Tag Archives: bird

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

Cranes in Rain

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Cranes in Rain
A group of sandhill cranes stands in a wetland pond during a rain storm

Cranes in Rain. San Joaquin Valley, California. October 28, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A group of sandhill cranes stands in a wetland pond during a rain storm

As fall arrives I look forward to many interesting photographic opportunities: the storms and surf along the California coast, the dramatic effects of fog and clouds on the landscape, the return of migratory birds to the state, especially in the Great Central Valley. The bird photographer really doesn’t begin in earnest until perhaps late November or December, with some of the best opportunities coming even a bit later, but that doesn’t stop me from testing the waters earlier if I hear that birds have arrived.

In fact, I had heard reports that sandhill cranes have been showing up in the valley for weeks, and a late-October visit to the Sierra provided me with an opportunity to do a bit of reconnaissance. On my way across the valley to the mountains I paused at a wetland area to see what I could find. It turned out that the main thing I found was rain! It wasn’t raining when I arrived, but soon a front moved through and absolutely poured on me, to the point that I was only able to make a few photographs. One of them was this photograph of a somewhat forlorn group of sandhill cranes, hunkered down in a pond,facing into the wind, and waiting out the storm.

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 and Amazon.
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Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Night Heron, Reflection

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Night Heron, Reflection
A solitary night heron perches on a snag above a reflecting pool

Night Heron, Reflection. Sacramento Valley, California. January 8, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A solitary night heron perches on a snag above a reflecting pool

I have mentioned before that I came late to an interest in photographing birds — it only began a few years ago when I took a serendipitous trip to a California Central Valley refuge where I saw huge numbers of birds. Despite being a virtually life-long Californian living within a short drive of such areas, I barely knew they existed. (I had one prior hint on a drive to the Pacific Northwest some years ago, when I passed through the upper Sacramento Valley on a late-November evening and say many birds in the sky.)

That all changed during recent years. At first I “discovered” geese and egrets, the latter which I had seen before and occasionally photographed in the San Francisco Bay Area. Then I caught on to some of the other birds out in the Central Valley — ibises, cranes, herons, white pelicans. But the night herons continued to be a bit of a mystery, and frankly they still remain so to an extent. They are found at the location where I most often photograph, but typically off at some distance. That distance, along with their habit of roosting in thick grasses and plants, makes them hard to see and photograph. On this visit to a different location up in the Sacramento Valley I found a huge group of them in brush just across a canal, and I was able to photograph them from a closer distance, including this one that was atypically out of the brush and standing on a log.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Bald Eagle in Flight

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Bald Eagle in Flight
A bald eagle flies past above the Sacramento Valley

Bald Eagle in Flight. Sacramento Valley, California. January 8, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A bald eagle flies past above the Sacramento Valley

This past winter was my initiation into photograph bald eagles. Generally speaking, photographing birds is relatively new passion for me, something I’ve now been doing seriously for only few seasons. It began with an accidental encounter with a friend who is a bird watcher of the classic sort — we ran into one another in a line at a coffee stand and she happened to mention a place she visits and for almost no particular reason I decided to go there a few days later. Despite living in California for decades I did not know (I’m now somewhat embarrassed to admit) about the astounding presences of huge numbers of migratory birds in the state every winter. I was hooked, and this has become a focus for my photography every season.

While photographing my favorite geese, herons, cranes, ibises, and so forth, my photography friends would often say things about eagles. When a flock of geese took off all at once, they might say, “an eagle must have scared them.” To be honest, I never saw the eagles, with exception of a few far off glimpses of birds that didn’t look quite like hawks. Then, this past winter, I headed further north, photographing in the Sacramento Valley and all the way up into southern Oregon. In these places I began to encounter bald eagles on a regular basis and I began to learn how to photograph them, a process that continues.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Bald Eagle Takes Flight

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Bald Eagle Takes Flight
A bald eagle leaves its treetop perch and takes to the air

Bald Eagle Takes Flight. Sacramento Valley, California. January 8, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A bald eagle leaves its treetop perch and takes to the air

I had not photographed bald eagles before this past winter season, believe it or not — my attention has been mostly focused elsewhere when I’ve been around bird photography opportunities. From my very limited experience it seems like there are perhaps three phases to photographing these beautiful birds. First, find one (or more) of them — something I’m getting better at now that I understand a bit more where and when to look. Second, find a photographing position and wait — perhaps making photographs while waiting if a clear view of the bird is possible and especially if it is doing something visually interesting. Meanwhile, be ready for the next step… Third, when the bird suddenly and almost without warning takes to the air, be prepared to try to track it while photographing it burst mode during the likely brief interval when it is visible.

That was pretty much the story with this eagle. I found it in nearby trees as I came around a perimeter road at a wildlife refuge, pretty much were you would expect to find such a bird. I pulled over and opened the skylight on my vehicle so that I could have a fairly clear line of sight lookup up toward the tree. I made a few photographs, sat, waited, and then… with virtually no warning the eagle launched itself from the perch, first falling and then quickly catching the air with its large wings before departing through trees for some more distant location.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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