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

Taking to the Air

December 3, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A group of snow geese take to the air in early morning light above a San Joaquin Valley marsh

I never know exactly what I’ll find when I go out to shoot a subject like that which I focused on today, namely migratory birds out in the San Joaquin Valley of California. While there is a certain amount of knowledge and technique that goes into photographing this subject in this place, there is also a whole bunch of guesswork, luck, and happenstance. The part that I can chalk up to planning includes the choice to be in this place on a cold morning before dawn, enough familiarity with the place to know where to look for the birds and where the light might be good at certain times of day, and enough experience photographing these birds to have developed some knowledge and instincts that I can put to work.

However, so much is not in my control. On this morning I found a good size flock of (mostly) snow geese in a place where I don’t usually see so many of them, and they were closer to the place from which I can photograph than they usually are. So I stopped and photographed them and waited. Not much seemed to be happening at first – the birds mostly just sat in the shallow water – but the light was interesting, slanting in from the right where the sun had just cleared the horizon. When things seem static, there is no clear answer to the question of whether to wait for something to happen or to move on and look for something else. This time my hunch was that it might be worth waiting. And this time that hunch turned out to be the right one. (Just as often it isn’t!) As I waited I found some slightly better angles to shoot from, and eventually additional geese began to arrive and settle in with the group already there. Often some of the most interesting shots are during very brief instants of action, such as the sudden and unexpected lift-off of a flock of birds. So, after standing and watching and seeing little happen for some time, suddenly a lot may happen almost too quickly to photograph it. It pays to be ready to respond quickly. This group of snow geese was not too far in front of me, and when they suddenly took to the sky I was ready to track them as they lifted off. If you look closely you may be able to see water droplets falling from them as they leave the pond.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Calf, Cottonwoods, and Cranes in Flight

November 29, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A calf grazes near a row of autumn cottonwood trees on a foggy morning and as sandhill cranes fly overhead

On this foggy morning I had begun photographing a bit earlier, just at dawn. I gradually worked my way along a gravel country road, stopping frequently – spending more time stopped than driving, actually – to photograph the foggy landscape and migratory birds. At this early hour, the sandhill cranes were my primary targets. At times, when the fog cleared a bit, it was possible to see many of them taking off for distant points as the day began. When the fog thickened, they were heard more than seen, at least until they flew close enough to momentarily appear overhead through the fog.

In a place where the road paralleled a row of cottonwood trees with golden autumn leaves I stopped to wait for the birds to fly overhead. From a distance away I had figured out that many of the cranes were headed this way as they took off, so it seemed that if I stopped and waited here quietly the birds might come to me. And they did – every few minutes another group would fly low over my position. I shared this spot with a herd of cattle, quite a few of whom found me to be the most interesting thing in their early morning world and stared quietly at me. One calf that had passed beneath a fence around the pasture was busy grazing along the lane, so I stopped and photographed it beneath the cottonwood trees as a group of sandhill cranes passed overhead.

Photographs: Flight, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Migratory Birds – November 24, 2013

November 27, 2013 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

In late November I had the opportunity to make another trip to California’s Great Central Valley in search of migratory birds. This valley is an important stopping place for many of these birds in the late fall through early spring season, and a great variety of them may be found at the many wildlife refuges up and down the state.

This time I had a single morning to photograph. I arrived just before sunrise to find that ground fog was muting the light and the colors. As I continued shooting through the morning the fog gradually cleared, leaving blue sky and a soft light above the marshland. I saw (and heard!) many birds, including the white-faced ibises, black-necked stilts, redwing blackbirds, and Ross’s an snow geese included in this small collection.

White-faced ibises feeding in a California Central Valley marsh

“Black-necked Stilt Taking Flight” — A black-necked Stilt takes off from a California Central Valley pond

A black-necked Stilt takes off from a California Central Valley pond

Female red-winged blackbird perched above a California Central Valley pond

Ross's Geese in Flight — Snow Geese in Flight

A flock of snow geese in flight about a San Joaquin Valley wildlife refuge

Four Ross's Geese in Flight — Four Snow Geese in Flight

Four snow geese bank steeply through a turn above a California Central Valley marsh

Deals and Sales, Equipment

Fujifilm X100S in Stock & Price Reduction on X-E1/Lens Bundle

October 3, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The Fujifilm X100S is currently in stock at site-sponsor B&H Photography. The X100S is a digital rangefinder camera with a fixed focal length 35mm equivalent 23mm f/2 lens, featuring a hybrid optical/electronic viewfinder. It uses the Fujifilm 16MP X-trans sensor. This camera has been in great demand and very hard to find, with extremely limited stock. I just checked and B&H has it in stock as of the time of this posting.

The X100s uses much of the same technology as the interchangeable-lens X-E1 that I use – see my review here. And speaking of that camera, the X-E1 bundled with the Fujinon 18-55mm lens is currently only $999, or $200 off the previous price. (There are rumors that an “X-E2” model may be announced soon, so this is probably a great time to save money on the fine X-E1.)

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: in

Taking to the Air

Calf, Cottonwoods, and Cranes in Flight

Migratory Birds – November 24, 2013

Fujifilm X100S in Stock & Price Reduction on X-E1/Lens Bundle

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