Tag Archives: wildlife

Black-Necked Stilts

December 11, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A small group of black-necked stilts cavorting in Central California wetlands

Black-necked stilts are, in my opinion, beautiful and photogenic birds. They have striking visual features — their very long legs, the stark black and white patterns of their feathers, their interesting head and bill shapes. They also will frequently spend time in shallow water — just the right depth for their long legs — and seem to tolerate my photographing them from a close-by vehicle. They often wander back and forth, turning towards and away from the light.

Most often I have seen them as isolated individuals or perhaps in the company of one other bird. But this time, in one pond, I found groups of them, a half-dozen or more, behaving as if they were part of small flocks rather than rugged individualists. This group alternated between walking or swimming left and right in front of my camera, and then wildly leaping into the air for short, low elevation flights. The former is easy to photograph, but the latter much less so.

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: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Sandhill Cranes, Island, Fog

December 7, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A group of sandhill cranes stands on a small wetland island on a foggy morning

I love the Central Valley tule fog during this part of the year — perhaps not for driving, but when it comes to creating moody and interesting atmosphere, the fog produces. In fact, quite often I’ll check the weather forecast before heading that way during gate late-fall through early spring period, and if the weather looks too nice I won’t go. But if the weather calls for fog, I’m on my way! This visit started out to be an exception to that rule, since the weather forecast did not mention fog at all. But when I checked the current conditions before departing there was an indication that some fog had developed in a few areas.

My drive, 100 miles done entirely in pre-dawn darkness, did not suggest fog… until I left the final town before arriving at my slightly remote location. I immediately encountered a surprise fog bank, and it only got thicker as I turned off the main highway onto narrow country roads. I arrived at my destination in freezing temperatures and light fog which continued to thicken for the next hour. These lesser sandhill cranes were hanging out in a spot where I can reliably find them early in the morning, though they were a pretty good distance off across a network of wetland ponds. This group was assembled on a small island, and they must have been comfortable there, as they were the last group to finally take to the air and fly off.

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: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Arrival of Geese, Dusk

December 6, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Geese land in a wetland pond at dusk

In an earlier post I alluded to my occasional good fortune in being the recipient of unanticipated events while out photographing, in this case the unexpected arrival of a dusk flock of geese right in front of the spot where I was standing and quietly watching the dusk light fade, thinking that I had finished my photography for the day. In that last moment, a flock took to the air a good distance away across wetland ponds, expanded the circle of its flight, and without warning began to land in the pond next to my position.

The relationships between luck and skill and preparation are complex, but there is no denying that luck plays a role in photographing the natural world. While I could tell that the sky was becoming beautiful, and while I am prepared to make technical and esthetic decision about how to photograph things as they happen, the fact that this flock took off in the dusk light and then landed perhaps fifty feet from my position is certainly nothing for which I can take credit. It does pay to be prepared, to have done this enough times to have a good chance of making the right decisions quickly when the opportunity arrives and, perhaps most of all, to be out there in the field as much as possible. One moment like this one makes it worthwhile.

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

Ross’s Geese, Dusk

December 5, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A flock of Ross’s geese suddenly takes to the air at dusk

The truth is that there are whole long periods of “nothing exciting” when photographing a subject like this. The photographs might deceive the viewer into imagining a morning, an afternoon, and an evening spent in constant wonder at the marvel of the birds and the landscape they live in, surrounded by clouds of birds in beautifully colorful skies. The truth, as it often is, tends to be more complicated. In fact, I spent a good part of this day sitting in my car grading papers. I napped a bit — important when you get up at 3-something o’clock in the morning and start your day with a two-hour drive in darkness. Yes, I even checked in on social media during the slow times.

There are at least two things to say about this. First, a quiet day in a place where time moves slowly is not a bad thing in and of itself — and it is sadly a rarity for too many of us. Second, and perhaps more optimistically, there are moments that reward patience and occasional boredom. They are not really predictable and often they arrive unexpectedly, and this only makes them more powerful. I had come to what I thought was the end of the day’s photography as the light faded and the birds quieted and I was simply standing by my car next to a small patch of bird-free water… when something triggered a mass eruption of geese into the air. They circled and the circle gradually expanded until its edge was right above me, and soon a large part of the flock began to land in that small patch of water.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: wildlife

Black-Necked Stilts

Arrival of Geese, Dusk

Ross’s Geese, Dusk

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.