Feb 4, 2020 | Wildlife Photography
Dusky Grouse
captured by D5 / 180-400
There is a scene in Jeremiah Johnson where they get their dinner by throwing rocks at some birds on the ground. If you meet a Dusky Grouse, you can see how exactly how that is true. About the size of a chicken and I’m told, really tasty, the Dusky Grouse (formally Blue Grouse), when found, is a real easy bird to photograph. That’s because, they seem to be missing the “be very very scared” gene. You don’t need a long lens, you just need light. A lot of folks with iPhones found this out for themselves last week in Yellowstone when this male repeatedly performed for folks at point-blank range. A number of times, it literally flew to the ground right at folk’s feet. They had to WATCH where they stepped so they wouldn’t squash it!
Dusky Grouse
captured by D5 / 180-400
When going about its normal routine, you could watch them feast on these very small fungi that live on the limbs of the Ponderosa Pines. He would walk about the branches in search of this small mushroom and when found, would nibble it all off. Then, it would take advantage of the snow stuck on the limbs for moisture by eating snow. And so it would go about the forest, walking the limbs and feasting. The fact there are a hundred photographers knocking each other over and jumping in front of vehicles that could make snow angels out of them was irrelevant to the grouse. He just wanted to feed. It is amazing to me they survive but they do, with a really unique survival strategy.
Jan 28, 2020 | Landscape Photography
Clepsydra Geyser
captured by Z7 / Z24-70f2.8
It’s just steam, but wow, what Mother Nature can do with it! I was fortunate to be at Beehive Geyser in Yellowstone when it erupted and it sounded like a 737 engine at launch! The water lew out with such power for so long, it almost got boring! I kept asking, “just how much water is down there?” And it’s not just hot water but has all these dissolved minerals which is what makes the cone at the base of the geyser. It’s simple, mind-blowing!
Beehive Geyser
captured by Z7 / Z24-70f2.8
Photographing really is pretty simple. Number one, don’t let that steam hit your front elements. It can take the coating right off the lens (yes, I personally experienced that mistake). Next, let the shutter fly! There is no way you can see the perfect explosion during an eruption, then tell your finger to fire, at least I can’t. When I see a series I like, I will take 5-7 frames and then pick the right one later. It’s a gorgeous display so shooting is a pleasure and watching that eruption all over again back home, that a sheer pleasure!
Jan 23, 2020 | Wildlife Photography
Rocky Mtn Bighorn Sheep
captured by D2H / 600f4
One of my favorite times of year to photograph big game is in the winter. The two main reasons are all based on their pelt. They have their winter coats and often extra fat levels so they look their best. At the same time, those pelts which any other time of year help them blend in, really make them stand out. And in the winter, the basics of getting close physically really pay off big. Food is an obvious attraction but water, not so obvious, is even a bigger attraction. Free water, water not frozen, can be really scarce and they still have the same needs in the winter and summer for water. Knowing this basic biology can really produce some great images.
Rocky Mtn Bighorn Sheep
captured by D2H / 600f4
It takes very little to stress a critter in the wintertime. The same old mantra, calories in, calories out, still counts. This is even truer in the winter when both food and water helps keep them warm as well as functioning. I’ve seen too many times in a photographer’s desire to get “the” photo pushing a critter so they can’t simply eat or drink. Or the critter has to expend more energy than normal to take in that food or water. Learn a little basic biology, use a longer lens or, just take a deep breath and pass by that photo so the next time you go out, the critter is still there. More than any time of the year, in winter, respect their space!
Jan 21, 2020 | Landscape Photography
Haystack Rock
captured by Z7 / Z24-70f2.8 / Breakthrough 10x ND
Bringing movement to a still image, I simply love that challenge. I’ve explored many methods of accomplishing this and now I’m exploring to me a new one. Recently I decided to explore the long exposure afforded by the 10x Neutral Density ND filter to see what it might bring to my quest. My goal is not just to blur everything because, I can. I want to bring movement to just some elements in the photo, those elements I “feel” moving as I stand there that the story. This means that the subject is not the blur. The blur tells the story of the subject.
Peter Iredale Shipwreck
captured by Z7 / Z24-70f2.8 / Breakthrough 10x ND
Braving the elements (it poured and haled taking these images), I relied on the elements to bring a mood and romance to the photo along WITH the blur. I LOVE the Breakthrough 10x ND (I got at Bedfords) and used it for these images. I shot with the Z7 / Z24-70f2.8 which performed perfectly in these elements. I relied on ND Timer to determine my exposure. I’m far from feeling like I have this under my belt so I’m successful every time I pull out the 10x. But I’m encouraged enough by my results to keep at it.
Jan 17, 2020 | Landscape Photography
Cape Disappointment
captured by Z7 / 70-200f4
The lighthouse, the lone sentinel protecting seafarers from dashing on the rugged rocks and reefs of the coast. This incredibly romantic symbol of our coastline draws me in over and over again. Just how do we tell the lighthouse’s story to draw our viewer in when they have seen lighthouses over and over? If the moon is going to be part of your story, that’s a major challenge. If you want the light from the lighthouse and its path never reaches the land, that’s a problem. The way I went about capturing this scene was to shoot at 10am (not PM) and underexpose once the sun was behind a cloud. I used a cooler WB to suggest night. I waited until a wave was in the foreground to provide some visual depth. And finally, added the lighthouse beam in post. And if I did my job right, you look at the photo and feel a little of the romance of the sea.
Jan 14, 2020 | Landscape Photography
Haystack Rock
captured by Z7 / Z24-70f2.8
Just how mad were those seas? How angry were those skies? For a fact, you don’t really know. You only have what my photo communicates to you. Was the exposure at 0, + or – comp? That anger and I feel the emotion in the photo, comes from not just the elements and how they are arranged in the scene, but the exposure I choose to tell the story. Was the storm brewing, raging or on its way out? Underexposure makes the drama come out in the photo, the anger of a raging storm appears and that’s the romance I wanted to bring. It’s such a simple thing and then again, it’s a big thing.
