I'm very excited that one of my submissions to the 2026 Weekly Galveston Feather Fest Photo contest was selected for second place in this week's photo contest!  I was quite surprised and extremely flattered to be selected, as there is stiff competitiion from very talented bird photographers at this annual event.

My photo features a Reddish Egret splashing down on the shore at Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary on the Texas Gulf Coast.  I took this photo in mid-February on one of several trips to the area over the winter and early spring.  Although the skies were overcast that day,  I was fortunate to get a little sun breaking through on this shot to light the subject bird.

Galveston Feather Fest is one of the larger birding festivals on the Gulf Coast, drawing hundreds of birders and photographers to the area each spring at the conference which has a on-site workshop focus.   I plan to participate in some of the workshops in mid-April.

The winning photos area featured on galveston.com and the Feather Fest contest website, and are worth a look for all the stunning photos.  It's very exciting to be featured in these galleries.

Thanks for stopping by to take a look at this blog post!

Scott