Tag Archives: flock

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

The Fly-In

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The Fly-In — geese arrive over a wetlands pond at sunset.
“The Fly-In” — Thousands of migratory geese arrive in the wetlands at sunset.

A day spent photographing migratory geese and other birds often includes a lot of “slow time” when little is happening. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing — sometimes the quiet and stillness is enough by itself. But around sunrise and sunset there is often a of activity as large flocks of birds take to the air and head to nighttime locations. If you are where they arrive, it is the “fly-in.” When they depart, we refer to the “fly-out.”

This huge flock of geese (almost certainly snow geese for the most part) arrived just after I went to this spot to photograph a colorful winter sunset and its reflection in the waters of a wetland pond. The flock arrived, circled, and eventually settled down on the water… and quiet returned.

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

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

Morning Fog, Geese, and Trees

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Morning Fog, Geese, and Trees
“Morning Fog, Geese, and Trees” — A flock of geese in flight over wetlands trees and thining morning fog.

Few things are as thrilling as a flock of geese lifting off all at once on a winter morning shortly after dawn. They erupt suddenly, generally without warning, in a mass of sound and flapping wings, and then spread out across the landscape as they turn and circle or perhaps head off into the distance. A few moments later, the morning is once again quiet.

I made this photograph early in the morning, shortly after sunrise when the light was still warmly colored by the newly-risen sun. A bit of fog was rising from the wetlands ponds, and the hills of the western Central Valley were visible in the distance.

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” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Migratory Geese, Wetlands

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“Migratory Geese, Wetlands”  Migratory geese (likely snow, Ross’s, and white-fronted) in Central California wetlands.

Our little band of photographers gathered once again on New Year’s Day to greet the new year together and photograph migratory birds and the often-foggy Central Valley landscape. This photograph holds what I think of as the main elements of this winter landscape: birds, a bit of fog, sky, trees, and grasses. (OK, cattle and crops are part of the scene, but not in this photograph.)

There are various natural cycles to observe when photographing these birds. The most obvious is annual — they return from the arctic every autumn and around the start of spring. There’s a cycle during that period, too. At first they are often harder to find, settling into remote areas of the valley and being more uneasy around humans. As the season goes on they seem to be a bit easier to locate as they collect in gigantic flocks, and the become extremely active in the final month before their departure for points north.

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: Agriculture, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Sheep Pasture, Loch Ness

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Sheep Pasture, Loch Ness
“Sheep Pasture, Loch Ness” — Sheep in a pasture on the Great Glen Way above Loch Ness near Drumnadrochit, Scotland.

Near the end of this day’s walk on the Great Glen Way we passed through, around, and between a series of sheep pastures. Americans used to hiking in “wilderness” learn that hiking here is a different experience — you pass through towns, occasionally walk on narrow roads, cross logged areas, and encounter livestock. While I love our American wilderness, I have to say that there’s something quite nice about this landscape, too. (Perhaps not the least: a comfortable bed and nice meals every evening!)

This was one of the two longest days of our trek — in some ways it felt like the longest. We had arrived in Lewiston, next door to the town of Drumnadrochit, the evening before. Instead of walking to the next town (mainly because there isn’t one!) the plan was to start a distance north and hike back to our lodgings. It was quite a varied day. In the first mile or so we passed a rural cafe, a nature center, and then climbed stiffly out of the forest and into barren highlands. We may have reached the highest point of the walk here at a place with panoramic views and extremely strong winds. From here we descended back into forest for a long walk toward the shores of Loch Ness. In sight of the loch, it seemed like we were near our goal, but we still had miles to go.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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