Resting Ruddy Duck In A Fog
I'm really glad I looked at these ducks in the fog and decided to take photos of them even though I was looking towards the sun instead of away from it like I typically do when photographing birds.
I'm really glad I looked at these ducks in the fog and decided to take photos of them even though I was looking towards the sun instead of away from it like I typically do when photographing birds.
Three days ago there was a little bit of fog at Farmington Bay WMA while the sun was coming up over the Wasatch Mountains which set up the conditions I needed to take this Northern Shoveler photo.
I didn't see or photograph as many Rough-legged Hawks last winter as I have in previous years but I did have a close up, extraordinary experience with one who was expelling a pellet on a snowy, foggy day at Bear River MBR.
There are times when one bird can make my day and yesterday that bird was an immature Red-tailed Hawk that I spotted just before heading home after a trip into the mountains that included fog and other challenges.
So... I did get out into the field yesterday but heavy fog got in the way of being able to see birds and the great scenery I know I could see at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
Some of the Tundra Swan photos I took that day in near white out conditions were flat and unappealing to my eyes but some of them I really liked because of the white bird on white snow.
These two photos of Canada Geese were taken in very different lighting conditions and while both tested my skills as a bird photographer one of them required more thought from me and challenged my skills more too.
The first bird I photographed that day was a Yellow-crowned Night Heron wandering in the sea fog near the dunes and shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico.
Four years ago I photographed a Barn Owl in a winter white out at Farmington Bay WMA and I have to admit that photographing it was tough.
By having the Barn Owls smaller in the frame in my photos I can share more visual information about where these beautiful owls live, hunt and thrive.
It wasn't "partly sunny" as predicted but I enjoyed myself while photographing the Turkey Vulture and Red-tailed Hawks on a foggy morning even though it tested my skills and techniques.
Many of the birds here in the Salt Lake Valley find a place to roost in the evening and overnight frost begins to accumulate on their feathers like it did on this Rough-legged Hawk on a parking sign.
I was able to photograph a Long-tailed Weasel in its white winter coat two years ago at Farmington Bay WMA and although I liked the images they really weren't what I truly desire.
I am so glad the American Bison were saved from extinction and that I see the Antelope Island State Park herd as often as I do.
When I go on trips to Montana and Idaho it is primarily about finding and photographing birds but the places I visit are so beautiful that I feel I have to photograph the scenic views too.
One a fall day at Fort De Soto I was able to photograph this Black-bellied Plover on a foggy morning up close on the beach.
I had forgotten about photographing this Barn Swallow in a fog at the Lower Lake of Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge until I was going through my archives yesterday.
I went looking for a Snowy Owl and got Barn Owls in flight instead at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
I did spot a juvenile Northern Harrier in the fog resting on a clump of vegetation in the snow covered field on the east side of the road and took a few images of it.
I think I am as excited as this Canada Goose calling in the snow that I photographed in February of 2013 along the causeway to Antelope Island State Park.
Yesterday I was able to photograph this Mule Deer buck in fog on Antelope Island State Park as he and another buck trailed after some does.
While working on my new photo galleries I came across this image of a male American Kestrel fluffed up on a cold Utah morning taken back in the winter of 2010.
This American White Pelican image was taken on my first camping trip to Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge
Every once in a while though the winter sun would penetrate through the fog and it was during one of those moments that I photographed this frost-covered Bison bull as it rested in the grasses.
I wasn't expecting much from the images but to my delight I liked the effect of the white Tundra Swans on the pure white snow.
Today I spotted a Long-tailed Weasel in its winter coat but the light wasn't great and the whole area was socked in by fog.
I could not resist photographing the young Red-tailed Hawk though as it lifted off and flew in front of me after prey even though conditions were not ideal.
This Terry Tempest Williams quote strikes a chord within me because I feel very connected to nature and wildness and that connection is with me every day of my life.
Earlier this month I had the opportunity to photograph a Merlin two mornings in a row in the Centennial Valley of Montana, once in low light and once as a fog rolled in.
Just a short Merlin post today from my Montana trip, a teaser for the images I will soon be posting.