Photography

Photo by Elyse Benavides

TO CACHE OR TO EAT? THAT IS THE QUESTION

Elyse Benavides of Coram spied this blue jay with its favorite food, a peanut, in its beak outside her window on Aug. 13 and snapped this beautiful photo. According to the Wild Birds Unlimited website, blue jays will cache seeds and nuts to retrieve later, and make repeated trips to feeders to gather food and hide it in a safe spot. Research studies have recorded blue jays making over 1,000 trips per day when hiding food, earning them the nickname ‘the Caching Extraordinaire.’

Photo by Chris Bauer

FLY ME TO THE MOON

Chris Bauer of Crab Meadow (Northport) walked down to the Crab Meadow Beach parking lot on Aug 1 to capture the “Sturgeon Moon” as it rose but because of the angle it came up, the parking lot lights, and the trees, was not able to get any usable shots. 

He writes, “I walked back down on the following night but stopped short of the beach parking lot to avoid the lights and set up along Waterside Avenue shooting over the Jerome Ambro Wetland Preserve. Once the moon started rising above the trees I was able to get my camera settings correct for a great shot when I noticed the blinking red lights of an approaching jet airliner. With my remote shutter I waited hoping it was going to cross in front of the moon, as it did. I took about 12 shots in quick order but selected this one where I caught the red lights on. I will be out there again for the Blue Moon on August 30.”

On a picture-perfect evening, the Sound Symphony Orchestra took to the Village Green of the Caroline Episcopal Church in historic Setauket and filled the Three Village air with music from its diverse songbook.

The 300 Lights Pops concert was free and part of the church’s 300-year anniversary celebration, which coincided with the arrival of a welcomed autumnal chill that replaced a sticky heat wave that had been in place on Long Island for more than a week. 

Under the direction of maestro Dorothy Savitch, the 60-piece orchestra, many of whom are former Comsewogue High School musicians, delighted the crowd with tunes from the likes of Mozart, Cyndi Lauper, Puccini and George Gershwin – just to name a few.

One of the highlights of the evening was the appearance of world-renown soprano Stefanie Izzo, who belted out arias from “Così fan tutte” and “La bohème” that drew warm and sustained applause from the crowd of about 300 that filled the great lawn. 

Overlooking the Setauket Village Green, the Caroline Episcopal Church of Setauket’s congregation started in 1723 and the church building was erected in 1729. It is listed on the New York State and National Registers of Historic Places, and in addition to this free concert, it has marked its tricentennial with plaque unveilings, historical lectures and special sermons and services.

On Sunday, hundreds of white lanterns lit the perimeter of the grounds and as the late summer afternoon turned to dusk, they shone more conspicuously around the venue. The music started with a medley of hits from the musical “Grease,” which of course included the smash hit “Summer Lovin’”. Soon after, Izzo took to the stage.

In addition to her singing, Izzo cheerfully explained the settings, characters and context of the arias for the benefit of the opera-uninitiated. 

The soprano has studied languages and performed recitals in Italy, Germany and Austria, and was chosen as the first-ever recipient of the National Italian American Foundation’s Andrea Bocelli Music Scholarship. Along with her solo work, Izzo is a co-founder of the Queens-based chamber group The Astoria Music Project, which has been hailed by critics as possessing a “flawless soprano” and a “gorgeously rich and full sound” for her work in opera and musical theatre. She was nothing short of that on this Sunday in Setauket, with her rendering of the works of Verdi, Puccini, Mozart and Gershwin.

The orchestra was also pitch-perfect, led by Savitch, who also serves as the director of the Brooklyn Conservatory’s Music Partner’s Program, which provides hands-on musical training to nearly 5,000 New York City schoolchildren. She has been the musical director of SSO since 1997, and during that 26-year period, the orchestra has grown into one the finest community ensembles in the New York metropolitan area, receiving high praise for their vibrant performances and expansive repertoire.

This night certainly could be counted on that list. Another major highlight was the “Armed Forces Salute Medley.” Savitch encouraged the military veterans to stand up when they heard the song of their branch of service. She led the band in “Anchors Aweigh,” “The U.S. Air Force,” “The Marines’ Hymn” and “The Army Goes Rolling Along.”

The crowd gave each person who stood up during the 7-minute medley a round of applause in gratitude for their service to the nation.

Photo by Elisa Hendrey

SETTING SUN

Moments after Elisa Hendrey of Sound Beach snapped this sunset during a recent visit to Mount Sinai Harbor, the weather suddenly turned violent.

She writes, “Wild wind gusts suddenly whipped across the water. Trees were swaying violently. I jumped in my car and took off for home, keeping an eye out for falling branches. Fortunately, there weren’t any, but my car was being pelted by twigs and at one point a gust of wind actually moved the car a bit. It was very strange listening to the wind and  the ping of whatever small parts of trees were continuously hitting the car. A perfectly calm sunset scene turned violent with no warning whatsoever. I guess there was a message in that cloud bank!”

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Having lost to the Mustangs 11-7 earlier in the season, the Shoreham-Wading River Wildcats had a score to settle when they went head-to-head with Mount Sinai in the Suffolk Class C championship at Stony Brook University Tuesday afternoon, May 30. Mount Sinai, the no. 1 seed at 17-0, hadn’t tasted defeat all season. The Wildcats would change that when they jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the closing minutes of the third quarter.

Mount Sinai chipped away at the deficit, drawing within two goals in the final four minutes of play. But the Wildcat defense was able to corral the Mustangs, holding on for the 10-7 victory. With it, they punched their ticket to the Long Island Championship.

Nick Carretta topped the scoring chart for the Mustangs with three goals. Cole Marsala followed with two, and teammates Jake Spallina and Christian Colantonio scored. Mount Sinai goalie Brayden Wilcken had 10 stops in net.

Liam Kershis had the hot stick for the Wildcats with five goals. Seniors Steven Cain and Alec Gregorek scored twice, and Alex Kershis stretched the net. Goalkeeper Jaden Galfano, a junior, had 15 saves between the pipes.

The Wildcats retake the field at Stony Brook Saturday morning, June 3, to face Manhasset for the Long Island Championship title. Gametime is scheduled for 10 a.m.

Tickets can be purchased here.

— Photos by Bill Landon