Category Archives: Photographs: Birds

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Red-Winged Blackbird Territorial Display

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Red-Winged Blackbird Territorial Display
Red-Winged blackbird on its perch, late-winter territorial display.

Red-Winged Blackbird Territorial Display. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Red-Winged blackbird on its perch, late-winter territorial display.

One beneficial personal effect of my bird photography has been greater awareness of parts of the local natural world that I had not paid a lot of attention to. As I have mentioned previously, I not really a “birder” in the usual sense of the word, and while I’ve enjoyed observing birds in the wild I can’t claim to be an expert on them. But photographing them has encouraged me to ask questions about what I’m seeing and to learn more.

There are two similar types of small blackbirds where I photograph, the tricolored blackbird and the red-winged blackbird. Both seem to my untrained bird-watching eyes to be pretty darned similar, apart from the extra bands of color on the shoulders of the former. Both are common in grasslands and related agricultural areas. Some sources suggest that populations have declined due to climate change and the loss of habitat, and that their range has shrunk. Apparently the eye-catching display — puffed out feathers and “exhibit of the colorful shoulder patches — is, at least during the late-winter period when I made the photograph, used to mark territory prior to the breeding season.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Three Cranes in Formation

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Three Cranes in Formation
Three lesser sandhill cranes against blue winter sky above California’s Central Valley.

Three Cranes in Formation. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Three lesser sandhill cranes against blue winter sky above California’s Central Valley.

As I posted this I was considering the title… and it occurred to me that “Three More Cranes” might be the appropriate modification, considering how many crane photographs I have been sharing! And I’m not done — there are still a few more in the queue. Think of it as a sort of end-of-season (at least in Central California) crane fest, with the photographs coming from my final two visits to local crane areas this winter.

Getting a good, close photograph of cranes in flight is more of a challenge than you might think. On a day like this one, the cranes are everywhere, and they are quite active. But a whole bunch of things have to fall into place for it to work, and most of them are decidedly not under the photographer’s control. There must be some sort of good light, and the cranes must be flying in a good direction relative to that light. Their flight must take them near (and preferably over) my position, but cranes are notoriously finicky about flying directly over people. The individual birds must align themselves in aesthetic ways — not blocking one another or creating awkward shadows, wings in an interesting position, yet close enough to one another to fit in the frame. The truth is that a day of photography may not produce a photograph with the birds aligned as beautifully as this trio.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Three Cranes, Winter Sky

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Three Cranes, Winter Sky
Three lesser sandhill cranes against winter blue sky, Central Valley.

Three Cranes, Winter Sky. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Three lesser sandhill cranes against winter blue sky, Central Valley.

This is another “just plain birds” photograph, in this case of a small group of lesser sandhill cranes that flew past my position in mid-morning light on a late-winter day near the end of the migratory bird season at this location. I often try to photograph the birds in some context, whether it is against the landscape of the Great Central Valley or a dramatic winter sky or in tule fog. But sometimes I just go ahead and make a straightforward, no-apologies photograph of birds. Like this one.

At one point some years ago I realized that cranes would often follow the flight paths of other cranes that had just passed by. It occurred to me that instead of waiting for the birds to come to me, I could just move to one of these spots, then sit and wait for them to fly over. I quickly learned that cranes do not like flying over humans. They may begin on a trajectory headed straight for you, but they will almost always divert and curve around. (The direct oversight is so rare that it always surprises me when it does happen.) This trio deflected later than most and flew past quite closely.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Walking Cranes

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Walking Cranes
A flock of sandhill cranes crosses a rural roadway in Central Valley pasture land.

Walking Cranes. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A flock of sandhill cranes crosses a rural roadway in Central Valley pasture land.

Why did the crane cross the road? In some of my recent posts I have written about how the behavior of geese and cranes seems to change as the time for them to fly back to the north approaches. From what I have seen, the birds become increasingly active — I’m tempted to use the word “restless” to describe it. They appear in larger flocks, and they assembly in different and more predictable places. They seem to be active at all hours of the day, there are frequent “lift offs” by thousands of them, and the cranes and various kinds of geese often seem to intermix.

It also seems like they become a bit less hesitant about being where humans are. You still can’t (and should not) get too close to them, but they start to show up alongside roads and paths and in ponds very close to such places. It isn’t at all uncommon to arrive in places along gravel roads… and find that the flocks are stretched right across the roadway. I often end up stopping to wait for them to finish their business or else approaching very slowly, giving them time to slowly move out of the way. I stopped to let this group of cranes finish its activities — I was in no hurry, and it gave me a chance to photograph them.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.