GRASSLANDS, BADLANDS, AND BIG SKY

Sky after sunset just outside of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

Hi, we are back from a trip to the Grasslands and Badlands that stretch from South Dakota  into North Dakota and eastern Montana. Our tent was pitched most of the time in remote locations with no or very few people around, making social distancing easy. We watched lots of wildlife, small and big, and enjoyed some “Big Sky”. As time allows I will post some photos that hopefully tell stories about all this during the next few weeks and I’m glad if you find the time again to stop in here in my blog to read about nature and photography.

JOIN THE PRESENTATION

Whimbrel, Bolsa Chica Ecological Preserve

Tomorrow I give another photo presentation about STORYTELLING IN WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY. The Dubuque Audubon Society has invited me to be the presenter at their monthly meeting. The event is free and open to the public.

Here are some questions I like to answer:

  • How to start with wildlife photography, even with a small camera and lens?

  • Where are good locations that are easy to access in and around the Mississippi Valley ?

  • How can we become better storytellers with our photos?

  • How about safety and ethics?

  • What other locations outside of Iowa would you recommend?

I have a number of new photos that made it into the presentation. If you live in or around Dubuque and the Tri-State area, please join me tomorrow night

Thursday, February 13, 2020, 6PM @ the EB Lyons Interpretive Center at the Mines of Spain, 8991 Bellevue Heights Rd, Dubuque, IA.

I hope to see you there!

COME AND SEE MY PRESENTATION

Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Badlands National Park, South Dakota

A year ago I joined the Dubuque Camera Club. The exchange of thoughts, ideas, and photography knowledge between members is priceless, and beside the educational aspect, it is a great group of people to socialize with and share the fun photography has to offer. We meet twice a month (first and third Monday each month between September and June) and for the 2018 /19 season we offer some member presentations about different aspects of photography. The meetings of the camera club are open to the public anyway, but these special events are advertised in local and social media.

Mobile phones made almost everybody a photographer these days and photography is as popular as never before, so we like to share our presentations with a broader audience. Maybe you guessed it, I volunteered to be the first presenter…

It’s a wrong assumption that good wildlife photos can only be made with expensive equipment. Sharing the story of your wildlife encounter, even through a technically not so perfect image, is more important for the future of our natural heritage than seeing the last detail in a critter’s eye. I will give you my thoughts on this and other aspects of wildlife photography.

If you live in or around the Tri-state area of Dubuque, Iowa, please join us for our first presentation this season next Monday. Here are the facts about this event:

Monday, November 19, 2018, at 6:30 PM

STORYTELLING IN WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY

E.B. Lyons Interpretive Center, 

Mines of Spain Recreation Area

8991 Bellevue Heights 

Dubuque, IA

My presentation will touch the questions below, and hey, we can discuss your ideas and thoughts as well after what I try to cramp into 60 minutes.

  • How to start with wildlife photography, even with a small camera and lens?

  • What are good locations for wildlife shooting in and around the Mississippi Valley?

  • How to become better storytellers with our photos?

  • How about safety and ethics?

The program is free and I would be happy to see you next Monday at 6:30 PM in the E.B. Lyons Interpretive Center at the Mines of Spain 😉

EASTERN IOWA AT IT'S BEST

June has been a “lean period” in regards of my photography endeavors so far. Not my fault, work has been in the way one more time. That has changed this evening when I finally went to the Green Island Wetlands again, and as you already know, this is one of my favorite areas for wildlife photography here in the Upper Mississippi Valley. At this time of the year, early mornings or evenings are the times when birds and critters come out of their hiding places. In addition the light is a lot more “workable” as during the times in between (of course, I’m not talking about the night… ;-) . I had some exciting moments today, but let me start with a view across the wetlands during some quick changes in the weather pattern. 

Especially friends in Germany have asked before, how is this area laid out? This photo, taken from one of the levees that I call “snake alley”, (more about this in a later blog post) gives you an idea how this part of the Mississippi backwaters has been dammed up. The river doesn’t flow through anymore and the water level and flow is managed according to environmental and other requirements.

My wife Joan may tell you I’m crazy showing you a landscape picture after coming back with a memory card full of exciting wildlife moments. I like to get it settled and will post about critters and birds here shortly. So, please stay tuned…