This Great Blue Heron changed position many times but stayed in the same spot the whole time I was able to watch it yesterday. Hence that a series of pictures was made of this beautiful bird in the Green Island Wetlands. It was the last one I chose for today’s blog post. The heron stretched its left leg and wing to the side. Suddenly the dappled light wasn’t my enemy anymore and gave this pose and gesture of the heron some emphasis. Went home with a smile on my face… 😊
NATURE CLICKS #340 - EASTERN KINGBIRD
It has been a while since my last visit in the Green Island Wetlands, one of my favorite shooting locations along the Mississippi in Iowa. In August it is relatively quite there in comparison to spring or early summer, but I came never back with empty hands from the wetlands so far. It took me a while before I was able to make my first click today. This Eastern Kingbird was perched on a dead branch hanging over the duck weed covered water. I assume this was a juvenile because it seemed to be smaller than other Eastern Kingbirds I have seen before. We had some good wind today after the rain of the last couple days moved away and getting the kingbird in focus was a little bit of a challenge. I guess I’m a little “rusty” too, since the number of keepers after the shooting was below my expectations.
SNIPER MODE
Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird ---
I spent a little time with the birds in our front yard this evening. In about 45 days the hummingbirds will head south, taking the long journey to the south of Mexico and beyond. It is not difficult to take the picture if the bird is perched on a branch. The story lies (at least for me) in the gestures that can be captured and using all the technical means that are at my disposal while shooting is essential.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
I shoot in “sniper mode”, means one picture at a time, because I want to use flash fill to bring out the colors in the bird and still maintain the environmental aspect by not making the background totally black. Another way to make the click would be to utilize the high speed capabilities of the camera, the NIKON D750 can do 6.5 frames per second, but these days 12 fps is what the most sophisticated bodies can deliver. However, a higher speed and shorter exposure time would have rendered the background totally black with today’s ambient light. So where is the challenge? The pictures were made with the SIGMA APO 1.4x EX DG teleconverter attached to the SIGMA 150-600 mm Sports lens, giving it a total focal length of 850 mmm. I used 1/60 s for both images and this is of course not shot from your hip…😉
NEW TENANT
As reported here in my blog the young House Wrens left the nest box July 27. Well, a new tenant has moved in and takes advantage of the free rent. One of our Gray Tree Frogs (German: Laubfrosch) seems to enjoy the view from the entrance hole. I saw him already twice and having a safe “summer cabin”, hanging high up and located between two bird baths, is indeed not the worst choice a little frog can make… 😊
ROOM FOR INTERPRETATION
No opportunity for new pictures this week because of business commitments in Omaha, Nebraska. Instead I like to show you another photo from the shooting at dam #11 in the Mississippi last Sunday. The two birds look intimate with each other although there is a sense of competition about the best fish in the air. The eye of the pelican is taxing and carefully watching while the cormorant seems to ignore the bigger bird. I like when a photo tells a story sometimes that leaves room for interpretation. It is one thing what we may see and another one what the birds really have in mind.
MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2016 #10 - FOOD ENVY
Two American White Pelicans and about a dozen Double-crested Cormorants seemed to go along with each other very well below dam #11 in the Mississippi River. Both species fished peacefully side by side, the pelicans using their big bill and the cormorants diving for the fish. There wasn’t any problem until one of the cormorants got a pretty good size fish out of the water.
One of the pelicans was obviously struck by food envy and suddenly attacked the cormorant pretty aggressive. Looking at the image a little closer on my screen at home I realized that the pelican had the poor cormorant in its bill and obviously tried to bite him. I’m very happy to catch this moment. As you can see the cormorant got away with its prey…
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
The photos were made on the Wisconsin side of the river, right below the dam between Dubuque, Iowa and the state of Wisconsin. Usually it is not a good place to shoot in this direction during the afternoon hours because the sun is just across the river. We had some heavy overcast and that muted the sunlight quite a bit. To overcome the gray from above and reflected off the water fill flash was used to reveal the colors of the birds.
NATURE CLICKS #339 - EASTERN COMMA
Summer doesn’t get any better as it was today. I will never get used to the high humidity that we have here around the Mississippi Valley in parts of the summer. For my friends in Germany, I tell you, this can wear you out! Today it was warm, but by far not so humid as during the last couple weeks. Real summer joy!!!
My friend Maren Arndt, a very environmental conscious photographer who lives in the northern part of Germany, reports on her Facebook site about the fact that they see a lot less insects on the windshields of cars and trains in comparison to just a few years ago. Some light-minded people may think this is great, because it saves them from cleaning their windshield so often… As much as some insects can become obnoxious for us humans at times, but they still serve an important role in the food chain… The scary part of the story.
We watch the population of any critter, and of course butterflies, here in our neck of the woods very closely since twelve years. We don’t panic if in some years we don’t see the same numbers of a species as the year before, but whatever we monitor, I don’t see a better picture. Ok, I still try to stay positive!
According to my sources the Eastern Comma is a common butterfly in the eastern part of North America but the first and last time I took a picture was in 2013. Glad to have the Eastern Comma back in our yard, but overall it hasn’t been a real good year for butterflies yet.
AT THE HEIGHT OF SUMMER
Yesterday, while working with the camera at the nest box, photographing the young House Wrens, I saw out of the corner of my eye one of the Giant Swallowtails drinking nectar from our flowers. I have made hundreds of pictures over the years from that species and it isn’t really special anymore, but it was the way the light was shining through its wings that triggered my interest this time. The flash fill helped to reveal the colors of the purple cone flower and despite a very harsh overall light I was able to maintain the luminosity of the scene.
By the way, the little House Wrens left the nest today. I wasn’t there when it happened, so I will never find out how many have been in the nest. They are probably somewhere around here in the woods right now. I saw and heard the male parent bird singing this evening again and I now wonder if he already tries to attract the female again…
MORE FROM THE 'ZAUNKÖNIG' (HOUSE WREN)
Maybe it was my last chance this evening to spend time with the camera around the nest box of the House Wrens. The parents kept feeding the little wrens. They are quite large already and it seems the calls for more food get louder every day. This is my most spectacular shot from today. Stuffing the insects and spiders into the throat of the juveniles takes only a second or less and not every click is a hit.
This little guy found a way to keep its siblings out of the way by leaning out of the entrance as far as possible and plugging the hole with its butt. It must have known that something big is coming...
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
This ‘Big Ass Spider’ was gone as quick as any smaller prey before. Look at the size of the spider in comparison to the bird’s size. This is about the same as you eating a whole chicken at once… 😆
FEEDING TIME
Any kind of insects and spiders live a dangerous life at the moment in our yard and the surrounding woods. Our House Wrens feed their second brood in one of our nest boxes.
The little wrens peek out from the entrance hole ones in a while and they make a lot of noise to let their parents know that they want more food. I have seen two juveniles for sure but it is possible that even three or four occupy the nest. Well, at least they make noise for four…😉 We expect them to leave the nest within the next few days.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender,
I just checked my photo archive from the last years. The first brood is usually raised in June and a second one is due in late July or early August. So they are right on schedule this year so far. In some years we saw them feeding as late as August 17, sometimes due to the loss of their eggs in July. We have a very active raccoon mother with two baby raccoons roaming around here… We will see what happens next. I hope you enjoy!
SCARLET TANAGER AND THE AMBIENT LIGHT
The Scarlet Tanager is a very secretive bird but sometimes the males show up at our suet feeders for a brief moment. Usually they also disappear very quickly again after getting a few peanuts. It is not so difficult to make any feeder pictures but it takes a lot more to make the click while they are in the trees around our house. The thick and lush canopy of our trees here swallows up a lot of light and locking in the focus can be a challenge. As always in these kind of situations I use the speed light only for flash fill, for boosting the colors and not as my main source of light. This means to shoot with slow shutter speeds (1/60s for this photo). The ambient light plays a big role for the environmental portraits I’m aiming for in my wildlife photography and using the full power of the flash light would just not deliver the results I’m looking for. Not having every single feather of the bird tack-sharp is the small price I have no problem to pay in this matter.
KNOWING THE LOCAL RESOURCES
Male House Wren
Sometimes time and the circumstances in our lives don’t allow to go the extra nine yards to make the next great image. Over the years I learned that for these situations it helps to know the local resources, work with well known subjects, and still be able to produce some interesting pictures.
At this time of the year the female House Wrens sit on their second clutch of eggs in one of our nest boxes and the males support and protect them from any kind of intruders. I have made many pictures of the little wrens over the years, so what can I still aim for? It is the gestures that never repeat one to one and that make the difference between the bird just sitting on a perch and a more interesting pose. So, here is the male, preening its feathers and guarding the nest. As soon the offspring is hatched the parents will be busy feeding the young House Wrens, and this is another good time to make a few clicks with very little efforts, even if the available shooting time is very limited…
A DRINK FROM THE BEE BALM
Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Joan has managed to grow over 35 Bee Balms this year in our front yard, more than we ever had so far. It’s not only good looking, it also attracts the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that spent the time between early May (sometimes late April) and the end of September here in our neck of the woods. We have quite a few hummingbird feeders out there but the nectar of these flowers is probably hard to beat as a source of food. All what it took to make this shot was patience and some consideration for the background.
NATURE CLICKS #338 - AMERICAN REDSTART
When this warbler, an American Redstart, landed on the dead branch, hanging down from a tree, quick decisions had to be made. The bird was there only for about two seconds. I knew immediately when I saw this in the viewfinder that it was all about luminosity for this shot, and not so much about detail or what else might be interesting for my friends in the “birder camp” or for the “technical purists”. The male American Redstart can be easily identified by the color pattern on its tail. Having the yellow side bands of its tail against the tree trunk in the background is for me the story telling element in this photo. It says it all, yes, I’m pretty, I’m spending the summer here in Eastern Iowa, I see you and the girls see me… ;-)… Yep, its artsy-fartsy, but I hope you can tell that I liked the moment and finally the photo that came out of it…
NATURE CLICKS #337 - COMMON WHITETAIL
Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
The Common Whitetail or Long-tailed Skimmer (Plathemis lydia) is a common dragonfly across much of North America (Wikipedia). Only the males have this white body. The females have a brown body and a different wing pattern. This dragonfly hawks for mosquitoes and other small flying insects. They often return to the same perch, like this spot on a rock, which makes getting a shot quite predictable and not so difficult.
I was hoping to point my lens actually at some birds along the Mississippi between Harpers Ferry and Lansing, Iowa, when this opportunity for a shot came up. Not enough time to go back to the car and change lenses, so I just stepped a few feet back and used the Sigma 150-600 for this photo. I can’t rave enough how pleased I am how this lens performs, even handheld.