Since yesterday we have a Red-breasted Nuthatch around here. They spent the summer up north in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Canada. Although I spent several hours this weekend to get a shot with the bird away from a bird feeder, I did not succeed. The Nuthatch flies in pretty straight right up to a feeder with sunflower seeds, picks up a seed, and flies off into the woods. Its cousin, the White-breasted Nuthatch, who is a permanent resident here in eastern Iowa, goes usually first to a tree trunk and makes sure the feeder area is safe before it gets to the food source. This makes it much easier to get a picture. The red-breasted is smaller and very easy to identify because of the black eyestripe and of course color. I hope the nuthatch stays for a few more days and I still can get a shot with the bird on a tree trunk or branch. My records show that the last time I saw one in our woods was in May 2013. I guess it’s time for a new photo… 😊
NOW HERE AGAIN, CEDAR WAXWINGS
A few days ago I posted a photo of a Cedar Waxwing in the rain, shot up north at Lake Superior in Ontario, Canada. Today we had many of them around here in our woods. This is not the first time that we see them in the fall, mostly in company with large numbers of American Robins.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head
It is probably the berries of the Red Cedars (Juniperus virginiana) that may attract them to hang around here at this time of the year. During the summer we have seen them mostly along the shore of lakes or rivers we paddled with our kayaks. Beside the food from the trees the waxwings take advantage of the water we provide at four different places. With so many other birds around at the moment it is less dangerous to stick the head in the bowl and drink. If a predator shows up there will be plenty of warnings for them.
MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2016 #11 - FALL COLORS
Mississippi River overlook near Guttenberg, Iowa ----------
My business commitments required a trip to La Crosse, Wisconsin today and driving the “Great River Road” along the Mississippi towards Minnesota is probably my favorite drive from Dubuque, Iowa. Last weekend Joan and I where just up in this most beautiful part of Iowa again for another camping trip. We had great weather, still warm and sunny, but I didn’t bring home many pictures that told the colorful story of fall.
Four days can make a big difference here at this time of the year. We had a lot of rain in the last days and many of the leaves in our valley came down. Most importantly those leaves still hanging from the trees got finally a real color change. On my way back this evening I stopped at several places at the big river to look again for migrating birds and took the time to capture the essence of autumn. We had a heavy overcast and even some rain sprinkles today but the range of light was reduced to 3-4 f-stops, which to me means “great light” for revealing the warm colors without glare.
All images: Nikon D750, Nikkor 24-120mm / f4
The water level of the Mississippi raised again after all the rain of the last couple days. Many islands and parts of the backwaters are submerged in water. I have seen this fallen tree sticking in nothing but mud before and would have never thought of getting the camera out of the bag. Well, it is impossible for me to just walk by if nature reveals its beauty in such artful way. I know, some may see only a dead tree sticking in the muddy waters of the Mississippi…
NATURE CLICKS #345 - CEDAR WAXWING IN THE RAIN
Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada -----------
Here is the question, what do you do if it rains out in the wilderness? The only answer I can give, take the camera with you, otherwise you will miss some of the best story telling shots. This Cedar Waxwing was the only one we saw during our trip around Lake Superior. It looked a little bit pitiful with its wet feathers on this gray and misty day, but the waxwing is such a pretty bird and I had to give it a try.
Using a flash light for enhancing the colors was not really an option in the rain. No matter how much the flash power is dialed down, it is difficult to go without unwanted reflections. Handholding the D750 / 150-600 combo and following the fast moving bird required a much higher ISO setting than I like to use for my wildlife photography. The photo was made at 1/200 s, f/6.3, and ISO800. This was obviously enough for a proper exposure and still slow enough to show the rain as small strings in the background. The rain drops on leaves and twigs and the wet shimmer on the waxwing’s feathers are all story telling elements that are important for this photo.
OUIMET CANYON
Ouimet Canyon Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada ---------
Back to our Lake Superior roundtrip in August / September. Ouimet Canyon is a gorge, cut into the rocks of Lake Superior’s northern shore. Ice, wind, and rain, the architects of time, have chiseled deep into the Canadian shield to form one of the most striking canyons of eastern Canada. (source: Information board at Ouimet Canyon Provincial Park). There were two theories discussed how this canyon was created, and the geologists among us may have their own ideas (Anke?), but for the photographer the story telling about the magnificence of the place has precedence. We got there mid morning, too late for the lifting fog of that day, but still early enough to beat the high contrast of an average summer day. As much as I dislike places where tourists like me gather in large numbers (yes, I throw stones out of the glass house.. ;-) , we had this canyon view surprisingly all for ourselves.
The bottom of the canyon is about 100 meters deeper (more than 300 feet) and the flora and fauna below is about the same as you’d find on the shores of Hudson Bay, 1,000 km to the north. This is mind boggling, but facts like this enhance my appreciation beyond any photographic expectations…
READY FOR A DRINK (OR A BATH)
American Robin -------
The days are getting shorter quickly and there isn’t much daylight left after I’m done with my work. On the positive side are the more frequent visits of many birds in our yard. Today we had four different woodpecker species around here and I saw a Brown Creeper going up the trunk of a tree. A first this season.
In the fall the American Robins stick together in small flocks and take advantage of our four bird bath bowls. The photo opportunity comes right before they go to the water source. Most of the time they perch briefly on a branch or sticks I have mounted near the bath. The robins look carefully around before they jump or fly to the water bowl to make sure no predator is nearby.
I shot in “sniper mode”, with the Better Beamer flash extender for color enhancement. The sun was already behind the trees but left still some ambient light for this photo. A few minutes later it would have been too dark and using flash as my main source of light is not an option.
1/80 s, f/6.3, @600 mm, ISO 400, -1EV, Flash -4, 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
LATE SUMMER DAY, PLANS CHANGED
Pied-billed Grebe, Green Island Wetlands, Mississippi River, Iowa -----
Yesterday I went out to capture actually some fall pictures, since the leaves started turning here, but despite the ongoing duck hunting season I saw a lot of bird activities in the Green Island Wetlands. I couldn’t let this go and kept the long lens on the D750 the whole time. No, not any “exotic” birds but the usual residents did their best to impress me in the wonderful light and warm weather of what I would still call a late summer day. Well, the leaves can wait…😉
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
It is not so difficult to make a photo of the Pied-billed Grebe while they swim on the water between their dives for food. The pied-billed is not as shy as many ducks and over the years I have been able to succeed many times with the Pied-billed Grebe in the viewfinder. So why pointing the lens again and again at this cute little grebe? For me it is the logical next step in order to become better with my photography. The biology of birds can be very complex and there is always a gesture or pattern in behavior that is worth to be documented or bares its own beauty if captured in great light and when the moment is right.
FOX, …YEP, GETTING CLOSE
Red Fox - Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada ----------
I wrote about his young fox already a few days ago. If you missed this post, please feel free to click right HERE. After the critter lost focus on a possible prey, somewhere in the ditch beside the gravel road, it walked right towards us. I had to shorten the focal length of the Sigma 150-600 mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens quickly in order to make this photo. As I often state, I’m more an environmental shooter than an eyeball photographer, but this photo is kinda the golden mean in my humble opinion…
LIFTING FOG
Rabbit Blanket Lake, Ontario Canada
If an area of rain-laden clouds moves out of the area overnight and the weather forecast promises nothing but sunshine for the next day, you better get out of your sleeping bag early and put the legs of your tripod in the sand wherever you have spotted a good photo opportunity ahead of time.
At Rabbit Blanket Lake in Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario we camped right next to the lake. When the fog lifted in the morning the clicks were made quickly, while the gorgeous light of the raising sun was present. You can’t start better into a new day…
NATURE CLICKS #344 - COMMON LOON
Mijinemungshing Lake in Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada
If there was one photo I really wanted to make during our tour around Lake Superior, it is this one. Up north you can hear the calls of the loon at many forested lakes or ponds. They often call at night and I think it is one of the greatest sounds in nature. Getting close to the bird and making the click is a big challenge if you sit in a kayak. The loons eat mostly fish and forage by diving from the water surface and chase down their prey underwater. They can dive up to 65 meters (200 feet) below the surface and the eyes of a loon can focus both in air and water. For a photographer it is not really predictable where the loon will show up next and I’m glad you couldn’t hear me cursing many times…
The photo was made during a paddle tour on Mijinemungshing Lake in Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. There was no other car in the parking lot next to the boat landing and at the end of the gravel road, means we had the lake for ourselves. Paddling doesn’t get any better than that!
COASTAL HIKE AT NEYS
Lake Superior, Neys Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada ------------
I like to take you back to our trip around Lake Superior about a month ago and show you a couple more pictures. One of the most interesting trails we hiked along the rocky coast line was the “Under the Volcano Trail” in Neys Provincial Park. Beside being a good terrain for adventure with great photography it reveals Neys’ unique geologic, glacial, and volcanic history.
These abandoned old boats cannot be ignored for a photograph. Joan and I spent quite some time there and tried to find the best way to make the click that tells the story.
All images: Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35mm / f4
FIRST FALL PHOTOS
We pitched our tent in Wyalusing State Park, Wisconsin this weekend and were rewarded with wonderful and sunny fall weather. Located at the confluence of the Wisconsin and Mississippi rivers, the bluffs and valleys of Wyalusing belong to the same drift-less area we call home. The leaves just started to change colors although many are still green. The air was crisp and clear, other than the haze we see often during the summer, and this gives the light a different quality. I wanted to challenge myself and took only one prime lens with me during our hikes in the park, the SIGMA 150/ f2.8. My older version of this lens is a little slow with focus, but this doesn’t play a big role when hunting for light and colors in the woods is the goal.
NATURE CLICKS #343 - HERRING GULL
Marie Louise Lake, Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada -------
Making a picture of a Gull is not too difficult, they are usually anywhere near a big body of water. It has to be something special involved, like a great natural light situation or a story telling aspect that can make a photo of an ordinary bird, like a gull, standing out from the rest. This Herring Gull was interestingly enough the only gull we saw during one of our kayak tours on Marie Louise Lake in Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. It just had caught a fish and was still messing with it as we drifted towards the shore with our boats. Usually a gull takes off and flies away if you get too close but this one didn’t want to give up the fish at all costs.
It is the low perspective that makes these shots special for me and the pictures from this incident tell the story.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
LOOKING DOWN, MANDATORY IN BAD WEATHER
Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario, Canada
When we have to deal with a gray overcast and maybe drizzle or rain it is tempting to leave the camera in a safe and dry place while going on a hike. By doing so it is guaranteed that most of the time we would just skip opportunities that may lead to a shot the “fair-weather-shooter” will probably never see. This is not the time for the great vistas but by keeping the eyes on the ground, between the rocks, bushes and trees, you will come back with a nature shot that is at least not the same the guy before you had already posted on the internet.
We had such a day while camping and spending time in Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario, Canada. I actually get excited if fast moving clouds, wind, and weather provide moments a bald, uniform blue sky will never deliver. Hiking through rugged terrain on the Manito Miikana trail, on a peninsula surrounded by the waters of Lake Superior, we saw this spot with rocks, ferns, moss, and lichens. Light wasn’t there in abundance but enough to make the click at 1/30s, f/8, and ISO 640. Sure, I could have made the picture at f/4 to get a faster shutter speed but I really wanted more depth of field since my subject wasn’t just the ferns but the whole scene. See the reflections on the ferns caused by the rain water? Yep, I left the polarizer in the camp site…😏
NATURE CLICKS #342 - RED FOX PUP
Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens -----
The morning when we pulled out of Sleeping Giant Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada and moved on with our tour around Lake Superior we decided to check out another small lake not far from the road. As we came around a corner we suddenly saw this young Red Fox right beside the gravel road. We stopped, sneaked carefully out of the car and started shooting. The fox decided to ignore us. There were several challenges to master beside not scaring the critter away. One was to deal with some “stupid” grass in the foreground. I have several images where it is right in front of the eye. Not good! The second challenge was the backlight situation. I have ruined many photos in the past with similar light but this time I learned from previous mistakes and chose the right exposure compensation. The rim light separates the fox from the background and works very well for this shot. Starting a day like this is hard to beat… 😊