Nature clicks #135 - Pine Siskin

 

Let me talk about some housekeeping things first. As you maybe have recognized I created a new header for the blog. I hope it carries the message again about what you will find here, like little stories about wildlife observations, landscape impressions, nature conservancy, and of course, the photography that hopefully tells more than any words will do. I also updated the portfolio for my landscape photography. Feel free to click the portfolio tab on the left and browse through these galleries. An update of the wildlife part will follow soon.

I made this photo last week already but didn't realize what I really have here until I tried to tag it today with the name of the bird. I knew the Pine Siskin has been in our neck of the woods before during the winter time but I have never been able to make a picture of it. It is not an uncommon bird but we just don't see it here all the time. The yellow patches on the wing led me to the right identification.

The photo is actually sharp but leaves still the impression of some softness. This is the result of shooting through the glass of our balcony door. I mounted the branch of a Red Cedar just beside our heated bird bath, which is a real attraction for most of the birds we have here during the winter. This is one of the tricks I learned from famous wildlife photographer Moose Peterson. I have said it before here in the blog, his websites, books, and publications bare a ton of information for anyone who wants to learn about wildlife, landscape, and aviation photography. Click his link on the left and you will enter a world of great photography and education. But hey, don't forget to come back here sometime... :-)

Nature clicks #134 - American Tree Sparrow

 

Last post for this year. I took a few snap shots around the bird feeders today. The American Tree Sparrow is a winter guest but I have not seen it very often at our feeders yet. Well, a great way to end the year...! Happy shooting and have a nice year 2013!

Nature clicks #133 - Fox Sparrow

 

I interrupt my 2012 "Looking back" series one more time for an actual picture of another "first time" shot. The blizzard that came through last Thursday left us with about a foot of snow on the ground and this brings a lot of birds into our yard here in the woods. A heated bird bath and different bird feeders all around the house are obviously well received by the birdies. Two Fox Sparrows were among them today, a bird species that I have seen only ones before here. At that time I didn't pay much attention and thought they were young robins. Todays photo shoot made it clear, no American Robins, no Hermit Thrushs (looks also very similar) but some nice looking Fox Sparrows were feeing on the ground. This sparrow is larger and almost chubby in comparison to other sparrows and that's why I made my mistake. They spend the summer up in Canada and in the western part of the United States. Here in Iowa they are usually seen only during migration and I wonder if we will have them all winter long here. Except for the last couple nights it has not been really cold and maybe that makes them stay here (beside the good food and drinks ;-)  ).

2012 - Looking back, part 3

 

March was a great month for wildlife photography this year. The mild winter with almost no snow on the ground led to an early return of many birds from the South in the Green Island Wetlands along the Mississippi. I spent almost every free minute out there watching the birds and shooting like crazy.

I had several opportunities to see the Sandhill Cranes this spring. This one here has its beak covered with mud from sticking it deep into the ground and searching for food. I still like to be a little closer to the cranes, but what you can't see is a wide water filled trench between me and the Sandhill Crane that prevented this approach. What can I say, spending time with these wonderful birds is always a treat for me and that's why this image made it into my "2012-looking back" series.

Nature clicks #132 - Tufted Titmouse

 

I like to interrupt my 2012 photo review for an actual post. One of my favorite birds here in Eastern Iowa is the Tufted Titmouse. They are here all year long and I have photographed them many times before. Last weekend I made a few clicks with the D300s and the Sigma 50-500 attached. I'm very happy about this image for several reasons. First, It is the closest shot I ever made of this fast moving bird, second the titmouse is backlit and that makes the picture more interesting. I don't have much experience making backlight shots but I think it turned out well. And third, I handhold the camera with the lens fully zoomed to 500 mm (equivalent to 750 mm on a FX body) and still got a sharp image. I had recently a similar experience (backlight plus very sharp photo). I really wonder if the autofocus system on the D300s can handle this situation much better because of the sharp contour that the backlight creates on the bird's chest? Let's forget all the technical talk, the most important thing was the fun watching and working with the birds in the backyard. The Tufted Titmouse had obviously a successful breeding season this year because, at least I believe, we see more of them than the years before, and that is really a good thing.

2012 - Looking back, part 2

 

The year comes rapidly to an end. Time to browse through this year's photo library in order to clean up, learn from all the mistakes made, and maybe to discover still some images that are worth to be shown in public. Photos are memories and it is always nice to remember the good and great moments in life. For me this is very often the time I spend behind the camera and in the great outdoors. I invite you to follow me through the year again and share some good photography moments.

The time from January through March is always the best time for shooting the magnificent Bald Eagles. They gather in big numbers near the open water at the locks and dams of the river if the Mississippi is frozen over. The mild winter in 2012 made it very pleasent to go out and look for the eagles. I got my best pictures on sunny days during the late afternoon, when the light was warm and not so harsh. However, I went out even on days with a gray overcast. I knew I would not always come home with a good picture, but I liked to study the behavior of the eagles and to predict their movements while hunting for fish. I believe it is simple, if you can handle tracking the bird in flight and keeping it in focus on a day with bad light, it is much easier to get the good shots on those days when the light is just right. We don't know yet how cold this winter will become, but I can't wait to look into a Bald Eagle's eye again...

2012 - Looking back, part 1

The year comes rapidly to an end. Time to browse through this year's photo library in order to clean up, learn from all the mistakes made, and maybe to discover still some images that are worth to be shown in public. Photos are memories and it is always nice to remember the good and great moments in life. For me this is very often the time I spend behind the camera and in the great outdoors. I invite you to follow me through the year again and share some good photography moments.

The last winter was the mildest one I have seen here in Iowa yet. This picture of a Hairy Woodpecker in a snowstorm was made January 20, 2012, and was really not typical for this year. For a photo like this we don't have to go very far. The birds come in big numbers to the feeders we have placed around the house. Exposure times between 1/90s and 1/30s make the dynamic of the drifting snow visible and the white stuff on the ground works like a giant reflector and throws some light from underneath.

The Dark-eyed Juncos are not always easy to photograph. Their eyes often blend into their dark heads and in a high contrast scene you hardly can see them. This was no problem in the low light situation of this snowstorm.

More to come, stay tuned...

Nature clicks #131 - Northern Flicker

 

During the eight years we live now above the Little Maquoketa Valley north of Dubuque, Iowa we have counted six different species of woodpeckers here in the woods around our house. Among them are the Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and the huge Pileated Woodpecker. We can see them all year around in the neighborhood. Only ones so far I have seen a Red-headed Woodpecker here but they are not uncommon in Eastern Iowa. The last of the bunch is the Northern Flicker. We see them mostly during late winter or early spring when they quite often sit on the ground and dig with their beak for insects or seeds.

While looking out for the Brown Creeper yesterday I suddenly saw a Northern Flicker fly to a nearby tree. It was sitting there only for a few seconds, but long enough to focus and make a few clicks of this wonderful bird. I hope you enjoy, thank you for stopping here in my blog and have a great weekend!

Nature clicks #130 - Brown Creeper

 

The expected cold weather for the next few days drives obviously a few birds further south that we have not seen here lately. One of them is the Brown Creeper. This small, tree-clinging bird shows up only occasionally but so far we have seen it every winter here in our yard.

Let me warn you, this image is not really sharp but I like to show it anyway because it is the first time that I was able to make a picture of the Brown Creeper. They start at the bottom of a tree and work their way up pecking insects, fly down to the ground to the base of the next tree and do the same again. Unlike woodpeckers they do it much faster and therefore it is very difficult to get a sharp shot. They also blend very well into their environment and don't provide much contrast to focus on. I had to shoot ISO 400 and that did not help sharpness either. Despite the soft image I'm very happy about it and who knows, maybe I see this bird again during the weekend. I'll keep my eyes open.

At least I like to show you that I can do better. I thought this photo of an American Goldfinch and a House Finch sitting together on a branch was kinda cute. It looks like they were flirting with each other. It seems we have much more finches this year in the yard than other years, at least the high consumption of thistle seeds makes me believe it.

There was another bird here today that I haven't seen for a while, but this will be another "Nature Clicks" post tomorrow.

Looking for texture

 

I always look for special light, an interesting critter, or the big vista but it is sometimes easy to overlook texture and detail in a landscape. Going for a few days away from the daily routine seems to help me sharpening the view for those details in nature. We were hiking up a wooded hill on top of a big bluff that is part of the shore line in the Green Bay. It was nice to watch the waves deep down below and to listen to the sound of wind and water. The upper part of the hill was covered with this forest of Northern White Cedars, also known as American Arborvitae. The structures of roots and tree trunks, and with no other plants around them made for a picture that I had in mind since quite some time.