“One Departs, One Remains” — A juvenile osprey leaves the nest while its sibling remains.
This is a bit of a serendipitous photograph. I had been photographing landscape subjects since before dawn, but the early light had now dissipated. I figured I was done for the morning, so I shouldered my gear and started ambling in a direction that would take me back to my vehicle. Along the way I saw a little side path marked “dead end” that led toward the water, so I thought I’d take a look. A few feet later I was through some brush and on a rocky beach. A woman was there photographing, and she pointed out two juvenile ospreys at a nest atop a rocky formation just offshore.
A large flock of geese takes to the air at twilight.
For many of us, one of the most exciting events when photographing birds is the eruption of many thousands of them into flight, a scene usually accompanied by wild sounds — the cries of the birds and a loud rustle (not sure how else to describe it) of thousands of pairs of wings. We often like to speculate about the cause of such take-offs — is there an eagle nearby, or did a plane fly over? — but often it takes place without a clear trigger. It may begin in one portion of the flock, within what seems like little more than a second the launch spreads across the flock.
Compositionally there isn’t a lot to this photograph, but it does have a few things that attract me — both to the shot itself and speaking more generally about these birds. Especially if you haven’t seen such things yourself quite a few times, the sheer density of the cloud of birds is striking. There are some many that it takes some effort to pick out individuals. In addition, there was special light on this evening — a gentle haze had developed and the western sky produced a luminous and colorful glow. Finally, there is a light subtlety here that I have learned to appreciate: The birds are between me and that sunset sky, but the light above the birds and behind my position is the much bluer and darker light of twilight. The birds themselves, while set against that colorful background, are themselves lit from the front by the soft yet intense blue light.
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.
A great egret takes flight above San Joaquin Valley wetlands
Egrets are among the easiest birds to find — as long as you go where they are — and also among the most impressive. They are mostly individuals, rarely seen in groups, though occasionally they may collect in numbers of a few dozen in the winter. I typically find them around water, ranging from creeks and drainage canals through ponds and even the ocean shoreline. (There is one small pond not too far from where I live where I can almost always find a single egret in the area, and this has been the case for at least the last fifteen years.)
They don’t initially seem too distressed by human presence, especially if they are hunting and have found a target. However, they have clear boundaries and if you get too close they will suddenly take off, with little warning. They can be quite beautiful in flight, usually moving their wings slowly and even gliding, and they flare their wings impressively as they land. Unfortunately, most often they are flying away from my camera position — so it was special to be able to track this one as it flew past me from right to left.
A great blue heron takes flight from a foggy field at the Merced National Wildlife Refuge California
To retell a story I’ve shared before, I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that despite living in California for decades I had barely been aware of the astonishing winter migratory bird population of the state’s Central Valley until a chance encounter with a colleague led to a “wild goose chase” trip into an area south of Sacramento not so long ago. Now I’m now officially hooked! I’m certainly no expert on these birds – geese, herons, egrets, and more – but I’ve become very interested in seeing and photographing them.
While returning from another trip last month I saw a flock of geese over the Central Valley, and was reminded that this seasonal migration is again underway. I resolved to try to get out there earlier this year, and I made my first trip a few days after Thanksgiving. I drove over Pacheco Pass through Los Banos, entered the valley fog, and headed out to the Merced National Wildlife Refuge, a place I’m starting to know rather well. The fog was even thicker when I arrived at the refuge, and I could hear a lot more birds than I could really see, though I did catch a faint view of a flock of white Ross’s geese through the murk at one point. Eventually the fog began to thin a bit, and here and there muted sunlight began to shine through. As I circled the refuge I saw this lone great blue heron standing in a field in this transitional light. Using my car as a blind, I stopped a ways back and used my longest lens to make several photographs as the bird mostly stood there. Bit by bit, I was able to edge the car forward and continue to shoot from the driver’s seat, eventually being roughly parallel with the bird. I stopped and shut off the engine and continued to watch and make more photographs. Eventually, the heron apparently got bored with me and lifted off to find more interesting company, and I was able to get a couple of shots as this impressive bird took to the still-foggy air.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more. Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email
Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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