GULLS WITH CHARACTER

Ring-billed Gull, Mississippi River, Sabula. Iowa

The local nature enthusiasts and photography friends may probably say, oh, just a Ring-billed Gull, we have so many of them. It’s true, but I always give the more common species a chance to be presented here in my blog. There is a few ingredients for a photo like this. Last weekend the remaining ice in the little marina of Sabula, Iowa had this dark blue color that makes for that nice background and you only see it in the old ice of a season. A blue sky is mandatory and of course, the gulls have to cooperate. And if you have in addition a nice light from the side, the camera has to come out of the bag for sure.

It was actually pretty busy. The birds caught little fish and argued about them a lot. some of the birds are really characters. This one looks like the cat that had eaten the canary. It just had gobbled down a fish, looked up into the sky for the other competitors, and seemed to think, haha, you didn’t get it, I did! Can you tell I had fun making these photos?

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE BACKGROUND (AGAIN)

Greater Sandhill Cranes, Mississippi Valley, Green Island Wetlands

Who can blame me? The transition between winter and spring is the most exciting time of the year for a lot of nature lovers and photographers. For the third weekend in a row I went back to one of my favorite wildlife spots in the area, the Green Island Preserve wetland area, about 40 miles south and part of the ecosystem of the Mississippi River. It was not as busy with ducks and geese as last weekend, but still a great place to enjoy wildlife, chase the light for a good image, or just inhale the sounds and moods of the season.

After trying hard on a pair of Sand Hill Cranes without an image even worth to mention, another pair of cranes gave me later finally quite a good display. The challenge in spring is always finding a good background. The cranes forage not so much in the water but in the marshes and probe with their long bills in the mud between reeds and grasses from last year. In addition the access to the Green Island marshes and lakes is almost everywhere from a slightly elevated position, on top of a dyke or the road. This makes the lens pointing towards the ground even if it is only a slight angle.

So, what’s different with today’s photo? The Sandhill Cranes were on top of a dyke. I was in the car on the road and a body of water between me and the birds. With other words we were on the same eye level. The area behind the cranes is lakes, marshland, more dykes, and flat overall. The trees in the back are about two miles away and border the Mississippi River. This is the kind of background I like to have. It gives a sense of location and even the grasses around the cranes become part of the story and leave no doubt about what time of the year the photo was taken. I wish the cranes would feed more often on top of the dykes…😉

LAST FOR THE SEASON: ICY ART

With winter coming slowly but surely to an end I thought to wrap up my little project for the season. I had fun to find patterns, shapes, reflections, and colors in ice, on rivers, lakes, on glass, or even just at the surface of a frozen bird bath. Not all pictures made it into the new collection but I thought a few were worth to be shown. If you like to see the whole gallery, just click on the photo and it will open the ICY ART collection for you. Have a marvelous weekend!

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2021 #3 - ICE? GONE!

Mississippi River, Marina entrance at Mud Lake, Iowa

Two days ago I reported about the break up of the ice on the mighty Mississippi. Today I went back, and wow, the main channel of the river had completely open water, all the way to the Wisconsin side. The rocky bluffs in the background are 2 kilometers away from Mud Lake Park, where this photo was made. There is still some ice in the quiet backwaters that don’t have much current, or like here, in the entrance to the little marina at Mud Lake. 

Our part of the river was already in the shade this evening when I started shooting, but with the setting sun in my back, there was still a photo that could be made. I tried to find an angle with some warm light in the big water puddle that contrasts nicely with the dark blue of the last ice. A few days ago people were still sitting on their buckets, trying to catch a fish through a hole in the ice. Very soon the first boats will leave the marina for their first trip of the season…

Nikon D750, Nikkor 70-200mm / f4,   @70 mm, 1/320 s, f/8, ISO100

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2021 #2 - A FAVORITE

115 years old swing railroad bridge across the Mississippi between Sabula, Iowa and Savannah, Illinois

You may have seen photos of this old railroad bridge here in my blog before. No wonder, any time I head south along the big river to Sabula, Iowa’s only town on an island, I have to stop and take a look at this nice piece of engineering. This single track swing bridge between Iowa and Illinois was opened in 1906. It hasn’t lost any of its charm to me and is still one of my favorite men-made subjects for a photo along the Mississippi River.

Last weekend the ice started melting around the bridge and made for a more interesting foreground than at other times before. I put my only manual focus lens, the Zeiss 35/f2 on the camera and set the picture control of the D750 to Monochrome mode. I always shoot in RAW and if I would change my mind later, a color image can still be extracted from the recorded data of the RAW file. But setting the picture control to ‘Monochrome’ allows to view the results immediately in black and white on the screen of the camera. 

Nikon D750, Zeiss Distagon T* 2/35 ZF, 1/160 s, f/11, ISO100

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2021 #1 - THE ICE BREAKS UP

Yes, in 2021 I will continue with my visual Mississippi River stories that can be told with a photograph. Today the ice was finally in motion and big floes drifted slowly down the stream. I’m always amazed how high it can pile up if anything is in its path. I have photographed this marker near the end of the dike at John Deere Marsh several times before, and I knew it would help to tell the story about the break up of the ice on the Mississippi River. The SIGMA 150-600 is not my typical lens for landscape photography but I love the effect you can get for a picture like this. 

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,     @ 330 mm, 1/1000 s, f/8, ISO100

GEESE AND OTHERS ON THE MOVE

Greater White-fronted Geese, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa

Yesterday I took another trip to the Green Island Wetlands, and boy, what a change to the weekend before. The snow is melting really fast and a few spots had finally open water. With that said, food sources become available for all kinds of birds and they indeed move in immediately. I saw seven Greater Sandhill Cranes, a big flock of Red-winged Blackbirds occupied some trees, and twice the call of a Killdeer filled the air, although I didn’t see any. But the biggest sign of spring for me were several overflights of Greater White-fronted Gees

Canada Geese

Wherever the ice had disappeared and open water was available, pairs of Canada Geese had moved in and jockeyed for the best spots. Some may travel further north but the Green Island Wetlands are a popular breeding ground for Canada Geese.

What else, of course a number of Bald Eagles. I discovered another nest location, which is the fourth one I’m aware of in this area. Other raptors can be watched, like a Northern Harrier, Red-tailed Hawks, and for the first time I saw a Rough-legged Hawk at Green Island.

Getting close enough to a particular bird is always the biggest challenge for any photographer. If you finally have your bird in the viewfinder and you just can’t get it sharp, despite you do everything right, you probably deal with heat shimmer. The warm air above the remaining cold snow and ice creates this inferior mirage that prevents a sharp image. A problem that can’t be ignored, especially when working with a long lens. Sometimes it is better just to watch and enjoy the moment…

YESTERDAY WAS WORLD WILDLIFE DAY

Downy Woodpecker

Yesterday was World Wildlife Day and everybody but me posted a nice wildlife photo on Instagram or other popular websites. I simply forgot about it 🙄. By writing this blog on my website I try to create awareness about wildlife since 2010 and maybe you can forgive me. The photo is actually from yesterday evening and this Downy Woodpecker posed nicely on the old cedar tree trunk in the last bit of sunshine. This winter we had up to six of North America’s smallest woodpeckers here and they are usually not as shy and skittish as their larger cousins. I always enjoy having them in front of the lens and the Downy is my choice to celebrate World Wildlife Day this year, even if it is belated… 😊

LONG SHADOWS ON ICE

Mississippi River, Dubuque, Iowa

The railroad bridge in Dubuque across the Mississippi River has been my subject many times before over the years. Usually I like to get a little closer to the bridge and have a more compressed effect, but the fast moving clouds and constantly changing light made me aim for a different kind of image last Sunday. Joan pointed out the long shadows of the arches on the ice and I reframed what I saw in the viewfinder to have them all in the photo. Snow and ice are melting rapidly at the moment and I’m almost sure the same picture can’t be made for a while…

NATURE CLICKS #484 - JUVENILE BALD EAGLE

It was about time to make a trip along the Mississippi River again. Despite the warm weather we had last week, the river is still frozen almost everywhere and most fields and marshes are snow covered. Food sources are still limited for many birds and it took me a while to find an animal that triggered my desire to make a photograph. However, it was a sunny and relatively warm day and it was just nice to be out and about.

This juvenile Bald Eagle was perched in a tree next to the boat landing in Bellevue, Iowa. This is just below the lock and dam and was one of the few few spots on the river without ice cover. It takes the Bald Eagle about four to five years to acquire adult plumage, with their distinctive white head and tail feathers. This one looks like it is in its second year, with some white mottling on its breast and belly already present.

After a few ‘safety shots’ I zoomed with my feet , back and forth, left and right, and tried to find a spot where no branch cuts through the eagles head. Not paying attention to this kind of detail is a mistake I made way too many times in the past during bird photography. The eagle was very cooperative, turned its head around a few times, but stayed in the same position and gave me all the time I needed to make the photo you see today.

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,   1/400 s, f/8, ISO 100, @600 mm, shot in FX mode but cropped in post for DX dimensions.

IOWA VINEYARD

The long shadows give you an idea when this photo was taken today. The snow is melting rapidly and I went out into the countryside around here, hoping to find some light, colors, or gesture that may tell the story about this time of the season. I came to a stop on a muddy and slippery gravel road that leads through one of the local vineyards. 

Despite the hard winters we often experience, eastern Iowa is home of a growing number of wineries. It shouldn’t be a real surprise, we are on the same latitude as parts of Spain or Italy, both big wine producing countries. Well, I have friends in South Africa that read my blog and hey, I just want assure you, the Iowa wine is OK, but the fine wine from your part of the world is hard to beat!

Why does this image has a meaning to me? Iowa is all about big farming, corn or soybeans, not much else, monoculture at its best. It is one of the states where automation will change farming technology quickly and as a result will change local infrastructures. Wine growing is most likely not a solution for the rest of the state, but here, between the ridges, valleys, and hills of the drift-less area, it may have a place to allow some local entrepreneurs to make a living.

Let’s talk photography. A photo of a vineyard means probably nothing in California or Washington State (gosh, love their wines!) Here in Iowa it isn’t the most common thing and making the click of grapevine, growing out of snow covered ground, well, is even special to me…

NATURE CLICKS #483 - AMERICAN KESTREL, A PAIR

Male American Kestrel, near Sherrill, Iowa

I see them quite often in the same area. Most of the time the kestrels take off as soon the car stops. Not so today! Their preferred perch are the utility wires around here. Today’s photos were taken at different times. First I saw the male kestrel on my way to the Mississippi River. The picture is cropped because I stopped in a safe distance. I debated with myself if the pole should be included but is so much part of the story that I decided to keep it in the frame. Right after I continued driving I saw suddenly the female kestrel with a mouse flying away from the ground. Rodents, like mice or voles, and small birds are their main food source during the winter. The weather got much warmer the last couple days, the snow is melting rapidly, and I’m sure the mice stuck their heads out of the holes to find food as well. For some this obviously ends fatal.

Female American Kestrel

The second photo was made on my way back at the same spot. I didn’t see the male but the female American Kestrel perched nicely on the utility wire next to the road. This time I stopped almost beneath the bird but she didn’t pay attention to my presence at all and it took almost a minute before this little falcon turned her head in my direction.

The American Kestrel is the smallest but most common falcon in North America. They are migratory birds and the pair I saw today again may move further north pretty soon. However, here in the Midwest kestrels can be watched all-season.

THE DETAIL SHOTS

Apple Canyon Lake Falls, Illinois

Yesterday’s shooting below the dam of Apple Canyon Lake over in Illinois was one of the most enjoyable recently. Yesterday was also Ansel Adams 119th birthday, and with that in mind I thought to feed my desire to aim maybe for some new black & white images. Well, there is some potential in some of the over 100 pictures I shot yesterday but I usually like to sleep over them a few times.

To be honest, I’m happy how the color versions of some of the photos turned out. As mentioned in yesterday’s blog post, I never took the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 off the camera and the two pictures I show today were made at the long end of the lens. I wonder how this waterfall looks at the rest of the year, but the frosty appearance was definitely worth to make the trip over to Apple Canyon Lake in Illinois. Thank you again Kevin for the tip!

WATERFALL!! (OH NO, NOT IN ICELAND! 😉)

Waterfall at Apple Canyon Lake, Illinois

Today’s photo was made thanks to a call from my photography friend Kevin this morning. This waterfall is the overflow from Apple Canyon Lake in northwest Illinois. Kevin made me aware of some ice built-ups at the fall and he sent me a nice photo that was made yesterday. We expect much warmer weather for the next days and I knew the ice would not last too long. That’s why I didn’t hesitate to make the one hour trip across the Mississippi into the neighbor state this afternoon.

The photography was pretty straight forward. You shoot from a road bridge and decide how far left or right to move the tripod. The question is only about the focal length or how tight you like to frame the waterfall or its details. I started with the Nikkor 70-200, f/4 and never changed lens for the next 85 minutes. I like the water a little silky but not so much that it looks like it runs straight out of a milk cow. The BREAKTHROUGH X4 ND filter 1.8 (6-stops) was the tool that got me the desired results. Most photos were exposed between 4 and 8 seconds.

A thin layer of clouds made for very balanced shooting conditions. Just as I had shouldered my photo bag and was about to walk back to the car, the sun peeked through the clouds and changed the whole appearance of the waterfall. The colors looked nice, I started shooting again, but at the end I still liked my shots with the softener, called clouds, better. I guess this is personal taste and I’m just not a fan of the “postcard look”…

AT THE SCENE OF THE CRIME

I came back from a short trip to the post office today when I found one of our bird feeders unscrewed from its hook on the balcony deck and laying on the ground below. I thought I must have not tightened the screw enough and it became loose while one of our numerous Gray Squirrels had occupied the feeder. I picked it up, put it back to its place, and went on with business. Later in the afternoon Joan’s call, ‘raccoon in the tree’, made me running for the camera.

Indeed, a raccoon had climbed the elm tree that grows next to the balcony deck. It tried to hide behind the tree trunk and it became clear who the thief of bird seeds really was. Making a good click wasn’t so easy. First, I had problems finding a gap between the branches and still having some decent light available, and second, the raccoon tried to “play possum”, pretending to sleep or feigning death. The critter was hiding its face and even closed the eyes, like people sometimes do when they don’t want their picture taken. But raccoons are curious too and so I waited patiently until this guy tried to check me out again and peeked from behind the tree. Raccoons are smart animals and this one has probably unscrewed a bird feeder not for the first time to get it on the ground for an easy meal…