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Bird and Nature PhotographyBritish Columbia, Canada |
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| Photo Blog 2010-01-30 It was overcast and raining today, but when it slowed to a drizzle I decided to head out for a walk. On entering Reifel I was pleasantly surprised to find an adult Black-crowned Night-Heron out in the open, awake and active.
More often than not they are tucked away obstructed by branches and sleeping during the day.
Not expecting to find much else I decided to stick with the Night-Heron for awhile.
It cooperated yawning, preening and stretching.
No Waxwings this afternoon, but I did manage this American Robin feeding on the berries.
A Northern Harrier perched nicely on a branch out in the marsh.
Then it was time to head home for the Canucks game. | Home | 2010-01-27 Continuing the owl theme of late, today it was one of our smallest owls. At Alaksen National Wildlife Area this Northern Saw-whet Owl was tucked away catching forty winks.
Meanwhile back at Reifel a Northern Harrier continues to roost on this log at the edge of the marsh. I liked the light a little better today than my previous shot.
To finish the afternoon off was a Cooper’s Hawk.
This accipiter was busy harassing ducks and scattering the song birds in the area.
| Home | 2010-01-23 On some of my recent walks one bird that I have been hoping for is a Bohemian Waxwing. There has been one amongst the Cedar Waxwings at Reifel for awhile. The challenge has been there is only one, and they often remain in the tree tops. The other afternoon I managed to find some Waxwings down low feeding on some berries. Alas the Bohemian was a now show, but the Cedar Waxwings did not disappoint.
A little one that I have not seen since last winter that were around in Langley when checking again for the Great Gray Owl was some Chestnut-backed Chickadees.
Another challenge around Boundary Bay has been the Northern Shrike. I am always seeing them fly by or hunting off in the marsh. Yesterday was more of the same and I only managed this distant shot.
Getting back to owls, one of the more common ones we see around here is the Short-eared Owl. Normally I would head out to Boundary Bay to photograph them, but there is this one low cut field with great afternoon light a couple of them frequent. So today I headed out there to wait and see if I could get some flight shots. It figures when one of them shows up it decided to perch on a fence post on the opposite side of the road instead.
The light was not ideal coming from the side and behind, but I was not going to complain. With just the two of us there at that moment it let me get a little closer.
These shots were taken out of the car window. I find this can be more successful at times than if I tried approaching on foot. It was eventually flushed when some other traffic came along. It eventually did fly over the field with the fading light, but not as low as I would have liked.
All in all, it was a good afternoon with the Short-eared Owl. | Home | 2010-01-18 We are fortunate this winter to have more than one Great Gray Owl visiting the Lowermainland area. Not having any luck on a couple of return trips for the one in the Coquitlam area, with the sunny break this afternoon I headed out to Langley for another. Needless to say I was delighted to find this not long after arriving.
The Great Gray Owl was roosting on a branch out in the open.
Then waiting for the moment where I could compose without the branch in the front/right. Actually I composed first and then waited for the right look.
This bird got a big thank you when I left. | Home | 2010-01-17 Following up on the Great Gray Owl I did manage to get out a couple of more times when there was some breaks in the weather. Unfortunately I could not relocate the bird and can only hope there will be another opportunity over the winter. So what does one shoot on the gloomy days when our avian friends are not cooperating? One afternoon along a trail it happened to be the fungus and lichen on this tree trunk.
Then a Cedar Waxwing showed up amongst this smorgasbord of berries.
Some Canvasback, a duck I have not seen in awhile, have shown up at Reifel over the last week.
There are always lots of Northern Harriers around, but this one caught my eye roosting on a log at the edge of the marsh.
This happy couple was snoozing away the afternoon.
There will always be the regulars garnering attention and posing.
The remaining berries are still attracting birds.
As you can see from the last few photos the sun actually made an appearance again. Yesterday was more of the same clear skies. So I headed out for some winter visitors, a Golden Eagle and Gyrfalcon. I was not alone as several birders and photographers were out in the Boundary Bay area to see these birds. After spending the better part of the day out there I did not see either. There was the old stand-bys. This Bald Eagle watching the people on the dyke below ...
... and a Red-tailed Hawk bagging a few welcomed rays along with the rest of us.
Today I had something to drop off at friends. It was overcast and the rain had stopped so I decided to take the scenic route and check for the raptors again. It figures that on the crappy day I would find both the Golden Eagle ...
... and the Gyrfalcon within twenty minutes.
While it is wonderful to see and have record shots of these birds, the problem from a photographic perspective is that they are usually being seen on utility poles. The challenge will be determining if I will be able to get them on a more natural perch in an area that is accessible. | Home | 2010-01-08 Yesterday I was headed out the door before sunrise in order to arrive at my destination by first light. The bird of interest for the day was a Great Gray Owl. While common to the interior and northern parts of British Columbia, it is rare to see this large owl in the Lowermainland area. Not having seen one in the wild before, this would also be life list addition for me. The sunrise was quite spectacular, but no sign of the owl. It was not long though before the keen eye of a fellow birder/photographer located the Great Gray tucked away in the trees. Now it was a matter of waiting to see if it would venture out or stay in its roost. It had previously been seen perched out in the open and hunting during the day providing wonderful photo opportunities. As luck would have it this day, the owl seemed quite content to stay hunkered down in its roost. Once the light got a little better in the trees I decided to at least try for a record shot of the bird. Not what I was hoping for, but I did not want to leave empty handed.
One of the challenges of bird photography is that your subjects may not always cooperate. You have to be patient and put in the time. While this is something I am used to and will do, with the Great Gray Owl it is also a matter of how long will it stay in this area. The other problem right now is the weather, as it appears that may be working against me for the next few days. While the photo opportunities did not materialize, the day was still a success in being able to see this bird and add it to my life list. An enjoyable time was also had chatting with the other birders/photographers that spent the day there. | Home | 2010-01-06 Well at least the rain has been holding off a little the last few days. While I don’t photograph every eagle in a tree, how can you not stop to admire them? This time of year there are plenty of Bald Eagles to be seen and enjoyed.
This Rough-legged Hawk provided a fly by.
Shifting from the larger raptors to the smaller song birds I spent some time around a cooperative stump. This particular stump had a few different little ones coming and going.
Then there was this squirrel chewing away on the berries in a Holly tree.
This Heron was napping in the marsh but would occasionally look up while the Mallards continued snoozing in the background.
While lots of photos are taken of the colourful drake Wood Duck, ...
... don’t forget these cuties. | Home | 2010-01-01 Happy New Year! It was a rainy start to the new year. One fortunate thing about living where I do is that any cessation in the rain I can head out and be only minutes from a target rich environment. There was a brief reprieve today so I headed off to Reifel for a quick walk. Everybody seems to love owls, myself included. This Barred Owl did not disappoint those that were out today as it roosted beside the trail.
It was down low enough allowing for foliage in the background and not the grey skies.
Not long after these shots were taken the rain started again putting an end to my brief outing. In spite of that, it was a good start for the new year. | Home |
Previous Photo Blogs | 2010-01
| 2010-02 | |
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© Jim Martin |
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