Nature clicks #113 - Western Kingbird

I still like to write a little about my recent visit to Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake. The sun was only three hours away from its highest point that day when I discovered a Western Kingbird (another first sighting for me). It was sitting on a traffic sign and used it as a perch for hunting insects. As you can see very succesfully.

Any time if I'm in doubt about a species or want to confirm the encounters I make in Utah I go to Ron Dudley's blog "Feathered Photography". Ron is a retired teacher and has excellent knowledge about birds and critters and their behaviors. His photography is outstanding and the observations he has documented in his blog are very interesting. And of course, I found the Western Kingbird in his blog. The same was true for the Lark Sparrow in my last post. Ron spends a lot of time on this island and I hope one of these days, when business brings me back to Utah, I'll have a chance to meet him.

Nature clicks #112 - Lark Sparrow

 

If there is an abundance of wildlife in a particular location it is sometimes easy to forget the smaller birds and critters. It was very windy every day during my recent trip to Antelope Island and I didn't see many small birds anyway. This Lark Sparrow was a first sighting for me and so I made a few clicks, even if the bird was actually too far away for a good detail shot. This photo was sharp enough to consider a crop, and yes, I cropped it quite a bit. The result is an environmental portrait, good enough to show here and report about it, but too small for a large size print. Well, next time... ;-)

Nature clicks #111 - Black-necked Stilt

I only had one minute to work with a second bird of the Avocet and Stilt family before it flew away. My location was everything but good when I discovered two wonderful Black-necked Stilts right in front of me. I was slightly above the water level and tried actually to approach some gulls on a bank in the Great Salt Lake. The higher elevation allowed only to shoot from above and this is not an interesting shooting position for most animals. Ok, it was my first sighting of the stilt and at least I have now a few images in the "books". It is a beautiful bird and the next time I go to the Great Salt Lake I'll try to find them again and make the photo I have in mind.

I use the software iBird PRO on my iphone for identification and comparison of birds while I'm in the field. This eliminates the need to carry any books with me while traveling. There are always some interesting facts to learn and for the Black-necked Stilt it says that they have the second-longest legs in proportion to their bodies of any bird, exceeded only by flamingos.

Nature clicks #110 - Willets

 

As you can imagine I made many clicks last week on Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake, Utah. Back home I have to make the difficult decision which photos to choose for the blog or for my galleries at Pbase. Not always easy! First I look for images with a good light and mood. The first one is from my Saturday morning session and I love how the subtle light touches the Willet in the shallow water.

The second criterium is story telling. A particular gesture can make all the difference between one photo and the next. The Willets are not particular pretty birds but it looks sometimes almost elegant how they move in the water and search for food or clean themselves. The pictures that captured these gestures stand out from the rest and that's why I have chosen them. Still more to come...

Nature clicks #109 - American Bison

The biggest mammal on Antelope Island is the American Bison. There is a herd of about 500 bisons free roaming on the island according to the Utah State Park website. They seem to stay away from the part of the island that is easily accessible by car. I have never seen more than ten at a time. That's alright with me, bisons are such beautiful animals that I get excited even if I come close to just one of them. This bison bull was relatively close to the road so that I was able to shoot out of the safety of my rental car. The bull was feeding the whole time I watched him and it took forever to get a clear view of its face. Light was great, it was wildlife photography fun at its best....

Nature clicks #108 - American Avocet

 

Hi, I'm back home again after another week of business travel. The second part of my trip brought me to Salt Lake City in Utah. I spent three days there and had the chance to shoot two evenings and one morning in one of my favorite locations for wildlife photography. I have written here before about the abundant wildlife on Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake and it wasn't any different this time. Before I go to a location where I have been before I usually review my previous work and think about new goals I like to meet  or particular animals I want to focus on. This time I wanted to pay more attention to shore birds. The island is connected with the main land by a dam and the road on top of it is already a great place to watch out for birds. There were hundreds of American Avocets feeding in the shallow water. I like to show you how the light at different times of the day can change the outcome considerable.

Image #2 was made about mid afternoon. The sun and a very thin layer of clouds made for bright, but still soft light without harsh shadows. It was very acceptable for me.

Photos #1 and #3 were made the same day but five hours later at about 8:15PM. The sun was already close to the horizon and the colors developed a wonderful intensity. Oh, I love the evenings at the Great Salt Lake!

The last picture was made next morning about 7:45AM and the sun had developed some good power already. Dialing in exposure compensation between  -1.5EV and -2.5EV kept the white parts of the feathers intact and made also for a nice deep blue color of the water.

Which light situation did I like the best? To be honest, I liked them all. The afternoon light was like working with a softbox. The soft light reflected by the water minimized the shadows underneath the birds. The low sun in the morning and evening made for better colors. It was a great learning experience for me, and yes, the Avocets were very patient ... More to come...

Nature clicks #107 - Caspian Tern

I'm already in the next city on this week's business trip but still like to show you another image from my short visit to the Bolsa Chica Ecological Preserve two days ago. This Caspian Tern flew over my head a couple times and I'm very glad I can share this photo with you. I had a nice conversation with a local photographer and he helped me with identification of the birds and I learned a lot about their behavior. It is always nice when wildlife photographers share their knowledge about the local species with someone who is relatively new to the area. Terns are not always easy to identify and they may have a different look during the winter.

Nature clicks #106 - Foster's Tern

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

I flew to Los Angeles today because business requires my presence here tomorrow. The long daylight gave me the chance to visit the Bolsa Chica Ecological Preserve for a couple hours this evening. I have written several times before here in my blog how much I like these wetlands at the Pacific coast just south of Long Beach, California. At this time of the year we can't find by far as many birds here as during the winter. However, this is a place where always something is going on.

The light is just great for bird photography here in the evening and today I was able to make finally a picture of a Foster's Tern in flight that I really like. I have tried this many times before but never got the result I envisioned. These birds are very fast moving while hovering over the water and hunting for fish. The difficult part is not so much to get a sharp shot. The hard part is to get a catch light just right on the eye of the tern, so that it is clearly visible and doesn't just blend into the black cap of the bird. The Foster's Terns have nests nearby but the location does not allow a clear view into them. The adults look different than during the winter, when they miss the black cap but have a black eye patch and a dark bill instead. The Foster's Tern wasn't the only tern I saw today, but this is something for another "Nature clicks" post...

Nature clicks #105 - Common Snapping Turtle

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

Yesterday I promised you another wildlife encounter. I left our little tent early Sunday morning to look for some shooting opportunities at one of the lakes in Governor Dodge State Park, Wisconsin. I was actually looking for some wood ducks I had seen last fall. I saw the female with ten little ducklings but they were too far away for a good picture.

Instead I found this big Common Snapping Turtle on a sandy spot in the grass near Cox Hollow Lake. This was the closest I have ever been to one of these creatures. The dry duck weed on top of its upper shell told me that it must have been on land for some time already. This turtle had left quite a few "digging marks" in the sand and I was wondering if this was a female that just had laid her eggs into the sand.

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

As always, I tried not to disturb the animal and worked from a distance with a focal length between 270 and 500mm. The turtle gave me about 20 minutes before it slowly moved towards the water and disappeared. The Common Snapping Turtle may not be the prettiest animal on this planet but nevertheless it was very interesting to watch this aquatic ambush hunter with its beak-like jaws.

Nature clicks #104 - Least Bittern

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

A couple more from our excursion to the wetlands last weekend. I was very happy to see for the first time a Least Bittern. This small heron was patiently standing in the duck weed covered water and watching out for little fish. It is absolutely amazing how far they can stretch their necks while hunting for food in the muddy waters.