Blog Archives
Bittern on the wing
Friends, I was practicing my flight shooting on some Great egrets that are migrating thru Crex, when this American Bittern flew down the path that i had been shooting, actually a pair of bitterns flew over, what a thrill, i have photographed these birds fishing for food and generally stalking the marshes, but never saw them fly, what awaits me tomorrow in the marshes of Crex? til Tomorrow MJ
Sandhills Everywhere?
Friends, this Sandhill Crane has either just molted into his formal gray or has arrived from Northern clearer waters. He is a clean gray and not stained red from the iron-rich waters of Crex. I found lots of molted feathers around the feeding fields of Crex which suggests that the Cranes are molting and shedding those red worn feathers. Some of the feathers are gray at the base and red on the outer tips. The Cranes are flying about getting ready for the Great Fall gathering on the marshes of Crex. I am practicing my flying shots so I will be ready for the fall migration that is the highlight of my year at Crex. Thousands of cranes concentrated on a few marshes flying into a roost in the evening and out of the roost at sunrise is a sight that should not be missed by any bird/nature lover. They will soon be everywhere in Crex Meadows of NW Wisconsin. til Tomorrow MJ
Yellowlegs
Friends, these wading birds have invaded Crex in the last day or two, I think they are yellowlegs, a type of Sandpiper. I love the feather patterns and have waited for them to creep within range of my telephoto, could use more telephoto length for these guys, but attached the 1.4x extender and practiced focusing manually. What a workout, even tho it was a cooler day, i was soaked from the exertion. The sun peeked out briefly for this shot but most of the day was bathed in misty sunshine. I like his reflection. til Tomorrow MJ
Weekly Photo Challenge: Wrong
Friends, I was photographing this young red tailed hawk when he rapidly left the scene. There is a recent trend to accept some bird photos as “pleasing blurs”, but i call this one the wrong shutter speed and poor panning technique, so in essence this is not a pleasing blur. I will share one of my better shots in the near future til Tomorrow MJ
Color or Black and White
Friends, a very common orange monarch butterfly on purple/pink blazing star, i really dont like these colors together, i think they clash as my mother used to say when i would try to wear these colors as a teenager. I know that clothing theory is foreign to todays’ youngsters, but in my days it was a taboo if you wanted a sophisticated look. But I still don’t like these colors together, is the answer to present this image in black and white values. I like it better, what do you think? the black and white is below, til Tomrrow MJ
Rusty Swan
Friends, this trumpeter swan is getting some good food off the bottom of this swamp, lots of wild rice blooming and arrowhead root that is a favorite food. He is very stained by the iron-rich water but after the molt he will again be pure white. He was not alone on this pond, a couple of swans were chasing him away but he was still getting plenty of food. Also wish to share a new book on Texas birds with you, Bob Zeller of Texas Tweeties has published a book on Texas birds, the link is http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/3431406, check out his preview. til Tomorrow MJ
The Great Egret on the blue
Friends, this great white bird is a great egret, a few of these come this far north, very few, but there are three birds hanging around fish lake which is another wildlife refuge that is just a few mile down the road from Crex. They share the Glacial Grantsburg Lakes ecology. In a recent photo contest, one of the categories was pleasing blurs, do you think this image would qualify as pleasing, the wing tips are blurred. til Tomorrow MJ
Goldfinches
Friends, these are goldfinches male above and female below, they are raising their young and feasting on the tickseed sunflowers, they build their nests late in the summer so they can line the nest with thistle seed, fluffy seeds make a great pillow for little goldfinches, also thistle seeds are great food and they will come to them even in the winter months, a hardy little bird, most of them remain in the northland in the winter and keep us company on cold winter days, til Tomorrow MJ
Blazing star detail
Friends, this blazing star is now in bloom at Crex and this image is a close-up magnification of the one inch buds, the details are hidden when all the little flowers are open by the mass of purple styes so one needs to see at the earliest stage of blooming to see the tiny blooms. i love the macro approach so i can see the substructure of things. Guess that is why i was a microscopist in another life, seems like a very long time ago. Only six years ago but seems forever, I am much happier now til Tomorrow MJ
Portrait at 8 weeks
Friends, this loon was hatched on June 6, 2012, so this week he is 8 weeks old. He and his sibling have grown very fast and on this morning he was still being fed by an adult bird. The other sibling is out on his own in an adjacent lake. This morning the water was like glass with the only ripples made by the bird, the early morning light peeked out from behind a dense cloud deck and illuminated the birds just briefly, I never get tired of seeing these wonderful birds or of photographing them. til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 