Tag Archives: cranes

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

Cranes, First Light

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Cranes, First Light
The first morning sunlight on a flock of sandhill cranes standing in a wetlands pond.

Cranes, First Light. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

The first morning sunlight on a flock of sandhill cranes standing in a wetlands pond.

The light and atmosphere were a bit unusual on this morning. There was just a bit of ground fog, along with some general haze. As the sun came up, a thin layer of clouds to the east over the Sierra Nevada blocked the direct sunlight. These factors combined to produce a very muted and subdued quality as I photographed groups of sandhill cranes in ponds at this wetlands location, standing in groups and occasionally flying off.

As I photographed in this subtle light I knew that eventually the sun would rise about that eastern cloud deck, and that this would produce a few moments of very warm-colored light that was still softened by the haze and fog. I made this photograph of the cranes just as that first direct sunlight arrived.

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

Cranes Departing

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Cranes Departing
Restless sandhill cranes begin to take flight from wetlands on a winter morning.

Cranes Departing. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Restless sandhill cranes begin to take flight from wetlands on a winter morning.

On a typical winter morning where migratory birds hang out, the cycle of early photography often follows a familiar arc. I arrive in near-darkness and start photographing right away, especially when the birds are very active. Rather than being selective about where and when… I follow the patterns that the birds present. If cranes are taking off from a pond, I go there. If a huge flock of geese is flying out, I photograph that. Despite arriving with a plan, these first moments are often about improvising with the conditions I find.

Then, around sunrise or just afterwards, things may slow down a bit. A bit more strategizing may be effective, and I take stock of the light and atmosphere, the locations of birds before figuring out what I’ll do next and where I’ll do it. On this morning I settled on near a large group of sandhill cranes that was still hanging out in and around a shallow pond. I stopped and waited, expecting that they would soon become restless and begin to fly out, a few birds at a time. And, indeed, that is what happened.

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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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

Snow Geese, Wetland Pond

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Snow Geese, Wetland Pond
A row of migratory snow geese at rest in a Central Valley wetland pond.

Snow Geese, Wetland Pond. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A row of migratory snow geese at rest in a Central Valley wetland pond.

Coming across this little line of snow geese was good fortune. One thing is clear when photographing wildlife, and even more clear when photographing birds: the photographer has little control over the scene and must make the best of what turns up. (OK, there are ways to improve your chances, but geese are notoriously bad at taking stage directions.) It isn’t unusual to find small groups of geese, but finding a group lined up this was was serendipitous.

This is one of the photographs that I think of as “birdscapes” — while they are wildlife photographs, they are more about the place of the wildlife in their surroundings. A closer look shows that there’s a lot more here than the geese. Just beyond the edge of the water there is a row of sandhill cranes, whose darker colors make them a bit harder to see at first. There are trees on the horizon, but also indicators of this being agricultural country and not at all “wilderness,” In the far distance geese fill the sky, and the bands of clouds beyond them are above the faint outline of the crest of the Sierra Nevada.

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

Sharing the Sky

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Sharing the Sky
Three sandhill cranes share the Central Valley sky with a few geese.

Sharing the Sky. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Three sandhill cranes share the Central Valley sky with a few geese.

During the first part of March, the migratory birds that call the Central Valley home during the winter seem to become restless. At this time of the year I think back to my first late-autumn visits to the birds and recall how it was sometimes hard to find them at all back then, and when I did they were frequently in small groups and at times in places that were not accessible to me. But by the end of their annual residency, they become much more active and appear in greater numbers.

It seems to me that the different kinds of large birds interact with other species much more late in the season. In the early season I might find cranes in one place and geese in an entirely different sort of location. By late winter they often appear together, and mixed groups are often seen in the air and on the ground. In this photograph you can see three varieties of migratory birds — the large sandhill cranes in the middle, a couple of white-fronted geese below, and a group of white snow geese above.

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.