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.

BIRDS AT MAKOSHIKA

Orange-crowned Warbler, Makoshika State Park, Montana, September 2020

Wherever we go on vacation we always keep track what kind of birds or critters we see, even if not every encounter leads necessarily to a photo opportunity. A place like Makoshika State Park in Montana, with Pondarosa pines, red cedars, grasses, and shrubs provides food for many birds and other animals. We had a remote campsite on a ridge above a canyon and many tree tops were on eye level. This gave us a good position and view for birds who may have been otherwise high above our heads. This sounds easy but the biggest challenge was to manage the harsh light. Other than that, you can sit in your camping chair, read a book, and just wait until warblers, kinglets, or nuthatches show up. Most of the time you hear them way before you see them…

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Red-breasted Nuthatch, All photos: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

MA-KO’-SHI-KA

During the height of a day areas of badlands do not always reveal their beauty completely. This is in particular true for days with a lot of sunshine and hazy weather conditions. That wasn’t any different at our next destination, Makoshika State Park in eastern Montana. It is the largest state park in Montana (11,538 acres, 46.7 square kilometer) and the name originates from the Lakota phrase Ma-ko’-shi-ka, meaning ‘bad land’ or ‘bad earth’. The park is not just known for its badland formations but also for fossil remains of Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops and others. (source: http://stateparks.mt.gov/makoshika/)

Getting out of the sleeping bag at dawn and having the camera ready before the first rays of sun hit the rocks isn’t always easy, but there was no regret when the warm light started filling the canyons below our campsite.

All images: Nikon D750, Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm, f/4G ED VR

MOON AND CLOUDS IN MOTION

Moon light and clouds over Little Missouri National Grassland, North Dakota

Most nights during our trip out west we had moon light giving the landscape some shape. That was great and led to opportunities for night photography. The downside, as everybody knows, is making the Milky Way the subject of an image, this was not an option, except for the days at the end of the trip.

We had this National Forest campsite just outside of Theodore Roosevelt National Park almost for ourselves. When the moon light touched the fence, that was there to keep the cattle out, and clouds moved fast across the sky, I tried a 69 second exposure to make the dynamic in the sky visible. The light reflected by the fence leads into the picture. The stars show already a little trail. I have more photos with shorter exposure time and blending two pictures together would be an option, but I still like how this turned out.

NATURE CLICKS #470 - NORTHERN BOBWHITE

Male Northern Bobwhite, Durango, Iowa

I had actually planned to continue with more photos from our trip through the badlands of the Dakotas and eastern Montana but yesterday the sighting of a Northern Bobwhite got me all excited. The first and last time I had one of these “New World Quails” in front of the lens was in May 2007, just a month after I started shooting seriously digital with a Nikon D200. The Cornell Lab Website ALL ABOUT BIRDS writes:  Bobwhites have been in sharp decline throughout the past half-century, likely owing to habitat loss and changes in agriculture, and they are an increasingly high priority for conservation.   I guess I can confirm the fact of decline in population!

The bird is easy to identify and when I saw this male crossing the road while driving downhill into our valley I hit the brakes hard. Driving with the camera in my lap and the bobwhite posing nicely for a few seconds, I got the shot. Unfortunately I had only 200 mm focal length, hence that cropping of the photo was employed.

This wasn’t really far from our neighborhood and I wonder if the population of the Northern Bobwhite here is larger than I thought. I’ll keep my eyes open…

LOVE FOR THE SEASON

Road to Finleys Landing at the Mississippi River, @ 200 mm, slightly cropped

It doesn’t take much to have some love for the fall season if you use a camera and capture the colors and moods of autumn. The haziness of the summer is gone, the air is often crisp and clear, and most important, the quality of light at this time of the year is in your favor. Strong winds and a little bit of rain have stripped off a lot of leaves during the last few days but fall colors ares still out there. It just takes a slightly different approach during the shooting, and also in post process, to make light, color, and shapes of the foliage still the subject of the photo and keep the clutter of already bare branches suppressed in the photo.

I have four pictures today, all from last week, all with the same kind of subject, all shot with the Nikon D750 and Nikkor 70-200, f/4 lens, but each made with a different distance and angle of view. Please let me know what you think. I like to hear if it helps your photography and if you prefer a particular way to tell the story about fall colors with your own photos. Every contribution will get a reply. I love to hear from you!

Bankston County Park at the bottom of the valley, @ 105 mm, slightly cropped

Closeup shot at Whitewater Canyon Wildlife Area, Iowa, @ 160 mm, ~40% cropped for a different aspect ratio

Near Bankston County Park, Iowa @ 200 mm, cropped at top and bottom for less boring blue in the sky and distracting dead branches at the lower part of the image

FALL COLORS AND LIGHT

Hard to believe that was already a week ago. The Dubuque Camera Club had invited to a little photo walk at Eagle Point Park in Dubuque, Iowa. The park is high up on the bluffs above the Mississippi River and lock & dam #11. It is tempting to shoot only the great vista across the river, but with the low sitting afternoon sun I thought the fall details in the park deserved our attention as well. There is a small pond, built from big limestone rocks and that’s where I found the most inspiration.

It was an afternoon well spent, with good conversation and I can’t imagine that anybody who participated didn’t have fun shooting the colors and light of autumn.

FALL COLORS - NORTHEAST IOWA AT ITS BEST

Turkey River, near Motor Mill, Iowa

The five photos I show you today don’t need a lot of text. Gorgeous weather and fall colors probably at their peak last weekend in Northeast Iowa. We pitched the tent for a night at Motor Mill along the Turkey River. Finding the colors wasn’t the problem, finding a way to let the light tell the story is the challenge that is left to us…

As always, a click on each photo gives you an enlarged view.

NATURE CLICKS #469 - AMERICAN KESTREL

Female American Kestrel, Little Missouri National Grasslands, North Dakota

Here in eastern Iowa the American Kestrel can be found even during winter. Up in the northwest part of North Dakota the kestrel migrates south for the cold season. The picture was made just a few miles south of Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s North Unit. Whenever possible, most wildlife photographers try to keep the human made elements out of the frame. This is quite difficult with the American Kestrel because 90 percent of the time I find them perching on an electrical power line. This gives you no sense of location and who really loves these “wire shots”?

This female American Kestrel posed nicely on a bale of hey in a field beside the gravel road. Sure, this is a human made thing, but the difference to the “unknown wire” is that a bale of hey gives you a sense of location. Yes, grassland, fields, and prairie are preferred habitats for this bird. During summer time large insects, like grasshoppers, are their main diet, while during winter months small mammals, birds, and amphibians are on the menu.

NATURE CLICKS #468 - SCARLET TANAGER

Male in its non-breeding plumage during fall migration

Since five days we have an unusual visitor at the suet feeder next to my home office window. This male Scarlet Tanager waits patiently until no woodpecker or other bird is present and takes his turn for a meal. Usually early in May we see up to a dozen tanagers after they arrive from South America. I have posted photos and have written about these beautiful birds every spring but we have never seen one during fall migration. At this time of the year the males have already traded their red feathers for green-yellow. We know that some Scarlet Tanagers breed in our woods, but they spend most of the time high up in the canopy and are hardly seen near the ground during the summer. Now we wonder if this is a bird that was here for the last few months or if he is just on his journey through to the forests in South America.

The photo was made through the admittedly not very clean window next to my desk with the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 at 175 mm. As almost always I shot in Aperture priority mode and to compensate for the bright background the exposure compensation was set to +1.66. The “Dehaze-slider” in Lightroom took care for the haze and blur effect from the window glass.

CANNONBALL CONCRETIONS

Cannonball Concretions, Theodore Roosevelt NP, North Dakota

There are many stunning geological features in the badland areas of Montana, South and North Dakota. One that nobody should miss while visiting the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park is Cannonball Concretions.

Here is my tip: If you visit the National Park, go to the Cannonball Concretions pull-out any time during the day. Explore the area, read and learn about the cannonball concretions on educational displays, take your selfie pictures or try to find a critter, and just have fun being there. However, come back for your serious photography of these fascinating geological features about an hour before sunset, when the slope and concretions reveal their colors and shades become almost horizontal.

You’ll find endless photo opportunities and even after several visits you probably discover shapes and structures you may have missed before. It is quiet, it is peaceful, and if you are able to disconnect for a moment from the rush of the modern world , you may start to understand why places like this had always a special meaning for Native people, long before the land was taken away from them.

FOLLOWING ROOSEVELT’S TRACKS

Near the Elkhorn Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

I have always said I never would have been President if it had not been for my experiences in North Dakota. - Theodore Roosevelt, 1918

This photo was created not far from the Elkhorn Ranch, President Theodore Roosevelt’s ranch in North Dakota. Today this historic ground is a small part of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, called the Elkhorn Unit. 1884 Roosevelt moved to North Dakota and became a cattle rancher after he was devastated by personal tragedy and owned land on both sides of the Little Missouri River. He credited his Dakota experience as the basis for his ground-breaking preservation efforts and the shaping of his own character. Under his presidency (1901-09) 18 national monuments were proclaimed and he worked with congress to create 5 national parks, 150 national forests, and dozens of federal reserves - over 230 million acres of protected land. (source: National Park Service brochure)

It was a gorgeous but windy day when we visited this part of the Little Missouri Valley. Some things had probably not changed much since Roosevelt rode his horse along the river. The beauty of the surrounding North Dakota badlands and the great skies we were able to see are certainly among them.

The clouds over the valley moved fast and the questions was how to incorporate them into the story about this valley? Going wide, or going tall? Well, I wasn’t sure, as so often, and tried both. I finally decided for the tall orientation. It shows less of the valley and less of the clouds, but gives a better idea about the vastness of the landscape with the wind-beaten grass and sage in the foreground.

Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35mm / f4, B+W F-PRO Kaesemann High Transmission Circular Polarizer MRC filter,   @ 16 mm, 1/320s, f/11, ISO200,

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…

WE ONLY CAN IMAGINE…

American Bison along South Fork Sage Creek, Badlands National Park, South Dakota

We only can imagine how it was when more than 60 million of American Bison once roamed on the plaines and grasslands of North America in search for the best places to feed and to survive the impact of the weather. Today only a number of about 31,000 wild bison can be found, maintained mainly by National or State Parks.

We always know that we have arrived in the west when we see the herd of bison in Badlands National Park, South Dakota again. This time it was very special. While dinner time was already over we sat in our camping chairs and watched them across Sage Creek moving up the valley. With the setting sun in our back the light was gorgeous .

Theodore Roosevelt National Park, South Unit, North Dakota

It was quite windy five days later up in North Dakota when we saw a smaller herd in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The bison had retrieved into a small side valley but we were able to park the car safely and tried to get some shots of these majestic animals.

Both photos: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, @ 600 mm,

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.