Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
Solitary reflections in black and white. Jumping back to almost exactly one year ago today. Thick fog had settled in on the St Vrain River in northern Colorado and spotting wildlife became pretty much impossible. It did however create some very cool scenes like this one, taken in St. Vrain State Park.
The weather this past Sunday was not particularly hospitable with temperatures below freezing and steady snow. Most animals had opted to lie low and stay sheltered.
This Great Horned Owl wisely chose to do just that, staying as sheltered as possible in a tree that had a few remaining leaves.There were enough leaves missing through that my friend Bill easily spotted it and let me know about the find.
Needless to say, the owl was in no rush to leave its perch, rightly opting to sit tight in the cold weather. When I got home I realized that the poor thing had ice and snow caked onto its face, an indication of just how inhospitable the conditions were.
Temperatures below freezing and snow don’t make it very comfortable to be outside for humans. Creatures such as these are far more capable of withstanding those conditions though.
I spent yesterday morning driving around looking for photo-worthy subjects and found a few, including this handsome guy. The deer actually seemed to be reveling in the cold and were quite active.
A frustrating photo morning. I went to Waterton Canyon southwest of Denver for the bighorn and yeah, I saw them – as tiny little dots on the side of the canyon. Sigh. Apparently they came down hours later but I wasn’t willing to wait that long.
I am in a bit of a ‘photo funk’ having gone weeks without a truly quality photo outing. I’ve had periods like this where I struggle to find quality subjects and fail to have a good outing but this one, goodness, seems to be going on forever. The drought continues…
Well this was kind of a neat one. I went for a photo walk after work yesterday and as I was returning to my truck, I see the silhouette of a hawk in a tree. Assuming it was a run-of-the-mill red tail, I wasn’t particularly careful with my approach.
I wish I had been as when I got close, I realized it was a Harlan’s, a somewhat rare sub-species of the red tail. These raptors are notable for their dark plumage, far different from the more common red tail.
I managed a few shots of it as it took off, not particularly good ones though. As it moved off, much to my surprise, it went and joined a second one in circling the area. I’ll definitely be checking back to see if I can see this pair again and get better images.
Taken in Adams County, Colorado.
This isn’t a view you see very often! Taken from an altitude of 400 feet and looking straight down, this is a small island in a local open space near where I live.
Taken this past Sunday, I was looking to get a unique image and think this one qualifies. Those little white dots you see in the water are Canada Geese.
My drone will never be used to capture as many pics as my ‘real’ camera but it does have its uses and can create some pretty cool images.
I meant to share this sooner but totally forgot. A local news station did a story about a very historic place, the Tabor Opera House in Leadville, securing much-needed funding for preservation work. Whoever published the story, sought out a picture of the Tabor Opera House to accompany it.
Apparently, whoever this is, couldn’t tell the difference between a three foot high replica and the real thing. The photo they used was of the one at Tiny Town, a tourist attraction that has many such diminutive replicas of famous buildings here in Colorado. I of course was pretty shocked that this kind of mistake was made – well, maybe not given that it was probably some intern.
Anyway, it was pretty funny so I sent out a tweet to them with one of my pictures of the real thing. Kyle Clark, one of their news anchors responded immediately saying, “I. Have. No. Words. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We’ll fix it immediately.” And indeed they did. :-D<
I have seen this pair of owls many times in recent years. They have a nice little hiding spot northwest of Denver International Airport, far enough off the road that unless you already knew about them, you would never see them. I’ve tried to get pics of them before but never had any luck as they depart long before you get close enough to get a picture. This Sunday was different.
I was on a photo drive with my sister and a friend was in the area and pointed out that the owls were in their usual spot. We decided to give it a shot and this time the pair cooperated. While they were well-buried and hidden, I managed a couple of tolerable captures.
Abraham Lincoln said, “Elections belong to the people. It’s their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.”
I truly hope you opt to exercise your civic duty as an American and cast your ballot today. Don’t turn your back just to be burned and then complain about it later. Make your voice heard!
