Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
Sometimes you just can’t hold it long enough for your picture to be taken. Apparently I was taking too long to compose my shot as this pretty mule deer buck got tired of waiting and just had to relieve herself.
Taken at the start of this month, this pretty lady was out grazing as we wrapped up yet another snowfall. Light snow was falling and her back was coated in a layer of the white stuff. It was a pleasant, peaceful scene to just sit and watch as she went about her morning.
Even when our sunrises appear to be boring, they can render some pretty cool scenes.
When I headed out the door in the pre-dawn hours this past Sunday, I noted that there weren’t any clouds. That typically means sunrise won’t amount to much.
That was somewhat true in that there weren’t any clouds in the sky to light ablaze but, as the sun approached the horizon, the amber colors lit things up close to the ground. In the distance, a stand of bare trees with deer grazing underneath made for a pretty nice scene.
😀 I don’t know what this young white-tailed deer did to get so much snow on its face but it looked pretty darned funny.
The Denver area received another shot of snow last night leading to some pretty scenes on the plains. The wildlife, normally very active in the wake of a storm, seemed kind of subdued though. Perhaps even they are getting tired of all of the cold we have been experiencing.
I happened across this handsome, young fellow recently. I found it interesting that he payed me absolutely no attention, not even a glance.
Instead, he stood motionless, focused on a hill about 100 yards away. Having seen this behavior before, I suspected there must be coyotes nearby. Sure enough, three popped up over the hill – one of which I shared a pic of on Saturday.
While the buck wasn’t worried about me, the coyotes were and opted not to approach any closer, keeping their distance from the human. Feeling assured he was safe, the buck turned around and went on his way.
Mule deer are quite common here in Colorado, found anywhere from the plains to the high country. It won’t be long and these guys’ antlers will be falling off and in fact, I have seen a few already that have lost them.
The annual rut may be over but boys will be boys and these two are still more than willing to mix it up.
Days when snowstorms are ending or right after are some of my favorites for photographing wildlife. Certainly the snow provides for cool surroundings but more so, the critters just seem to relish the colder, wetter weather. This past Saturday that was the case for sure.
Light snow was falling and lighting wasn’t the best but the deer were extraordinarily active. These two pushed and shoved each other for a half hour and while the action wasn’t as intense as during the height of mating season, it was certainly fun to watch.
I do always wonder how they manage to escape without poking an eye out though! 😉
Image available for purchase here.
Big mulie strikes a pose. A handsome fellow in some nice, post-sunrise light. This mule deer buck was wearing some evidence of battles from the recent rut with a couple of broken tines but still looked good.
This guy was making sure no one violated the rules. 😉
Well, at least it looks like sand dunes but in reality it was just a pile of construction sand. 😉
Kind of a fun, surprise encounter with this handsome buck. I was heading home after my photo outing this past Sunday and out of the corner of my eye I see this White-tailed Deer buck standing atop the hill.
This was in suburbia so a very odd place to see him and as such, I actually thought it was a decoy or something at first. Stopping, it turned its head and then I knew of course it was real.
Taken near the South Platte River in Adams County, Colorado.
