I liked this view so much (photographed on a recent hike), I went back to photograph it again. It took me two sessions to get this photo. For the first session, I arrived just after sunrise to take advantage of the Golden Hour. Or so I thought. What I got was a bank of grey clouds. I could see hints of blue skies and white clouds peeking through every once in a while, but the morning clouds insisted upon hanging around, getting thicker and darker. I stayed there at least an hour and a half photographing grey skies and grey water over and over again. I went to an appointment and returned to the site later in the morning. I was concerned that by then the sun would be too strong and the glare on the water too bright, but the sky and the clouds cooperated.

When I was there the second time, a fisherman, David from Smithville, and I shared the space near the railing. He pointed out to me the perch swimming near us.

David noticed there were two perch (Cichlid, I later found out): a male and a female. Parents, it seems, to a very large brood of baby perch. They were guarding them from predators, mostly other fish just a few feet away. 

I just knew I’d never be able to photograph the school of baby perch due to the color of the water, the tiny baby fish size, and their dark color, so I didn’t even try. But when I got home and looked at the fish photos (taken before I saw the baby fish), there they were, right under the daddy fish. Or maybe it’s the mommie fish; I don’t know which is which. The baby fish are the dark lines under the fish head, spreading outward.

My original photos weren’t anywhere near this good. I can thank Lightroom for its editing features (the few I know how to use).