MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2025 #1 - BALD EAGLES

Adult Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, between Sabula, Iowa and Savannah, Illinois

A quick trip along the Mississippi River down to Green Island and Sabula this evening led to today’s photo. A couple Bald Eagles had perched in the dead trees along the road between the Sabula island and the bridge that crosses the main channel of the river over to Illinois. It was obvious that 600 mm focal length would not be enough to fill the frame with an eagle, but adding the Nikon Z1.4 teleconverter to the lens gave me 240 mm focal length more. I drove back to the birds with the side window down and the camera already in my lap. Made sure there was no car behind me, stopped briefly, and fired a number of shots until another car approached from behind. The light about an hour before sunset was just gorgeous for this kind of a shot. Back home at the computer I still thought I had a little bit too much ’wood’ in the frame and finally cropped the photo slightly.

Most of the Bald Eagle nests I saw today had already a pair of birds in or near the nest. It’s a big joy to see how this majestic bird bounced back from being almost extinct not that long ago.

UNTIL THE LIGHT WAS GONE

Greater Yellowleg, Mississippi Valley, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa

The weather this week was not very pleasant, with temperatures around the freezing point, rain, even a little bit of snow, and almost no sun in the sky.This changed finally today and I could realize my plans going for some wildlife shooting to the Green Island Wetlands in the Mississippi Valley this evening. All the clouds disappeared and the best thing was that the air stayed relatively cool, means it was clear and the often feared heat shimmer above the surface of the wetland didn’t occur. With other words, great shooting conditions.

I saw lots of ducks, mostly Wood Ducks and Northern Shovelers, of course Canada Geese, Bald Eagles, the local Northern Harrier, and a small number of Tree Swallows. But the most exciting encounter were three Greater Yellowlegs. These migrating sandpipers were feeding in the shallow water at Green Island but they were quite a bit away. By attaching the 1.4x Teleconverter to the lens my focal length went up to 850 mm. This seemed still not close enough and I set the camera to ”crop mode”, which uses a smaller part of the sensor only, but gave me the equivalent of 1275 mm focal length. I thought without heat shimmer, as often present at this time of the year above the water surface, I can try it and had indeed quite a few sharp images.

Before driving back home I headed to the gravel road on the westside of the wetlands and found another Greater Yellowleg foraging in the water that covered the field below after the rain. The sun was setting behind me and the bird still searched for food and flew away only after all direct light was gone.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Sigma APO Teleconverter 1.4x EX DG, @850 mm (1275 mm DX mode), 1/1250 s, f/9, ISO800

NATURE CLICKS #564 - AMERICAN BULLFROG

American Bullfrog, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

It was a gorgeous summer day, not too hot and not too humid, and we decided to paddle our kayaks this evening for a couple hours at Mud Lake. This part of the Mississippi River backwaters is separated by a dike structure from the main channel of the river and the current in there is very slow. The best part is that you almost never come back without any wildlife sightings. Today we had a number of different birds but none was close enough for a decent photo. We also watched muskrats, beavers, and turtles. But the best posing in the light of the setting sun came from some of American Bullfrogs. I have never seen so many of these big frogs at Mud Lake. They are a great subject to practice handholding the long lens in a kayak. The bullfrogs were pretty patient and let us paddle up really close to them, even below the minimum focal distance of about 102” (2.6m), before they dived down and moved away.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,

NATURE CLICKS #559 - EASTERN BLUEBIRD

This story started already last year, when I built a bird box that was especially designed for bluebirds. The Eastern Bluebird is a cavity nester that may use an old woodpecker hole in a tree or post but nest places became a hot commodity after more aggressive birds, like European Starlings and House Sparrows, became more widespread in the last century. Last year one of our House Wrens used the box for a nest. The bluebirds had no chance.

I photographed this male already while it came to one of our bird baths a few days ago and I became more excited when I saw it again yesterday flying into the entrance hole of the bird box with some nesting material. The nest is mainly built by the female but the males carry bits and pieces in and out of the box to attract a female. Once the female enters the box with the male the bond is established. I haven’t seen the female yet but my hope to have an active nest in this new bird box is growing.

Today’s photo was made right out of my office window on the second floor during the early evening. I had the 1.4 teleconverter between the Sigma 150-600 S and the camera and used the full focal length of 850 mm. The tree is across from the bird box, with some open space between, and the bluebird had obviously a good eye on it. He was cleaning his feathers after I made the first click and the bird gave me about 3 minutes to work with it.

NATURE CLICKS #550 - REDDISH EGRET

Reddish Egret, Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, Huntington Beach, California

Local people told me in the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve during my recent visit a couple weeks ago that three Reddish Egrets reside in the wetlands. I saw finally two of them and this one here presented itself in great side light. I always have seen the dark morph of this bird but a white morph exists also in other areas of the country.

If a body of water is between your camera and the bird and you have maxed out the focal length of your lens, in this case 600 mm, the only option to get closer is to use the teleconverter. I did that for the second photo with the Sigma APO 1.4x, which extends focal length to 850 mm, but finally still decided to crop both pictures a little.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Sigma APO Teleconverter 1.4x EX DG, CALUMET CK8156 tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head,

NATURE CLICKS #530 - COMMON SNAPPING TURTLE

Common Snapping Turtle, Bankston County Park, Eastern Iowa

Today I had quite a few interesting wildlife encounters but not all of them can be documented with the camera. This one was easy, a good size Snapping Turtle rested right on the grassy trail in Bankston County Park while I walked our dog Cooper. A little dog and a snapping turtle may not always go well together, so I made sure he kept a safe distance. Snapping Turtles are not dangerous but on land they will defend themselves and snap if they feel threatened.

During these walks with the dog I almost always take the camera with me but not a variety of lenses. Today the Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 was my choice. A little short for wildlife and with only 70 mm maximum focal length I had to go on my knees and get really close to the turtle. This snapper lives probably not in the little river that runs through this valley but rather in the nearby pond or even in one of the small pools hidden in the woods.

Here is a fact for you to think about, the snapping turtle family evolved in North America, has lived in its wetlands almost unchanged since 90 million years, and has survived the period of mass extinction of the dinosaurs…

GET IT RIGHT IN CAMERA (PART 2)

Eastern Gray Squirrel, 1/800 s, f/9, ISO 400, @850 mm, DX mode (1,275 mm)

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Sigma APO Teleconverter 1.4x EX DG, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

Although with a totally different aspect, I’m picking up from my last blog post today, “Get it right in camera”. All photos are from last weekend. Way too many times I do have to crop some of my wildlife images, mainly because of too much distance between the camera and the animal. There has been progress over the years but it remains a challenge and I’m not always up to it.

Black-capped Chickadee, 1/400 s, f/9, ISO 400, @850 mm

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Sigma APO Teleconverter 1.4x EX DG, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

Well, there is a piece of gear in my bag that can help to get closer and fill the frame without cropping, but I admit, it hasn’t seen the light of the day much lately. I’m talking about the SIGMA 1.4 teleconverter that compliments the SIGMA 150-600, f5-6.3 and can extend its focal length from 600 mm to 850 mm. On a camera with a half size sensor or in DX mode on a full frame camera, like the Nikon D750, you can even get the angle of view of a 1,275 mm lens. Wow, this is a lot more than the naked lens can provide!

Red-bellied Woodpecker, 1/1250 s, f/9, ISO 400, @850 mm

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Sigma APO Teleconverter 1.4x EX DG, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

Of course there is a downside. With a maximum aperture of f/6.3 at 600 mm the SIGMA isn’t the fastest lens anyway, but with the teleconverter attached it becomes a f/9! This needs a lot of light for a good function of the autofocus system. But if the focus locks on, this lens / teleconverter combination delivers a sharp picture. It’s not the perfect solution for “low light” wildlife photography. But if the sun comes out and you have the great contrast, colors, and light this time of the season has to offer, you might be suddenly closer to your subject and after a while you don’t even know where the “crop-button” of your photo editing software is located…😉

NATURE CLICKS #471 - WOODHOUSE’S TOAD

Woodhouse’s Toad, Makoshika State Park, Montana

This was a new species for us that we discovered in Makoshika State Park, Montana. Here in Iowa this toad can be found only in the very western part of the state, while they are not uncommon in many other states further west. I did what I always try to do, take a few “safety shots” from the side and slightly above for later identification and then work with the critter from a better perspective. Lying on my stomach and having the camera on eye level with the toad leads to a much better photo that puts the viewer into the world of this animal. I don’t move an animal to a different place for a better shot and dealing with the grass for an unobstructed view is part of the challenge to make the click. The Nikkor 24-120, f/4 was the lens of choice because it allowed me to get much closer to the toad (minimum focus distance 0.45 meter / 1.5 ft). The 70-200, f/4 has more focal length but the minimum focus distance is 1 meter / 3.28’ ft. Less distance equals fewer grass stems. It was an easy decision…

Woodhouse’s Toads are mostly nocturnal and feed on insects and small invertebrates. It wasn’t quite dark at 6PM but maybe the toad was on its way to a new hunting ground. No matter what it is, but we are always happy to find a new animal species that hasn’t been on our radar.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2020 #7 - RAINBOW BEFORE SUNSET

Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

Visiting the Mississippi River during the hour before sunset can always lead to a good surprise. A couple days ago we took our dog Cooper down to Mud Lake, one of his (and our) favorite places. The rain cloud you see in the second image moved in quickly from the northwest. The rain drops started falling and we rushed back to the car. Suddenly a full fledged rainbow appeared right over the big river. Who cares about a few drops, but the dilemma was that I had the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 on camera, too long to capture the full rainbow while it lasted. The compromise was to shoot one end in tall orientation as you see it here. 

I was hoping for more, ran back to the car and changed lenses quickly. The Nikkor 16-35, f/4 has everything what it needs for a full rainbow, but the cloud had moved on to the southeast and with it what was left of the rainbow. Still one of the occurrences that will be remembered on the positive side for this crazy year…

FAWNS IN THE YARD

White-tailed Deer fawn

This White-tailed Deer fawn and its sibling paid us a visit this week again. They were born this spring and we see them often along our road here in the neighborhood. I sneaked quietly onto the balcony with the camera and it took only about 300 mm focal length to get the shot. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get both in the frame at the same time. Look at its fur and you get the idea how seeds are transported from one location to the next by these little guys.

PASSING BY

Greater White-fronted Geese

Not a full moon but pretty close. I made this picture yesterday at 600 mm focal length. Most of the Greater White-fronted Geese managed to fly around but finally I found a few that would pass in front of the moon. The trick is to predict the path the geese would take and track them by panning with the lens. If you pre-focus on the moon and just wait until a bird flies by, the geese would be most likely just blurry. The warm light on the birds creates a nice color contrast to the cool background and leaves no doubt about when this shot was taken.

PAINTED DESERT (6) - COMMON RAVEN

Common Raven, Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

How about the wildlife in the desert? Well, it’s winter and some species, like snakes and lizards are in hibernation. I saw a group of Mule Deer, but no signs of pronghorns or coyotes. Most birds are still further south, with other words, I wasn’t expecting much and didn’t pack the SIGMA 150-600 for this trip. The second day the sound of Horned Larks filled the cold morning air. They sat on rocks and enjoyed the warm sun probably as much as I did. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get close enough with just 200 mm focal length at hand.

My best photo opportunity came with several Common Ravens, a bird we don’t see in Iowa. This raven seems to greet me like an old friend, but he was actually just working on its feathers with his toes.

I tried to balance the exposure in this high contrast scene to get a little detail in some of its black feathers. Most pictures show the raven just sitting and watching but it is the great gesture with the foot in the air that makes this one my favorite.

Nikon D750, Nikkor 70-200mm / f4, @200 mm, 1/500s, f/5, ISO200, +0.33EV

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2019 #12 - GREEN HERON

Green Heron with prey, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, iowa

Sometimes it is not possible to shoot with a low ISO setting if you want to capture what is in front of your eyes for just a brief moment. The moment can be as great as it gets, if you don’t have enough light, increasing the ISO setting in camera might be the only choice. I’m a big advocate for using the lowest possible ISO in order to have as much detail as possible. For my wildlife photography ISO100-200 is the standard, sometimes up to 400, very seldom beyond that.

Yesterday evening I took the Nikon D750 with the 70-200, f/4 with me while going for a walk down to the Mississippi River with our dog Cooper. When I saw this little Green Heron, who had just caught something and posed nicely on a piece of drift wood, I knew that 200 mm was really not enough focal length and light was critical. I still gave it a try, cranked up to ISO1600, and made the click. I shot in DX mode (with just part of the sensor), which already limits the amount of pixels to play with and still had to crop the image a little bit in Adobe Lightroom to make it work. The image needed of course more noise reduction than what is usually applied. With every little bit the noise reduction slider was moved to the right, more details in the bird’s feathers went away. I think the photo still tells the story of that moment down at the river and it works somehow here on the website, but making a nice print for the wall…? I guess not.

NATURE CLICKS #425 - ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK

Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak

The grosbeaks are here since May 3rd, a little later than usual. Most of them will move on but we always have some that raise their offspring in our woods. They winter in central and northern South America. Many of our migrators, like orioles, tanagers, and the grosbeaks have been here in large numbers during the last few days. It was relatively chilly and the birds use our feeders very frequently, which makes it easy to make a click or two during their presence. It is supposed to get warmer next week and I expect to see less birds.

Female Rose-breasted Grosbeak

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is a good bird to practice long lens photography. They provide mostly good contrast to focus on and even with 600 mm focal length a shutter speed of 1/80s or even slower can be managed.

OUT WEST #3

Bighorn Sheep, Badlands National Park, South Dakota

Most people who come to Badlands National Park may never see much wildlife because they stay on the Badlands Loop Road that leads through the park between the Northeast Entrance and the town of Wall and leave the car only at one of the numerous overlooks. It helps to know a little bit about the biology of the critters and birds to find locations where the chances to see and photograph them increases exponentially. However, Bighorn Sheep can be seen sometimes along the road and if that happens a traffic jam is often part of the game. Some of the Bighorns wear radio collars so the different groups can be tracked by the park staff for research or wildlife management purposes.

I have mentioned often in the past that I’m not an eyeball photographer. Most of the time I prefer the environmental photo of the animal that tells a story about the habitat the critter lives in. Quite often I zoom out and decrease the focal length of the lens below 600 mm in order to get the shot I have in mind. The Bighorn Sheep can move fast, sometimes they come too close (no, you don’t want to be there for your own safety if a big old ram comes right at you) and a moment later you wish a lens with even longer range is attached to the camera…