Tag Archives: marsh

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

Two Cranes, Morning, Marsh

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Two Cranes, Morning, Marsh
Two sandhill cranes stand in a marsh in early morning sunlight

Two Cranes, Morning, Marsh. San Joaquin Valley, California. December 9, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two sandhill cranes stand in a marsh in early morning sunlight

This past Saturday was a full-on bird day for me. It started before dawn in the San Joaquin Valley, where I visited some wetlands areas to photograph various birds: cranes, geese, ibises, tri-color blackbirds, a solitary heron and a few egrets. Later that afternoon I wrapped up my bird photography and headed up to Oakhurst in the Sierra foothills to attend the opening reception for AVIAN: Birds in A Changing World at Gallery Five. The juried exhibit includes over 60 pieces by more than 40 artists, including a couple of my bird photographs. Afterwards I drove back to the Bay Area. Yes, it was a long day!

The conditions and the birds can vary a lot at this time of year in the San Joaquin Valley. Often it is foggy, but the skies were nearly clear when I arrived this time, with just a bit of scattered ground for a some haze. Two bird events were striking right after I arrived. First, a huge cloud of very small birds — perhaps tri-color blackbirds — rose before dawn and moved across the horizon. Second, a larger-than-usual number of sandhill cranes lifted off at dawn, and they followed unusual paths that brought them close to me. As the fly-out was getting underway I photographed these two cranes in the pond as the first light began to filter through the haze. They stood quietly for a few minutes, then suddenly took to the air and were gone.

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: Flight, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Great Egret, Airborne

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Great Egret, Airborne
A great egret flies past, skimming above wetland plants

Great Egret, Airborne. Central Valley, California. January 16, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A great egret flies past, skimming above wetland plants

In some ways these magnificent birds are very accessible, but in other they can be hard to photograph in interesting ways. They are common at the locations where I frequently photograph birds, and when I have decent cover (shooting from a vehicle or similar) I can frequently get relatively close to them without scaring them into flight. The key is a very slow and cautious approach and sensitivity to the body language of the bird — there are often hints when egrets think that I am getting too close. From just outside that boundary the egrets are large enough to fill the frame in good conditions, and I have lots of photographs of them on the ground feeding. Perhaps too many!

That’s the problem. An egret on the ground is interesting, but not often quite as interesting as an egret in the air. (Grounded egrets can be beautiful in the right light and with the right background and so forth.) In flight they are beautiful birds, typically using slow wing motion and often gliding, and they assume impressive poses when taking off and when landing. However, the lift off is sudden and the flight path typically takes the bird away from me. But sometimes I get lucky, as I did with this specimen. I was actually unaware of its presence and, in fact, it may have been unaware of mine. I had stopped to photograph something else when the bird suddenly flew into range from my left and passed in front of me as it made a gentle turn around my position. I’ve learned to react fairly quickly and to get the camera up and tracking, but in the best of circumstances it is still a challenge. The first couple of frames are almost humorously off-target, but then I found my subject and centered it in the frame as it passed by very closely.

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

Wetlands Dawn, Arriving Birds

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Wetlands Dawn, Arriving Birds
A flock of geese prepares to land on a foggy wetlands pond at dawn

Wetlands Dawn, Arriving Birds. Central Valley, California. February 5, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A flock of geese prepares to land on a foggy wetlands pond at dawn

Another California winter day and another trip to visit the Central Valley and search out migratory birds and fog and atmospheric light!  Back in early February the bird action was beginning to pick up, and we would consistently find at last some geese (and often many more and other birds, too) when we arrived. Fog is one variable. I love thick fog, especially in these locations, and we often got precisely that. But on this morning the fog was thinner and earlier to dissipate, here already thin enough before dawn to let us see the winter sky.

As we watched the fog drift and thin and the sky begin to get lighter, groups of birds (mostly Ross’ geese) began to arrive, circling a bit and then landing on the ponds. The arcing curve of this flock’s flight, descending towards the right and then beginning to circle back, is visible in this photograph if you look closely. A few earlier arrivals float on the pond in an area lit by reflected sky.

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.