Only a Couple

Work is certainly getting in the way of spring outdoor photography. So much so that today I only have pictures of two species to share.

What a Divided Day!

Wow, what a pleasant day! Kristy and I had two of our grandkids and a granddog with us and were we ever busy - paddling in the morning, a hike in the woods in the afternoon. I will divide the day’s images by activities.

Paddling: All four of us spent time on the water looking for turtles and birds. Possibly the most interesting wildlife photos were a series of images of Olympic quality for the sport of turtle diving. Our score for this dive would be quite high considering the shape of the turtle hitting the water.

Shelf Cloud Across the Horizon

Early this morning Kristy and I watched as this very dramatic shelf cloud moved across our horizon. Coming with it was wind and rain - about 1/2” according to our rain gauge. This was very impressive to see and watch!

Marten’s Lake Renovation Update

We had a pleasant day with very little wind so I put my drone in the air over Marten’s Lake to look around. The dirt work appears to be complete. My understanding is the next step is to establish vegetation on the banks. Then maybe, just maybe, we will see some water in this pool again.

If the video I recorded is worthwhile I will share that when it is prepped. For now I have…

Was Feeling Sorry, Then Changed My Mind

There they were… four tom turkeys strutting their stuff for a lone hen turkey. I felt so sorry for her. All the neighborhood boys were doing their best to impress her and she seemed absolutely uninterested.

Then it dawned on me… it is not that she was not interested yet. She just has to…

Quiet Time

Some days a person needs some quiet time in the outdoors. “Quiet time” has various definitions. In this case I am suggesting time in the outdoors with little to know human contact. In my situation there was plenty of..

In The Moisture (Again)

Yesterday I shared photos of wood ducks in cloudy, dreary conditions. Today my images feature blue-winged teal, a hooded merganser in the rain and a…

More Color Than The Sky

There is no doubt in my mind that this drake wood duck had more color than the drab sky of today, or the many blue-winged teal I found hanging out in ditches that have not had water for a couple of years.

Woodies are much more…

In the Rain (+ A Bonus)

Even though much of today was moist due to rain or drizzle, I still went out to look for wildlife or wildflowers. After all, life in the outdoors continues in all types of weather. Rain just means…

Just a Couple Specimens - Not!

What began as a woodland wildflower walk for Kristy and me to find a couple of blooming specimens - along with some fungi - became a longer walk with many wildflowers and fungi found and photographed.

We put together a short video of the wildflowers and fungi - with each identified. View the video at this link:

Just A Couple Specimens - Not!!!

Following are some of the many images recorded today. (View more at the video.)

Cute For Now

While adult Canada geese can be pests, watching the little goslings peak out from under Mom Goose or Dad Goose’s wing is certainly an interesting few seconds. Those little ones are so cute and innocent!

As I watched the first two goslings sneak a look from under the wing, I was surprised to see…

How Much To Include

Many years ago when I was beginning down my outdoor photography passion path, I started out studying wildflowers through my camera lenses. First pictures were preserved on the subdued colors of Kodachrome slide film, then the very strong greens of Fuji film, and ending with the equally vivid colors of Ektachrome Elite. A day in the field would cost the price of a roll or two of slide film, processing, and postage - along with a week or two of processing time. And you better hope your exposures were on the mark or the investments were wasted. Now imaging provides near instant results without film and processing cost, but with much higher equipment costs. I shot more than…

Personal Sharing For Your Benefit

For outdoor folks, especially those that pursue wildlife with camera, bow, or gun, the following information is likely something you already know. For others you may learn something new in these comments.

Pursuers of wildlife often have specific clothing they wear to go outside. Typically those clothes are camo-patterned to match the habitat where outdoor activities occur. Often the clothes receive special laundering to avoid fading and scents that give warning to wildlife with sensitive noses.

Recently I went into hiding along a river bank to photograph wood ducks and/or hooded mergansers. My photographic endeavors produced…

Marsh Migrations Observations

Tonight was one of our better evenings for seeing wildlife during “Marsh Migrations” hosted by Crawdaddy Outdoors. The wind was a bit of a challenge, but the birds were active. Many of us even watched soras at close range.

They Cannot All Be Pretty

Over the past few days I have shared what I consider to be a nice assortment of pretty wildflower images. With the arrival of spring it makes sense to enjoy nature’s beauty either in person or digitally.

Well, not everything in nature is pretty and certainly not during the spring months when hungry young birds in the nest need feeding. As I was driving I spotted this adult bald eagle in flight carrying something I did not immediately recognize. Once I was able to look at my image files on the computer it was easy to see the eagle was carrying a…

Tradeoffs… Priorities

After yesterdays post (late morning and dark, dreary, windy, and cold), I decided the Layla (our nearly blind, mostly deaf, terribly stubborn, and missing all of her teeth dog) and I should take a drive. She sat on the center console while she and I drove to central Iowa to surprise my daughter, her husband, her boys, and Kristy who had been there since Thursday. None of them expected us and they knew we were there when I put Layla in the house and she walked to the room where all of them were gathered. They were surprised when Ol’ Layla came strolling in!

How does that first paragraph equate to the title? Well, by not sticking around home I missed out on…

Sweet Marsh Before the Wind (and a surprise)

In an effort to paddle before the wind kicked up this morning I was out on the water very early. A heavy cover of clouds obscured what little sunshine was present causing me to have to use a high ISO for my photos. I suppose slightly less clean images are better than none, so I will share what I saw today…

Enjoying Nature With a New Song

Conditions today were so challenging for outdoor photography. The wind was relentless and very tiring. Still, I wanted to get out to see what I could find - windy or not.

This morning I photographed a couple of bird species. First was this presumed young red-shouldered hawk.

Does Rain Bother Waterfowl?

I, and many others, are so happy to see the rain that has been falling over the past days. To see the creeks running again, some higher than we have seen for a long time, is a great thing. As I checked rising stream levels I wondered if it might be possible that we are considered to be in extreme drought conditions and could experience flash flooding conditions at the same time. It all depends how the water falls.

As I crossed a bridge today I noticed…

Interesting Behavior

Since I had a little time this morning before work to fill, I opted to go paddling at Sweet Marsh. Conditions for wildlife photography couldn’t have been more challenging - dark and dreary with on and off drizzle, wind and a moving canoe. As a result any photography needed to be done at a high ISO.

Shooting at a higher ISO than normally means I can expect noisier images than normal. For a fellow who closely studies final photos - adding digital noise is not something I prefer. But, sometimes you have no options - like this morning.

As I rounded some cattails…