Wakodahatchee Wetlands
Located in suburban Delray Beach on Jog Road, Wakodahatchee Wetlands was created about 10 years ago and has become a prolific bird sanctuary featuring herons, anhingas, purple gallinules, bitterns, limpkins and more. Access is via a boardwalk which can vibrate slightly when others are walking near you. So be aware and shoot when you can. But it’s well worth the effort. Best time is to arrive within an hour after sunrise.
Shark Valley
Shark Valley is a magnet for wading birds and photographers. It is part of the Everglades National Park and is located about 35 miles west of Miami on U.S. 41. You’ll find a large variety of wading and other birds, most within 50 feet of your lens. Shark Valley opens at 8:30 am but you can walk in before that. If you do, park your car along US 41 but avoid the “no parking” zone or you WILL be ticketed.
Pahayokee road is a great sunrise location in Everglades National Park. You’ll be shooting toward the east and using cypress trees for silhouettes against the rising sun. The results can be spectacular. Take the main road in Everglades National Park about 10 miles until you see a sign for “Pahayokee Overlook”. Turn there and park within 100 yards of the main road. You can shoot from the road, or if the water level is low enough you can wander into the sawgrass for different perspectives and trees to use in your composition.
The Florida Everglades and other wetlands cover thousands of square miles between the east and west coast of Florida. Everglades National Park is the centerpiece of the region, but there is a long list of other great places to explore and photograph. Here are seven of my favorite destinations for bird and landscape photography in South Florida. Some are well-known while others are obscure or out-of-the-way. They are all well worth the effort and should result in great fun and great photography. More details on Loop Road and Pahayokee can be found in my website under the Newsletters tab.
The list is by no means all-inclusive but it does give you a rich menu of some great places to visit. Bring your longest lens (at least 400mm) for bird and wildlife photography along with a quality tripod and you should have a successful trip.
The best time to visit is during the South Florida winter, from November through early April. Birds are abundant, the weather is pleasant, and mosquitoes should be few and far between (hopefully). Winter is also the dry season; it rains very little during these months. In some of these locations you will see alligators and possible encounter one on the road. Let them have their space. Alligators are more afraid of you than you of them.
Boca Raton, Florida Nature Photo Locations
My favorite places are Wakodahatchee Wetlands - Delray Beach, Green Cay Nature Center - Delray Beach, Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge - Delray Beach, Butterfly World - Coconut Creek, and South Inlet Park - Boca Raton. These are all park like settings that are clean and easy to visit. So feel free to bring a friend, even if they aren't into hiking or photography.
Sites listed in alphabetical order.
American Orchid Society - 16700 AOS Lane, entrance on Jog Rd. approximately 3 miles north of Yamato Rd. (same location as Morikami Museum) • Delray Beach • (561) 404-2000 • Claims thousands of orchids complement a serene but exciting botanical paradise, beckoning visitors to explore paths meandering through 3.5 acres of themed gardens and a magnificent display greenhouse.
Actually a rather small location but VERY clean and professionally run. A nice place to take adult tag-alongs e.g. clean toilets, lot's of shade, snacks, etc. But wait, for photographers it gets even better as the greenhouse is fully enclosed and thus affords one of the few places to take nature pictures on a cold or rainy day. Admission is $8.00 and an annual pass is $30.00. Closed Mondays.
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge - U.S. 441, north of Atlantic Ave. • Delray Beach • (561) 734-8303 • The marsh trail is a great place to shoot herons, egrets, ibises, alligators and bugs. Just park your car and walk the circular route along the levy. But bring sun protection as there is no shade to be had during the walk. As for fighting crowds, I have never seen many people here, even on holidays and weekends. A fee of $5.00 is charged to private vehicles entering the refuge.
In addition to the main location, there is an entrance to the refuge at the end of Loxahatchee Road which you can get to from U.S. 441, just north of Hillsboro Blvd. This section of the park is oriented toward boating and air boating. So for me, I prefer the main location. But if this entrance is closer to you, or you are into boating, fishing etc., check it out.
70-200mm with a teleconverter (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter) and I'd use a longer lens if I had one as 95% of my shots are at my max of 340mm ... 500mm is probably what I need. Tripods or monopods are allowed but it's a long walk so you might be happier hand holding a lens with less reach.
Butterfly World - 3600 W. Sample Road, just west of FL Turnpike • Coconut Creek • (954) 977-4400 and (954) 977-4434 • A great place for shooting butterflies, flowers, and some small exotic birds. VERY clean and professionally run. A nice place to take tag-alongs e.g. music, clean toilets, lot's of shade, snacks, etc. but not much rain cover. So ok for windy days but not rainy days. It's my favorite place for days when rain is threatening because shelter from the rain is never far away. Admission is $18.00 but an annual pass is only $35.00.
70-200mm seems to be a good fit for this site. A 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must. But tripods or monopods are not allowed.
Daggerwing Nature Center - 11200 Park Access Road • Boca Raton • (561) 488-9953 • Daggerwing Nature Center is a tranquil, 3,000-square-foot facility set within the beautiful confines of South County Regional Park. Features of the center include an exhibit area and a 2,000-foot elevated pine boardwalk which takes you on a relaxing journey through a wet forest. Admission is free.
Note: I first visited this site on 08/22/05 and was disappointed by the lack of wildlife. My guess is that this small spit of nature in an otherwise large regional recreational park is not big enough to attract permanent residents. Also, the wetlands were rather dry to the point that I didn't see any signs of turtles, fish, bugs, or even mosquitoes.
Delray Oaks Natural Area - 2021 SW 29th Street, corner of Congress between Clint Moore Road and Linton Blvd, • Delray Beach • (561) 233-2400 • An island of woods in a heavily paved part of Palm Beach County that features a wheelchair-accessible trail leading to an observation platform. Claims resident gopher tortoises, gray foxes, black racer snakes and crab-like spiny orb weaver spiders. No facilities. Admission is free.
70-200mm with a teleconverter seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). A 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well, particularly on the spiders.. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must.
Fern Forest Nature Center - 201 Lyons Road South, 1 block south of Atlantic • Coconut Creek • (954) 970-0150 • This 243-acre wilderness area is filled with diverse plant communities influenced by differences in elevation, bed rock exposure, soil types as well as man's impact. It is designated an Urban Wilderness Area and Gopher Tortoise Preserve. Admission is free.
70-200mm with a teleconverter seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). A Nikon 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must.
Note: I first visited this site on 08/29/05. It's a nice nature setting, but not tranquil as the Turnpike traffic noise invades the park. That said, there were a lot of large spiders to shoot and I got some good shots of a Gopher Tortoise that came to me looking for a hand-out.
Green Cay Nature Center - 12800 Hagen Ranch Road • Boynton Beach • (561) 966-7000 • Located in suburban Delray Beach on the east side of Hagen Ranch Road between Woolbright Road and Atlantic Avenue. 100+ acres of farm land have been transformed by Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department into a wetlands ecosystem. A railed boardwalk with frequent rest stops, some of them shaded, traverses this wildlife habitat. There is also a 9,000-square-foot nature center that includes a turtle pond, frog habitats, an alligator hole and murals depicting what the land, previously the Green Cay Farm, looked like decades ago. Admission is free.
300mm with a teleconverter and I'd user a longer lens if I had one. Tripods or monopods are allowed and the railing makes a great place to steady shots.
Long Key Nature Center and Natural Area - I have never been here, but folks that have, say there is a lot to see and shoot at the Natural Area. So if you live in Broward County, you might want to check this place out.
Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens - 4000 Morikami Park Rd., entrance on Jog Rd. approximately 3 miles north of Yamato Rd. • Delray Beach • (561) 495-0233 • The Japanese gardens are a delight to walk through and there are many fine scenic photo ops which are best shot on a sunny day. Admission is $10.00. Closed Mondays and major national holidays.
You may take all the photographs you like in the Gardens. And tripods and/or monopods are allowed as long as they are not placed on the walking paths or become a distraction to others. However, no photography is allowed inside the museum or galleries.
60mm. And for fun I also like to use a fisheye. Either way, there is lot's of shade so consider taking a strobe for close-ups and preferably a strobe that can be hand held for creative lighting.
Quiet Waters Park - 401 South Powerline Rd., south of Hillsboro Blvd. • Deerfield Beach • (954) 360-1315 • There are some birds and bugs here but what I really like is shooting people on the water ski tow line and trying for that great action shot where someone does something really great ... or really awful. So, for me the best time to go here is when school is out as the high school kids seem to be the most ardent and fearless water skiers. Park admission is free on weekdays and $1.00 per person on weekends.
70-200mm which seems to be a good fit for this site.
South Inlet Park - 1298 South Ocean Blvd., south of Camino Real • Boca Raton • (561) 966-6600 • It's a bird, it's a plane, no it's a wind surfer. Shoot Pelicans, Sea Gulls, Sand Pipers, helicopters, airplanes, boats, and people. They all seem to like this ocean setting. Best to shoot here in the afternoon to have the sun at your back. The best days are when there is not a lot of wind as the birds, planes, and boats are not as plentiful on really windy days. Also, low tide seems to be the best time to find crabs. And lastly, the bird population here is seasonal as many of the birds, Pelicans included, fly north in the Spring and return in the Fall. Admission is $4.00 per person on weekdays and $6.00 per person on weekends.
70-200mm with a teleconverter which seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). I also use a clear filter if the wind has an east component to keep salt spray off the lens.
Wakodahatchee Wetlands - Located in suburban Delray Beach on the east side of Jog Road between Woolbright Road and Atlantic Avenue. Fifty acres of unused utilities land have been transformed by Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department into a wetlands ecosystem and over 140 species of birds have been spotted here. A railed boardwalk with frequent rest stops, some of them shaded, traverses this wildlife habitat. Admission is free.
While I have not seen over 140 species of birds here, there are a lot of Herons and other wading birds. And they are easy to photograph as you can get a lot closer to them than the birds at Loxahatchee. Yes I know, it's like shooting fish in a barrel. But it sure is a great place to try out a new lens or a new shooting technique or just fill a card with 100s of keepers because you can.
70-200mm with a teleconverter or a 300mm with a teleconverter. Tripods or monopods are allowed and the railing makes a great place to steady shots.
Art Deco District
"Preservationists, artists, models, businesses, nightclubs, restaurants, and tourists come together in a hip neighborhood on this beautiful island in the Atlantic. Offers unparalleled tropical Art Deco architecture in a compact, urban neighborhood where visitors are easily transported back in time to 1930s elegance."—Scott Timm, director of programs and outreach, Miami Design Preservation League. Neon and cupcake-colored buildings dot the walkable streets in this South Beach neighborhood, named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The main thoroughfare is Ocean Drive, with its bumper-to-bumper traffic on weekend nights and pedestrians showing a lot of skin jamming the sidewalk from 5th to 15th streets; best sunset view is from the second-floor deck at Wet Willie's bar, 760 Ocean Dr. Art Deco Welcome Center, 1001 Ocean Dr., South Beach; tel. +1 305 672 2014. www.mdpl.org
The Beaches
"Sand in your toes cures every ill or stress."—Donna Shalala, University of Miami president and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Among the choices: A racy Euro-style topless scene at the Third Street beach in South Beach, where colorful Art Deco lifeguard stations provide an ideal photo op; families flock to the two-mile (three-kilometer) beach at Crandon Park Beach on Key Biscayne, where a water playground and merry-go-round also provide distractions (tel. +1 305 361 7385; www.miamidade.gov/parks/parks/crandon_beach.asp); Matheson Hammock Park is a haven for those with toddlers because it has a shallow man-made pool flushed naturally by Biscayne Bay tides (tel. +1 305 665 5475; www.miamidade.gov/parks/parks/matheson_beach.asp); Miami's only nude beach is at the north end of Haulover Park at the northern end of Miami Beach (tel. +1 305 947 3525); www.miamidade.gov/parks/Heritage/haulover/index.htm
Coconut Grove
A tree-lined, waterfront neighborhood with outdoor cafés and boutiques within the city of Miami that describes itself on local bumper stickers as "a quaint drinking village with a fishing problem;" a major strolling zone, especially on weekends and Thursday nights, when it fills up with college students. www.coconutgrove.com
Everglades National Park
"Must-see for visitors to experience what nearly all of South Florida looked like before settlers decided to drain and irrigate it into looking like concrete planting beds in the tropics. The real beauty comes out on a full moon, when visitors can participate in a ranger-guided bike tour of the Shark Valley trail. You don't have to worry about heat exhaustion or sunburn, and many of the night critters are out for view in the moonlight."—Alex Montalvo, interim executive director for the enviromental awareness group Citizens for a Better South Florida. The River of Grass—one of the last great wildernesses of America and an unusual public park, with 1.5 million acres (600,000 hectares) of swamps, saw-grass prairies, and sub-tropical jungles from Lake Okeechobee to the Gulf of Mexico; home to more than a dozen rare and endangered species, including the American crocodile, the Florida panther, and the West Indian manatee; much of it is impenetrable and explored only by researchers and adventurous types, but anyone can bike, walk, or take a two-hour tram on a 15-mile (24.1-kilometer) paved loop in Shark Valley. Admission $10 per vehicle; bike rentals available. Shark Valley Visitor Center, 36000 SW 8th St., Miami; tel. +1 305 221 8776. www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/svdirections.htm
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
"Fairchild is one of our scintillating jewels. The garden is simply incredible to behold, and both the rain forest exhibit and the conservatory include many fascinating orchids and rare tropical plants."—Robert Fuchs, president, R.F. Orchids in Homestead, one of the country's most prestigious orchid nurseries. Premier research and education-based garden devoted to the conservation of tropical plants and named after botanist-explorer David Fairchild; houses the world's greatest living collection of palms and cycads; and hosts art, planting and cooking classes, plant sales, and popular events such as the International Mango Festival. Admission $20 adults, $15 seniors, $10 children 6-17, free for kids under 5. 10901 Old Cutler Rd., Coral Gables; tel. +1 305 667 1651. www.ftg.org
Jungle Island
A theme park and tropical bird sanctuary with parrots, flamingos, exotic reptiles, orangutans, a petting zoo, and playground; daily animal shows; locals weren't pleased when it moved a few years ago from lush Pinecrest to a tourist-friendly spot between downtown Miami and South Beach. Tickets $27.95 adults, $22.95 kids 3-10, free for ages under 3; parking is $7 per vehicle. 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail, Watson Island; tel. +1 305 258 6453. www.parrotjungle.com
Lincoln Road
"You can sit down at an outside table and have a 40-dollar meal at one of the trendy eateries or just a three-dollar beer at Zeke's with a 50-cent bag of chips. It's the best place to see the prettiest people in South Florida. I love it on Halloween night."— Angel Valentin, Miami photographer for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Eight blocks of trendy shops and restaurants just north of the Art Deco District in South Beach that was turned into a pedestrian-only outdoor mall in 1960 by Modernist master Morris Lapidus; street performers, bikers, and skaters scoot around sidewalk café tables; chain stores are moving in, but there are still good finds, including the music listening/CD bar at the clothing store Base, a Jonathan Adler home design store, the Cuban coffee counter at David's Café, a Design Within Reach showroom, a small branch of Books & Books, several art galleries, and a multiplex movie theater.
Miami Seaquarium
A 38-acre (15-hectare) marine park with dolphin, killer whale, and seal shows, as well as shark and manatee exhibits; home to the Flipper TV show of the 1960s; a two-hour swim-with-our-dolphins program outfits visitors with wet suits to interact one-on-one with resident dolphins for $189. Park admission $31.95 adults, $24.95 children ages 3-9; $7 parking. 4400 Rickenbacker Causeway, Key Biscayne; tel. +1 305 361 5705. www.miamiseaquarium.com
Museum of Contemporary Art
Noteworthy museums dot South Florida, but the Charles Gwathmey-designed MoCA, which opened in 1996, has helped establish Miami as a world venue for contemporary art; art talks, classes, jazz concerts, and more than 400 permanent works by the likes of Dennis Oppenheim, Alex Katz, Julian Schnabel, Yoko Ono, and Jose Bedia; visiting exhibits have included Robert Rauschenburg, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf, and Roy Lichtenstein. 770 NE 125th St., North Miami; tel. +1 305 893 6211. www.mocanomi.org
Stiltsville
"It harkens back to the days of a certain lawless pioneer spirit, when people could build something wacky—like a house on stilts in the middle of the bay—without worrying about building codes."—Steven Raichlen, author of Miami Spice, The Barbecue Bible, How to Grill, and host of Barbecue University on PBS. A collection of rickety fishing and boat shacks built on pilings in the mudflats of Biscayne Bay beginning in the 1930s; only seven of the uninhabited houses remain; used by fishermen, gamblers, and partiers through the decades, it's in danger of being torn down; accessible by boat, but can be viewed from the southeastern tip of Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne. www.stiltsville.org
Venetian Pool
A 1920s public swimming hole carved out of coral rock and surrounded by Venetian-style buildings; during the summer the 820,000-gallon (3.1-million-liter) pool is fed with clear cool spring water daily; waterfalls, coral rock caves to explore, a Spanish fountain, sandy beach area, cobblestone bridge, and vine-covered loggias. Admission $10 adults, $6.75 children, ages 3-12 (April-October); $5.50 adults, $3.50 children, ages 3-12 (November-March); no children under three allowed. 2701 DeSoto Blvd., Coral Gables; tel. +1 305 460 5356. www.coralgablesvenetianpool.com
Vizcaya Museum & Gardens
James Deering's grand 1916 Italian villa on Biscayne Bay; original European antiques in 34 rooms; ten acres (four hectares) of formal gardens with fountains, pools, and gazebos coveted for modeling shoots and grand weddings. Tickets $12 adults, $5 children ages 6-12, free for children 5 and under, $9 seniors. 3251 S. Miami Ave., Miami; tel. +1 305 250 9133. www.vizcayamuseum.com
Located in suburban Delray Beach on Jog Road, Wakodahatchee Wetlands was created about 10 years ago and has become a prolific bird sanctuary featuring herons, anhingas, purple gallinules, bitterns, limpkins and more. Access is via a boardwalk which can vibrate slightly when others are walking near you. So be aware and shoot when you can. But it’s well worth the effort. Best time is to arrive within an hour after sunrise.
Shark Valley
Shark Valley is a magnet for wading birds and photographers. It is part of the Everglades National Park and is located about 35 miles west of Miami on U.S. 41. You’ll find a large variety of wading and other birds, most within 50 feet of your lens. Shark Valley opens at 8:30 am but you can walk in before that. If you do, park your car along US 41 but avoid the “no parking” zone or you WILL be ticketed.
Pahayokee road is a great sunrise location in Everglades National Park. You’ll be shooting toward the east and using cypress trees for silhouettes against the rising sun. The results can be spectacular. Take the main road in Everglades National Park about 10 miles until you see a sign for “Pahayokee Overlook”. Turn there and park within 100 yards of the main road. You can shoot from the road, or if the water level is low enough you can wander into the sawgrass for different perspectives and trees to use in your composition.
The Florida Everglades and other wetlands cover thousands of square miles between the east and west coast of Florida. Everglades National Park is the centerpiece of the region, but there is a long list of other great places to explore and photograph. Here are seven of my favorite destinations for bird and landscape photography in South Florida. Some are well-known while others are obscure or out-of-the-way. They are all well worth the effort and should result in great fun and great photography. More details on Loop Road and Pahayokee can be found in my website under the Newsletters tab.
The list is by no means all-inclusive but it does give you a rich menu of some great places to visit. Bring your longest lens (at least 400mm) for bird and wildlife photography along with a quality tripod and you should have a successful trip.
The best time to visit is during the South Florida winter, from November through early April. Birds are abundant, the weather is pleasant, and mosquitoes should be few and far between (hopefully). Winter is also the dry season; it rains very little during these months. In some of these locations you will see alligators and possible encounter one on the road. Let them have their space. Alligators are more afraid of you than you of them.
Boca Raton, Florida Nature Photo Locations
My favorite places are Wakodahatchee Wetlands - Delray Beach, Green Cay Nature Center - Delray Beach, Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge - Delray Beach, Butterfly World - Coconut Creek, and South Inlet Park - Boca Raton. These are all park like settings that are clean and easy to visit. So feel free to bring a friend, even if they aren't into hiking or photography.
Sites listed in alphabetical order.
American Orchid Society - 16700 AOS Lane, entrance on Jog Rd. approximately 3 miles north of Yamato Rd. (same location as Morikami Museum) • Delray Beach • (561) 404-2000 • Claims thousands of orchids complement a serene but exciting botanical paradise, beckoning visitors to explore paths meandering through 3.5 acres of themed gardens and a magnificent display greenhouse.
Actually a rather small location but VERY clean and professionally run. A nice place to take adult tag-alongs e.g. clean toilets, lot's of shade, snacks, etc. But wait, for photographers it gets even better as the greenhouse is fully enclosed and thus affords one of the few places to take nature pictures on a cold or rainy day. Admission is $8.00 and an annual pass is $30.00. Closed Mondays.
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge - U.S. 441, north of Atlantic Ave. • Delray Beach • (561) 734-8303 • The marsh trail is a great place to shoot herons, egrets, ibises, alligators and bugs. Just park your car and walk the circular route along the levy. But bring sun protection as there is no shade to be had during the walk. As for fighting crowds, I have never seen many people here, even on holidays and weekends. A fee of $5.00 is charged to private vehicles entering the refuge.
In addition to the main location, there is an entrance to the refuge at the end of Loxahatchee Road which you can get to from U.S. 441, just north of Hillsboro Blvd. This section of the park is oriented toward boating and air boating. So for me, I prefer the main location. But if this entrance is closer to you, or you are into boating, fishing etc., check it out.
70-200mm with a teleconverter (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter) and I'd use a longer lens if I had one as 95% of my shots are at my max of 340mm ... 500mm is probably what I need. Tripods or monopods are allowed but it's a long walk so you might be happier hand holding a lens with less reach.
Butterfly World - 3600 W. Sample Road, just west of FL Turnpike • Coconut Creek • (954) 977-4400 and (954) 977-4434 • A great place for shooting butterflies, flowers, and some small exotic birds. VERY clean and professionally run. A nice place to take tag-alongs e.g. music, clean toilets, lot's of shade, snacks, etc. but not much rain cover. So ok for windy days but not rainy days. It's my favorite place for days when rain is threatening because shelter from the rain is never far away. Admission is $18.00 but an annual pass is only $35.00.
70-200mm seems to be a good fit for this site. A 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must. But tripods or monopods are not allowed.
Daggerwing Nature Center - 11200 Park Access Road • Boca Raton • (561) 488-9953 • Daggerwing Nature Center is a tranquil, 3,000-square-foot facility set within the beautiful confines of South County Regional Park. Features of the center include an exhibit area and a 2,000-foot elevated pine boardwalk which takes you on a relaxing journey through a wet forest. Admission is free.
Note: I first visited this site on 08/22/05 and was disappointed by the lack of wildlife. My guess is that this small spit of nature in an otherwise large regional recreational park is not big enough to attract permanent residents. Also, the wetlands were rather dry to the point that I didn't see any signs of turtles, fish, bugs, or even mosquitoes.
Delray Oaks Natural Area - 2021 SW 29th Street, corner of Congress between Clint Moore Road and Linton Blvd, • Delray Beach • (561) 233-2400 • An island of woods in a heavily paved part of Palm Beach County that features a wheelchair-accessible trail leading to an observation platform. Claims resident gopher tortoises, gray foxes, black racer snakes and crab-like spiny orb weaver spiders. No facilities. Admission is free.
70-200mm with a teleconverter seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). A 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well, particularly on the spiders.. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must.
Fern Forest Nature Center - 201 Lyons Road South, 1 block south of Atlantic • Coconut Creek • (954) 970-0150 • This 243-acre wilderness area is filled with diverse plant communities influenced by differences in elevation, bed rock exposure, soil types as well as man's impact. It is designated an Urban Wilderness Area and Gopher Tortoise Preserve. Admission is free.
70-200mm with a teleconverter seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). A Nikon 60mm or 105mm close-up lens would also work well. Either way, there is lot's of shade here, so a strobe is a must.
Note: I first visited this site on 08/29/05. It's a nice nature setting, but not tranquil as the Turnpike traffic noise invades the park. That said, there were a lot of large spiders to shoot and I got some good shots of a Gopher Tortoise that came to me looking for a hand-out.
Green Cay Nature Center - 12800 Hagen Ranch Road • Boynton Beach • (561) 966-7000 • Located in suburban Delray Beach on the east side of Hagen Ranch Road between Woolbright Road and Atlantic Avenue. 100+ acres of farm land have been transformed by Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department into a wetlands ecosystem. A railed boardwalk with frequent rest stops, some of them shaded, traverses this wildlife habitat. There is also a 9,000-square-foot nature center that includes a turtle pond, frog habitats, an alligator hole and murals depicting what the land, previously the Green Cay Farm, looked like decades ago. Admission is free.
300mm with a teleconverter and I'd user a longer lens if I had one. Tripods or monopods are allowed and the railing makes a great place to steady shots.
Long Key Nature Center and Natural Area - I have never been here, but folks that have, say there is a lot to see and shoot at the Natural Area. So if you live in Broward County, you might want to check this place out.
Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens - 4000 Morikami Park Rd., entrance on Jog Rd. approximately 3 miles north of Yamato Rd. • Delray Beach • (561) 495-0233 • The Japanese gardens are a delight to walk through and there are many fine scenic photo ops which are best shot on a sunny day. Admission is $10.00. Closed Mondays and major national holidays.
You may take all the photographs you like in the Gardens. And tripods and/or monopods are allowed as long as they are not placed on the walking paths or become a distraction to others. However, no photography is allowed inside the museum or galleries.
60mm. And for fun I also like to use a fisheye. Either way, there is lot's of shade so consider taking a strobe for close-ups and preferably a strobe that can be hand held for creative lighting.
Quiet Waters Park - 401 South Powerline Rd., south of Hillsboro Blvd. • Deerfield Beach • (954) 360-1315 • There are some birds and bugs here but what I really like is shooting people on the water ski tow line and trying for that great action shot where someone does something really great ... or really awful. So, for me the best time to go here is when school is out as the high school kids seem to be the most ardent and fearless water skiers. Park admission is free on weekdays and $1.00 per person on weekends.
70-200mm which seems to be a good fit for this site.
South Inlet Park - 1298 South Ocean Blvd., south of Camino Real • Boca Raton • (561) 966-6600 • It's a bird, it's a plane, no it's a wind surfer. Shoot Pelicans, Sea Gulls, Sand Pipers, helicopters, airplanes, boats, and people. They all seem to like this ocean setting. Best to shoot here in the afternoon to have the sun at your back. The best days are when there is not a lot of wind as the birds, planes, and boats are not as plentiful on really windy days. Also, low tide seems to be the best time to find crabs. And lastly, the bird population here is seasonal as many of the birds, Pelicans included, fly north in the Spring and return in the Fall. Admission is $4.00 per person on weekdays and $6.00 per person on weekends.
70-200mm with a teleconverter which seems to be a good fit for this site (120mm - 340mm with teleconverter). I also use a clear filter if the wind has an east component to keep salt spray off the lens.
Wakodahatchee Wetlands - Located in suburban Delray Beach on the east side of Jog Road between Woolbright Road and Atlantic Avenue. Fifty acres of unused utilities land have been transformed by Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department into a wetlands ecosystem and over 140 species of birds have been spotted here. A railed boardwalk with frequent rest stops, some of them shaded, traverses this wildlife habitat. Admission is free.
While I have not seen over 140 species of birds here, there are a lot of Herons and other wading birds. And they are easy to photograph as you can get a lot closer to them than the birds at Loxahatchee. Yes I know, it's like shooting fish in a barrel. But it sure is a great place to try out a new lens or a new shooting technique or just fill a card with 100s of keepers because you can.
70-200mm with a teleconverter or a 300mm with a teleconverter. Tripods or monopods are allowed and the railing makes a great place to steady shots.
Art Deco District
"Preservationists, artists, models, businesses, nightclubs, restaurants, and tourists come together in a hip neighborhood on this beautiful island in the Atlantic. Offers unparalleled tropical Art Deco architecture in a compact, urban neighborhood where visitors are easily transported back in time to 1930s elegance."—Scott Timm, director of programs and outreach, Miami Design Preservation League. Neon and cupcake-colored buildings dot the walkable streets in this South Beach neighborhood, named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The main thoroughfare is Ocean Drive, with its bumper-to-bumper traffic on weekend nights and pedestrians showing a lot of skin jamming the sidewalk from 5th to 15th streets; best sunset view is from the second-floor deck at Wet Willie's bar, 760 Ocean Dr. Art Deco Welcome Center, 1001 Ocean Dr., South Beach; tel. +1 305 672 2014. www.mdpl.org
The Beaches
"Sand in your toes cures every ill or stress."—Donna Shalala, University of Miami president and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Among the choices: A racy Euro-style topless scene at the Third Street beach in South Beach, where colorful Art Deco lifeguard stations provide an ideal photo op; families flock to the two-mile (three-kilometer) beach at Crandon Park Beach on Key Biscayne, where a water playground and merry-go-round also provide distractions (tel. +1 305 361 7385; www.miamidade.gov/parks/parks/crandon_beach.asp); Matheson Hammock Park is a haven for those with toddlers because it has a shallow man-made pool flushed naturally by Biscayne Bay tides (tel. +1 305 665 5475; www.miamidade.gov/parks/parks/matheson_beach.asp); Miami's only nude beach is at the north end of Haulover Park at the northern end of Miami Beach (tel. +1 305 947 3525); www.miamidade.gov/parks/Heritage/haulover/index.htm
Coconut Grove
A tree-lined, waterfront neighborhood with outdoor cafés and boutiques within the city of Miami that describes itself on local bumper stickers as "a quaint drinking village with a fishing problem;" a major strolling zone, especially on weekends and Thursday nights, when it fills up with college students. www.coconutgrove.com
Everglades National Park
"Must-see for visitors to experience what nearly all of South Florida looked like before settlers decided to drain and irrigate it into looking like concrete planting beds in the tropics. The real beauty comes out on a full moon, when visitors can participate in a ranger-guided bike tour of the Shark Valley trail. You don't have to worry about heat exhaustion or sunburn, and many of the night critters are out for view in the moonlight."—Alex Montalvo, interim executive director for the enviromental awareness group Citizens for a Better South Florida. The River of Grass—one of the last great wildernesses of America and an unusual public park, with 1.5 million acres (600,000 hectares) of swamps, saw-grass prairies, and sub-tropical jungles from Lake Okeechobee to the Gulf of Mexico; home to more than a dozen rare and endangered species, including the American crocodile, the Florida panther, and the West Indian manatee; much of it is impenetrable and explored only by researchers and adventurous types, but anyone can bike, walk, or take a two-hour tram on a 15-mile (24.1-kilometer) paved loop in Shark Valley. Admission $10 per vehicle; bike rentals available. Shark Valley Visitor Center, 36000 SW 8th St., Miami; tel. +1 305 221 8776. www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/svdirections.htm
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
"Fairchild is one of our scintillating jewels. The garden is simply incredible to behold, and both the rain forest exhibit and the conservatory include many fascinating orchids and rare tropical plants."—Robert Fuchs, president, R.F. Orchids in Homestead, one of the country's most prestigious orchid nurseries. Premier research and education-based garden devoted to the conservation of tropical plants and named after botanist-explorer David Fairchild; houses the world's greatest living collection of palms and cycads; and hosts art, planting and cooking classes, plant sales, and popular events such as the International Mango Festival. Admission $20 adults, $15 seniors, $10 children 6-17, free for kids under 5. 10901 Old Cutler Rd., Coral Gables; tel. +1 305 667 1651. www.ftg.org
Jungle Island
A theme park and tropical bird sanctuary with parrots, flamingos, exotic reptiles, orangutans, a petting zoo, and playground; daily animal shows; locals weren't pleased when it moved a few years ago from lush Pinecrest to a tourist-friendly spot between downtown Miami and South Beach. Tickets $27.95 adults, $22.95 kids 3-10, free for ages under 3; parking is $7 per vehicle. 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail, Watson Island; tel. +1 305 258 6453. www.parrotjungle.com
Lincoln Road
"You can sit down at an outside table and have a 40-dollar meal at one of the trendy eateries or just a three-dollar beer at Zeke's with a 50-cent bag of chips. It's the best place to see the prettiest people in South Florida. I love it on Halloween night."— Angel Valentin, Miami photographer for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Eight blocks of trendy shops and restaurants just north of the Art Deco District in South Beach that was turned into a pedestrian-only outdoor mall in 1960 by Modernist master Morris Lapidus; street performers, bikers, and skaters scoot around sidewalk café tables; chain stores are moving in, but there are still good finds, including the music listening/CD bar at the clothing store Base, a Jonathan Adler home design store, the Cuban coffee counter at David's Café, a Design Within Reach showroom, a small branch of Books & Books, several art galleries, and a multiplex movie theater.
Miami Seaquarium
A 38-acre (15-hectare) marine park with dolphin, killer whale, and seal shows, as well as shark and manatee exhibits; home to the Flipper TV show of the 1960s; a two-hour swim-with-our-dolphins program outfits visitors with wet suits to interact one-on-one with resident dolphins for $189. Park admission $31.95 adults, $24.95 children ages 3-9; $7 parking. 4400 Rickenbacker Causeway, Key Biscayne; tel. +1 305 361 5705. www.miamiseaquarium.com
Museum of Contemporary Art
Noteworthy museums dot South Florida, but the Charles Gwathmey-designed MoCA, which opened in 1996, has helped establish Miami as a world venue for contemporary art; art talks, classes, jazz concerts, and more than 400 permanent works by the likes of Dennis Oppenheim, Alex Katz, Julian Schnabel, Yoko Ono, and Jose Bedia; visiting exhibits have included Robert Rauschenburg, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf, and Roy Lichtenstein. 770 NE 125th St., North Miami; tel. +1 305 893 6211. www.mocanomi.org
Stiltsville
"It harkens back to the days of a certain lawless pioneer spirit, when people could build something wacky—like a house on stilts in the middle of the bay—without worrying about building codes."—Steven Raichlen, author of Miami Spice, The Barbecue Bible, How to Grill, and host of Barbecue University on PBS. A collection of rickety fishing and boat shacks built on pilings in the mudflats of Biscayne Bay beginning in the 1930s; only seven of the uninhabited houses remain; used by fishermen, gamblers, and partiers through the decades, it's in danger of being torn down; accessible by boat, but can be viewed from the southeastern tip of Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park on Key Biscayne. www.stiltsville.org
Venetian Pool
A 1920s public swimming hole carved out of coral rock and surrounded by Venetian-style buildings; during the summer the 820,000-gallon (3.1-million-liter) pool is fed with clear cool spring water daily; waterfalls, coral rock caves to explore, a Spanish fountain, sandy beach area, cobblestone bridge, and vine-covered loggias. Admission $10 adults, $6.75 children, ages 3-12 (April-October); $5.50 adults, $3.50 children, ages 3-12 (November-March); no children under three allowed. 2701 DeSoto Blvd., Coral Gables; tel. +1 305 460 5356. www.coralgablesvenetianpool.com
Vizcaya Museum & Gardens
James Deering's grand 1916 Italian villa on Biscayne Bay; original European antiques in 34 rooms; ten acres (four hectares) of formal gardens with fountains, pools, and gazebos coveted for modeling shoots and grand weddings. Tickets $12 adults, $5 children ages 6-12, free for children 5 and under, $9 seniors. 3251 S. Miami Ave., Miami; tel. +1 305 250 9133. www.vizcayamuseum.com