Image 69House finch with a sunflower seed at a feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 70Downy woodpecker with a leaf on its nose in Prospect Park
Image 71Male yellow-rumped warbler singing in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 72Northern cardinal female in Central Park
Image 73Cedar waxwing in pokeweed in Prospect Park
Image 74Tufted titmouse with a seed in Prospect Park
Image 75Blackpoll warbler in a flowering dogwood tree in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 76Female northern cardinal in Central Park
Image 77Male house sparrow in Prospect Park
Image 78Piping plover chick in Queens
Image 79Ring-billed gull in flight over Red Hook, Brooklyn
Image 80Great blue heron lurching its head back to swallow a brown watersnake in Green Cay Wetlands
Image 81Mute swan cygnet pontoon on a duckweed-covered pond
Image 82Cedar waxwing in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 83Gray catbird in Central Park
Image 84Semipalmated sandpiper at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 85Field sparrow in Central Park
Image 86Black-capped chickadee at a feeder in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 87Juvenile Forster's tern calling for its parent in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 88Scarlet tanager eating a berry in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 89American tree sparrow in Central Park
Image 90Male northern cardinal in Central Park
Image 91Green heron in Prospect Park
Image 92American oystercatcher family portrait on Fort Tilden beach
Image 93Ring-billed gull in a rainbow over Niagara Falls
Image 94American robin
Image 95Immature mute swan in Prospect Park
Image 96European starling in Central Park
Image 97Lesser yellowlegs at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 98White ibis in Ocean City, New Jersey (I kind of prefer the uncropped version)
Image 99Great egret stabbing the water in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 100Ovenbird in Prospect Park
Image 101Close-up of a white-throated sparrow in Central Park
Image 102Male northern shoveler in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 103White-throated sparrow in Prospect Park
Image 104Black-and-white warbler in Prospect Park
Image 105Downy woodpecker foraging in Green-Wood Cemetery
Image 106Western gull sitting on a boat in San Francisco Bay
Image 107Eastern wood pewee in Central Park
 
Featured Pictures - everything else
Image 1Lower Manhattan panorama
Image 2Sarracenia leucophylla
Image 3Algal mat in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 4Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge East Pond
Image 5Memorial to the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting, taken just after Stonewall Inn was designated part of a National Monument
Image 6Optical illusion on the floor of the Florence Cathedral
Image 7Eastern gray squirrel in Central Park
Image 8Burberry rainbow cape at the Camp: Notes on Fashion exhibition
Image 9Raccoon in Central Park
Image 10The Dyker Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn is known for lots of elaborate Christmas lights, earning the nickname "Dyker Lights"
Image 11Juvenile Nubian ibex on a wall at the edge of Makhtesh Ramon
Image 12Magnolia x veitchii bud
Image 13Oculus
Image 14Panorama of the Apennine Colossus in Tuscany
Image 15Saint Christopher Street in Valletta
Image 16A mural of patients in the long-defunct Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital
Image 17Male elephant seal resting between fights in Ano Nuevo
Image 18Northern elephant seals in Ano Nuevo, California
Image 19Waldemarsviken in Stockholm
Image 20Redbeckia occidentalis
Image 21Green iguana panorama in Palm Beach County
Image 22Abandoned car in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 23White (leucistic) eastern gray squirrel perched on a tree in Brooklyn
Image 24Group photo of four pears
Image 25Sunset sky over Governors Island, NYC (panorama)
Image 26Wonder Wheel sign on Coney Island
Image 27Eldridge Street Synagogue
Image 28Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco (18-frame panorama)
Image 29Coney Island Mermaid Parade (no, this is not a picture of Rhododendrites)
Image 30Monarch butterfly
Image 31Coney Island Mermaid Parade
Image 32Rooftop farm on the Lower East Side
Image 33Coleus
Image 34Sukkah at Congregation Emanu-El of New York
Image 35Cattlianthe Gold Digger ‘Orglade's Mandarin’ orchid
Image 36Frizzle sizzle
Image 37Glass blower. This was moments before he accidentally dropped it. Heartbreaking (and vasebreaking). Talented folks here, though, and I actually went back a while later and took a class. Got a piece of lit up frozen spaghetti to prove it.
Image 38Prospect Park Vale of Cashmere covered in lesser celandine, with a leucistic white squirrel in the distance
Image 39Pond sliders (red and yellow) and a river cooter fighting for basking space
Image 40A mural of patients in the long-defunct Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital
Image 41American lady butterfly on a purple coneflower
Image 42Comme des Garcons at the Met
Image 43Toronto Reference Library interior from the top floor
Image 44California sea lion in La Jolla. My first experience seeing wild sea lions in person. It was ... loud. This one just looked downright majestic in the sun.
Image 45Condenser at the defunct Chestnut Hill Pumping Station
Image 46Stata Center at MIT
Image 47Lincoln Center during Pride at dusk
Image 48Florence seen from the Duomo terrace
Image 49Hell Gate Bridge, with a scow being towed along the Hell Gate section of the East River
Image 50Rice paper butterfly with light shining through in Butterfly World, Florida
Image 51Triq San Patrizju facing the Basilica Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Valletta, Malta
Image 52Male eastern amberwing dragonfly in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 53Maroon Bells. Easily one of the most awe-inspiring natural scenes I've experienced.
Image 54Pier 66 and Hudson Yards
Image 55Hell Gate Bridge
Image 56Male tiger swallowtail butterfly in Central Park (missing its tails)
Image 57Daubeny's water lily
Image 58Chinese mantis ootheca in Marine Park, Brooklyn
Image 59Bow Bridge in Central Park (panorama)
Image 60Alexander Hamilton Custom House Collector's Room ceiling. Had to be a bit obnoxious to get this one, setting up a little tripod in the center of a crowded room and actually getting down on the floor to frame it. Who doesn't like a nice ornate ceiling with a nautical theme, though?
Image 61One World Trade Center through the Oculus
Image 62Quarry in Makhtesh Ramon
Image 63An island (with ospreys) in Trustom Pond in the fog
Image 64Abandoned building in Floyd Bennett Field
Image 65City Hall Station in Manhattan, abandoned since 1945 because it looked cool but didn't
Image 66Bigfin reef squid at Monterey Bay Aquarium
Image 67California sea lion nap time at La Jolla Cove
Image 68Black Lives Matter mural in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Image 69Familiar bluet in the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
Image 70Eastern chipmunk with stuffed cheeks in Prospect Park
Image 71White (leucistic) eastern gray squirrel with a peanut
Image 72Ash tree behind a columbarium in Mount Auburn Cemetery
Image 73Crook Point Bascule Bridge in Providence. It's been stuck in the open position for 50 years. A local landmark, but slated for destruction soon.
Image 74Pond sliders in Prospect Park
Image 75Quogue Village Wetlands Preserve
Image 76TWA Hotel
Image 77The Seaside Sanatorium in Connecticut
Image 78Bee balm seedhead
Image 79Composite of a clementine with/without peel
Image 80Window in a cafe in San Gimignano, Italy
Image 81Monarch butterfly
Image 82Crocuses in early spring.
Image 83Open Ocean exhibit at Monterey Bay Aquarium
Image 84Ship in the San Francisco Bay fog. Got lucky with the dramatic fog on this one, which opened up just enough to frame the ship in light.
Image 85Makhtesh Ramon
Image 86Salix catkins
Image 87Hudson Yards in New York, taken from the top of Hudson Commons (9-frame panorama)
Image 88Great golden digger wasp in Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Image 89Defunct Chestnut Hill Pumping Station in Boston
Image 90Two juvenile Nubian ibex
Image 91Panorama of the once-active waterfront of Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Image 92Boston Public Garden
Image 93Fulton Center skylight
Image 94A [pretty dodgy] bridge along a cliff path at the edge of Makhtesh Ramon
Image 95Moss-covered oak trees in the Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
Image 96Manhattan at night, looking north from Rockefeller Center
Image 97Sasheer Zamata at a Time's Up event during the Tribeca Film Festival
Image 98Maroon Bells