Tag Archives: stilt

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

Black-Necked Stilt In Flight

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Black-Necked Stilt In Flight
“Black-Necked Stilt In Flight” — A black-necked stilt flies above Central Valley wetlands.

This black-eyed stilt was one of a pair of birds I tracked as they flew across this wetland pond. I’m intrigued by the stilts, with their striking black and white bodies set off by orange legs. Their long legs and bills equip them to forage in shallow wetland ponds. The feed quietly for long periods and then suddenly launch into very quick flight just above the water.

These characteristics make them easy to photograph when they are feeding, but very difficult to catch when they are flying. The pair flew across the scene in front of me, and because I was ready for them I managed to get a sequence of photographs. Of course, bird photography is, in my experience, marked by more failures than successes — and there’s a ‘failure story” to accompany this photograph, too! The birds landed in the pond together with ballet-like grace as I squeezed of one final shot — a photograph that was completely out of focus!

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

Wetland Menagerie

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Wetland Menagerie
A small collection of shallow water feeders in Central Valley wetlands.

Wetland Menagerie. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A small collection of shallow water feeders in Central Valley wetlands.

Today’s photograph is something that is a bit more of a record perhaps — a photograph of three sorts of wetland birds that are not among those that typically loom largest in our attention. The long-beaked birds at the left are white-fronted ibises. I think that the brown birds are teals — perhaps cinnamon teals? The taller black and white birds are black-necked stilts.

All of these are shallow-water feeders. The ibises and stilts give this away with their long legs and beaks, while the ducks dispense with the dignity that comes from standing erect and simply get up close and personal with the water and the muck beneath it. I’ve written before about how I came to photograph such critters not from an initial attraction to birds, but more to discovering them in the landscape. This leads to several aspects of my relationship to birds: I’m not an expert on them, and I’m still learning new things about them all the time. (This week’s new nugget is that there are “diving ducks” and “dabbling ducks.” Who knew?)

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Two Black-Necked Stilts

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Two Black-Necked Stilts
A pair of wading black-necked stilts and their reflections

Two Black-Necked Stilts. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A pair of wading black-necked stilts and their reflections

For decades I did not think of myself as a “bird person,” much less a “birder.” I’m still no birder — I’m not great at identifying the critters and I don’t necessarily seek out new sightings as much as photographic opportunities. However, my fascination with them has increased as I have spent more time photographing them. The first time I intentionally went out to photograph birds, I had basically no idea what I was seeing — it was just, “Wow! Lots of birds!” And that was exciting. This led to a focus on photographing migratory birds, and ,ore recently I’ve become more aware of some of the smaller birds, too.

One of the first to these “smaller birds” was the black-necked stilt. At first I only noticed them tangentially while looking for other things. On a few occasions when those “other things” were nowhere to be found, I turned my camera toward the stilts. They are attractive, though sometimes gangly, birds, with their stark contrast of black and white feathers. They often permit a relatively close approach, and they frequently work their way slowly around a small area, making it easier to photograph them. But getting somewhat unusual photographs of them requires patience and some luck. They do fly, but when they do it is often sudden and very quick… and not at all easy to keep them in the viewfinder. And while one feeding stilt is interesting, that is a pretty common sight. It is more challenging to try to photographs groups of them in ways that are visually linked and interesting. This pair obliged for a moment to two, coming close together and moving in parallel before separating and going their separate ways.

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

Wetlands Evening

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Wetlands Evening
Trees, plants, and a few birds under a bank of clouds above San Joaquin Valley wetlands

Wetlands Evening. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees, plants, and a few birds under a bank of clouds above wetlands

The process of bird-photography, at least as I know it, is perhaps not quite what people who don’t photograph this subject might imagine. The actual practice and experience varies from photographer to photographer and, no doubt, from place to place. However, I’d be willing to bet that many people would be surprised at how much not-photographing goes on! There are amazing moments when we come upon a special scene, when a huge flock of geese lifts off, when we get close to a raptor, when the light and sky do something astonishing. Then there are all the other moments, and they form the majority of the experience. The birds are somewhere else. They are just a bit too far away. The light goes flat. It rains. And so on.

The fact of the matter is that in order to photograph those periodic extraordinary moments, you have to spend a lot of time just being there. If really special stuff happens, say 1% of the time, you’ll increase your odds of experiencing it if your base is 100 hours rather and one. Of course, that also means that you’ll increase the number of slow hours when not much happens. Be ready. Bring a book. Take a nap. Wander a bit. And sometimes take a look at other subjects, like the still and quiet grasses growing in a shallow pond beneath winter skies, even though there aren’t a whole lot of birds there.

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.