Tag Archives: birds

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

Five Cranes, Sunrise Light

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Five Cranes, Sunrise Light
Five lesser sandhill cranes fly toward the sunrise

Five Cranes, Sunrise Light. San Joaquin Valley, California. December 26, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Five lesser sandhill cranes fly toward the sunrise

“High horns, low horns, silence, and finally a pandemonium of trumpets, rattles, croaks, and cries that almost shakes the bog with its nearness, but without yet disclosing whence in comes. At last a glint of sun reveals the approach of a great echelon of birds. On motionless wing they emerge from the lifting mists, sweep a final arc of sky, and settle in clangorous descending spirals to their feeding grounds. A new day has begun on the crane marsh.” — Aldo Leopold, “A Sand County Almanac”

When I began photographing California Central Valley migratory (and native) birds a few years back, the initial draw was geese — snow geese, Ross’s geese, and others. But soon I become aware of the sandhill cranes, and I remembered reading Aldo Leopold’s descriptions of these birds all the way back in college. Something in his description was magical and even though I did not know these birds, I remembered his description.

The cranes’ distinctive cry is the first thing I listen for at dawn in the wetlands. They often seem to settle into places a bit more remote than those favored by geese, at least until later in the season. Their flocks are not as large. They often fly in small groups of three, four, or a few more. Their pattern of flight is more level, their wings work more slowly, and they often glide. They also people. Frequently I’ll spot a group heading straight towards me, but with very few exceptions they divert and take a path to one side.

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: People, Photographs: Photographers

The Last Light

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The Last Light
Photographer Michael Frye silhouetted against the fading light of winter San Joaquin Valley dusk sky.

The Last Light. San Joaquin Valley, California. December er 26, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Photographer Michael Frye silhouetted against the fading light of winter San Joaquin Valley dusk sky.

Earlier this week I spent the day out in the San Joaquin Valley, photographing birds and this expansive landscape of water and sky and a few trees. (I also made a quick midday run up to the Sierra foothills on business, and it was wonderful to see the evidence of a relatively normal looking winter in California — water pooling in flats and snow on the peaks!) It was quiet in the morning when I arrived, and there were few others there at dawn. But shortly, as I was stopped photographing sandhill cranes, a car drove up and it was my friends Michael and Claudia — what a wonderful surprise!

These are long days, beginning with a 3:30 wake-up alarm, a two-hour pre-dawn drive in darkness, and arrival at my destination by perhaps 6:30 AM or so. I photograph for a few hours, take a midday break, and then return in the afternoon to photograph until the light is gone. The cycle of the afternoon photography is striking. I begin in good light, watching for the golden hour light to begin. Soon it arrives, and it goes quickly. On this evening it was hard to figure out where the birds would be, so we finally just decided to pick a spot and see what would happen. As the sun set, geese and cranes began to arrive — cranes flying past, mostly, and some geese landing in the ponds in front of us. We continue to find ways to photograph as the light fades — switching from long lenses to wide-angle, working with rather than against the blur of lower shutter speeds. But eventually it just plain becomes too dark and we stop photographing. And this, in many ways, is the most beautiful moment of the entire day — we lower our cameras and simply stand and look, on the best days standing with a small group of friends as the day ends.

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

The Cranes Return

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The Cranes Return
Lesser sandhill cranes return to wetland marshes in fading dusk light

The Cranes Return. San Joaquin Valley, California. December 3, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Lesser sandhill cranes return to wetland marshes in fading dusk light

There is a natural cycle to the day during the winter at these San Joaquin Valley wetland marshes — actually there are multiple cycles. One is the cycle of the animals themselves, responding to the dawn, moving to daytime activities, coming and going, then settling in once again for the night. Another is the cycle of the photographer or viewer of this wildlife, whose own patterns are inextricably linked to those of the birds and the light, but who also may sometimes choose when and where to focus efforts.

The midday and early afternoon hours are, at least most of the time, relatively quiet and slow. It makes sense that during the times of day when conditions are the most stable that the birds would also be more settled. (There are seasonal exceptions, including the late winter time when the winter residence of many birds is coming to an end and another migration cycle is about to begin.) The evening brings another transition, and one of the final and most impressive moments often comes after sunset with the dusk fly-in of the sandhill cranes. Long strings of these birds appear (usually from the south in this place), flying low and straight paths toward the places where they will land and spend the night.

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Three Snow Geese

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Three Snow Geese
Three snow geese in flight over San Joaquin Valley wetlands

Three Snow Geese. San Joaquin Valley, California. December 3, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Three snow geese in flight over San Joaquin Valley wetlands

There are many ways to photograph geese in these California Central Valley locations, where they spend the winter months after migrating down from points far to the north. Great flocks of them settle in on ponds in these areas, or sometimes gather in fields. At other times giant flocks fill the sky, especially when something spooks them and thousands will take to the air at once, producing a sound that is the combination of their excited cries and the rush of wind from their wings. Large groups of them come and go throughout the day. Occasionally smaller groups, like this trio, arrive and circle before finding a spot to land and join the flock.

I confess that part of the fun with these groups comes from the challenge of trying to track and photograph them as they move so quickly. With practice one can find a few hints about their trajectory — they will circle a few times and they always land facing into the breeze — but they move fast, the light on their feathers changes, and they spend most of their time facing in the wrong direction! I saw this group coming in from a good distance away, and I tracked them as they approached a spot to my right, banked into a turn, and passed in front of me as they crossed to my left, circled away, and then returned to face the wind and land.

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.