Another image from my trip to the Green Island Wetlands last weekend. This shot of a Great Egret was taken at 5:36PM. The light was just gorgeous and I was very happy that I stayed all day long and waited until the grey clouds were blown away. More to come...
Yesterday I promised that I would reveal my new discoveries from last Saturday in the Green Island Wetlands. For the first time I saw a pair of Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa). My "National Geographic - Complete Birds of North America" says, "Wood Ducks are usually found in heavily wooded swamps." You can tell by looking at my picture that there is some truth in that sentence ;-) . It was extremely difficult to get the glass on those birds. To be honest, I was surprised that this shot of the male duck turned out ok. It would of course be nicer to have an unobstructed view, but at the other hand it really shows how good these Wood Ducks were hiding in their natural environment. I will never try to get a better picture if the well being of the animal is at stake. And these ducks were already quite nervous.
The second discovery was a pair of Hooded Mergansers (Lophodytes cucullatus). They were also very shy and it took me four carefully executed approaches to get this shot. The sharpness is not perfect and that sets the goal for another time. I had them earlier much closer but they were on the "wrong side" of the dam, means they were backlit.
The time was flying fast and the light became better with every minute. More to come...
Yesterday I spent almost eight hours in the Green Island Wetlands near the Mississippi River again. The day didn't actually start too good. Uniform grey clouds covered the sky, a "no, no" for taking pictures of birds on the water or in flight. But my worries were without avail. The weather became better with every hour I spent in the wetlands. I met my friend Dave Updegraff briefly, who was on a photo tour with his wife and some friends. They told me about some Sandhill Cranes they had seen earlier and that I had missed. No wonder, eight eyes see more than two ;-) .
I went back and first I saw only four cranes. They later joined another group of ten birds further in the distance. I made a few clicks but they were out of reach for a good image. However, it was once more exiting to watch the Sandhill Cranes and to hear their calls. Dave actually posted a picture of me looking at the cranes in his blog. Thank you Dave! :-)
Despite the sun was still not out from behind the clouds I put the lens on a Great Blue Heron that was looking out for prey. Suddenly it caught a fish. It took the heron quite some time to gobble the big catch. I had the focus set on manual this time again. I really get better results, means more keepers, if I use the Sigma 50-500 at maximum focal length.
Joan had to work this weekend and couldn't join me this time. When I come back from a photo trip she asks me quite often, "Did you see anything new?". Oh yes, I did! So please stay tuned for more to come…
I'm always excited if I have a chance to take pictures of animals I have never seen before. This seems not so difficult because I live only since seven years in the United States. Some species have relatives over in Europe and I'm mostly familiar with them, but many are unique in North America and I'm totally thrilled when I discover a new one.
Last weekend I spent time again in the Green Island wetlands. It was Joan's birthday and she asked me to show her the Sandhill Cranes. Unfortunately we did not see them at all, but instead we saw two different duck species that we had not seen before.
At two different locations I spotted Blue-winged Teals (Anas discors). It is a beautiful looking duck and especially the male is not difficult to identify. Well, I forgot my field guide book once more and had to wait with identification until I was back home. If I discover a new species (at least new to me ;-) ), I take lots of pictures if possible. Even if the light or the background is not good. Sometimes even a mediocre image can help with identification of the bird later at home. The Blue-winged Teals spend the winter in the northern part of South America and time will tell if they were only on a stopover on their way north, or if they really will spend the summer here in Eastern Iowa near the Mississippi.
The second discovery was the Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata). They have a large spoon-shaped bill, which also made it easy to identify. My field guide tells that we are on the east side of it's breeding range but there is a tendency of further expansion eastward.
I used the car as my blind because the ducks fly away as soon you open the car door. The lens rests on the edge of the pulled down car window, which I cover with a piece of pipe insulation foam. A trick I learned from another photographer just a few weeks ago.
I knew I wanted to go back to the Green Island Wetlands as soon as possible and try to see "my" Sandhill Crane again. And last Saturday it turned out even better. I discovered two pairs this time. They were searching for food at different places but not far from each other. The distance to them was quite big. Between the dam with the gravel road and the cranes laid a wide trench, filled with water. No chance for getting closer to the birds. In order to get the picture above I had to use the maximum focal length of 500 mm. The picture is even cropped quite a bit. The downside is that the Sigma 50-500 is a little soft at maximum focal length. The sharpness the lens can provide is much better at around 400 mm. Even if I could, I would not cross this natural barrier between the birds and the road. The last thing I want to do is disturbing these beautiful birds. I rather don't get the picture than disturbing an animal, especially close to breeding season.
After several hours of watching the Sandhill Cranes I went south to the little town of Sabula again. I didn't really get any good photo opportunity this time but run into my new friend Dave Updegraff. I know Dave since last year's Worldwide Photowalk event, that he led in the city of Dubuque, Iowa. He was after some Bald Eagles, but because the ice was almost gone they were too far away for an easy picture. We discussed our future photography projects and had of course some gear talk. We will hopefully going out soon together for a wildlife shooting.
I went back to Green Island but it was much quieter than in the morning. I saw the cranes again but this time even further away. Finally all four took off together and I enjoyed seeing them in flight.
On my way out I took a few shots of a little Grebe swimming in a trench below the dam. It was a Pied-billed Grebe. This little bird is widespread across North America but it was new for me. After each shot I had to reposition because the grebe dived into the muddy water and showed up at a different location. Lots of fun...
There were three things in nature today that put a smile in my face and made me happy. First of all, the Trumpeter Swans are back! I went to the little lake where I watched a couple of them last year several times. (Click on the tag "Trumpeter Swan" below and it will display all my older posts about them.) When I arrived they seemed to great me with their loud call, that sounds like a car horn. What a moment!
I had the 50-500 with me, but no tripod. Despite a grey overcast I ripped through one 8 GB memory card in no time. I used manual focus only. That seems to work better in low light situations as it was today.
On my way back home I saw an Eastern Meadowlark. For some not a big deal, but it was my first one that I saw here in the area. Another bird that will make it into my Iowa wildlife gallery soon. This gallery is one of my photography projects I pursue and that I try to expand and improve.
The last big thing today was the very bright and big moon. It has not been so close to earth since 18 years. I made the click, even if full moon is actually tomorrow. Who knows if we will see it then?! ;-)
A couple days ago I said that I would post some pictures of the Ring-billed Gulls I enjoyed watching last weekend in Sabula at the Mississippi River. So, here they are.
As I mentioned yesterday, I was very happy after I had the chance to take some close-up pictures of a Bald Eagle sitting on the ice at the Green Island Wildlife refuge last Sunday. And the day was still not over. I saw hundreds of Canada Geese and ducks flying into the wetland for the night. I also spotted some swans, probably Trumpeter Swans, that were feeding among the other birds.
Suddenly I heard a call that was different, but that I knew very well from my home country Germany. The call of a crane. It took me a little while before I saw the Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) between bushes and reed grass. Cranes are such wonderful birds. It was quite a bit away but seemed to move in my direction. I had the tripod and camera out in almost no time and started shooting. The sun was already very low behind a thin layer of clouds and it was very difficult to use the auto focus. The crane was constantly moving and the low contrast of the bird against the bushes and grass didn't help either. I guess I reached the limits of my camera-lens combination, and of course my own abilities. The above picture is quite a bit cropped. I haven't been as close as it seems. I know it is not tack sharp but watching cranes has been always a thrill for me and I'm glad to got the shot.
I wonder why I saw only a single Sandhill Crane. Maybe this bird was not able to follow it's flock on their way up north, or maybe it will stay in this area during the summer and other cranes may still arrive. However, it seemed healthy.
On my way back I saw another eagle sitting up in a tree beside the gravel road. It was a young Bald Eagle. According to my field guide books it is probably in its third year, considering the colors. I was able to use what was left of the sun light late in the day. Since I was almost right underneath the bird I handheld the camera.
What a great day! I hope to have another one like this soon… :-)
The warmer weather during the last couple weeks made me believe that the season for shooting Bald Eagles at the Mississippi River was over. I didn't know that the best things were still waiting for me. Last week I got a hint on Dave Updegraff's blog that there might be still many eagles along the river. Sunday I went down south to check out different locations. First I drove to Sabula, Iowa, a little town on an island in the Mississippi River. Sure enough there were eagles sitting on the ice, lots of Ring-billed Gulls were flying around, and I saw a big flock of White Pelicans gracefully circling high up in the sky. The Bald Eagles were sitting in the trees along the river or on the ice of the backwater lakes that surround Sabula. They were close, but not close enough for the frame-filling pictures I was hoping for. In other words, too much ice, not enough eagle :-). I tried hard but was only able to get good pictures of the gulls, who were always in motion. I may post a few shots of the gulls later this week.
I finally went back north to Green Island, a wetland area and wildlife refuge near the Mississippi. While driving down the muddy road toward the river, I spotted several eagles in the trees and on the ice of the still frozen backwaters. And there he was! A wonderful adult Bald Eagle was landing on the ice right beside the road. I figured leaving the car would probably scare the bird away. I just shut the engine off and started shooting, using the car as a blind and the car window as my camera support. The eagle didn't mind. The low sitting sun made for perfect light. A dream became true for me. I have seen them sitting many times on the ice along the river and was always wondering if I could ever come close enough for a good picture.
Everything was perfect until another car drove by and the eagle flew to a different spot, closer to the open water. I managed to approach it again, this time from a different angle. The light came more from the backside of the bird, but still good enough.
I was already a very happy man at this point but another surprise was still waiting for me. Stay tuned for more.
We haven't seen the sun here for five days. The sky is covered with grey clouds every day. There are still patches of old snow on the ground, and they look, of course, grey as well. But we also can see the first signs of the upcoming spring. A big flock with hundreds of American Robins is foraging in the woods around our house. We have seen them actually several times throughout this winter. It seems they don't migrate much further south anymore. But their appearance is different now. They have started singing and make a lot more noise.
The natural light in this kind of weather is miserable in the woods and not enough for a sharp image of the Robins. I just acquired a Better Beamer flash extender for exactly this kind of a scenario, where I'm depending on a focal length of 400 -500 mm and the reach of a normal flash is insufficient.
It was raining just before I started shooting and the flash is reflected in the rain drops on the bird's feathers. Not that I really like it, because it makes the flash too obvious, but at the other hand, the sparkling of the little rain drops helps to tell the story about spring, which is hopefully not too far away anymore.
For this first test I had the flash directly mounted to the hot shoe of the D200. You can tell by looking at the picture of the American Goldfinch sitting in the rain that it may need a different approach. I don't like how the eye of the bird turned out. I need to do more tests to see how a different flash-to-camera angle would improve the outcome. What else is wrong with the finch image? The picture was shot using front-curtain sync flash, which makes the rain drops looking unnatural. It seems they move in the wrong direction. I usually shoot rear-curtain flash but had changed my camera settings for some reason. Oh well, …next time!
So far, I like how the Better Beamer flash extender really increases the reach of the SB600 flashlight, how the colors start to pop, and for this particular weather, make the grey finally disappear.
