CARDINALS, BLUE JAYS, WOODPECKERS, AND EAGLES - Jan 22

Another day of bird photography!

This morning we were off to visit the backyard of a local photographer to see and photograph cardinals, blue jays, nuthatches, etc. This was a very nice treat and experience. The weather was overcast to start with but then we had some sun. We had some good opportunities and got both the male and female cardinal, a male blue jay, and several different woodpeckers.

We took a break of about an hour and a half before we went out for our last afternoon of photographing the eagles. The weather had gotten colder and to start we had some sunlight. The wind picked up also during the afternoon, but was at our backs so it was tolerabe. As we photographed we watch the next snows approach and actually photographed the eagles in the snow. The birds had to work a bit harder to line up for a catch of fish. It was fun to watch them make in air adjustments.

Tonight we took our hosts out to dinner as a big thank you. We enjoyed barbecued pork ribs at Famous Dave's Barbecue.It was quite delicious. Back at the house I picked today's images, and wrote this blog. Now it is time to go pack our bags. The weather may be an issue tomorrow as we leave Chicago as it will be quite cold, about -15˚F. The wind will be  picking up tonight so that there is also a good chance of drifting, I will be glad when we are in the air heading for San Diego.

Hope you have enjoyed the journey. Now comes time to do a great deal of deleting the poorer quality images. This will keep me busy for a few days, to say the least.

AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD, Bettendorf - JAN 21

Today I am only going to share with you some pictures of winter through the eyes of a Southern Californian.

I went outside this morning after breakfast and walked around the block in the neighborhood that we are visiting. It had snowed last night so that there was a fresh coating of snow of about an inch, and the morning was sunny and cold (about 4˚F) while I was outside. I really enjoyed the chance to photograph the nature as well as the yard decorations. Hope that you enjoy the change of pace.

About 1230 we were off to the eagles at Lock and Dam 14. Our saving grace was that there was little wind today. The high today was about 8˚F. I was quite comfortable though my fingers got quite cold toward the end of the afternoon, but this was probably because I had started my hand warmers about 0900, and they had worn out their warmth. We only had about an hour to go so our host Jay gave me his partially used ones to finish out the day.

I have done an initial edit of 700 of the 800+ pictures today. This is just an initial edit and all I am doing is checking for focus! Tomorrow morning we will be photographing some cardinals :-). In the afternoon we will have our final session with the eagles. It is supposed to be colder tomorrow with the air temperatures remaining about the same as today, but there will be a wind chill which is to drop it down to an expected feel of -15˚F!!! Brrrr.

IN QUEST OF THE ELUSIVE SNOWY OWL - JAN 20

Today we were off early in quest of photographs of the snowy owl. This bird usually lives in Canada and comes South in the winter, but not this far South. They have been seen here every couple of years. One of the gentlemen here in Bettendorf does a great deal of work with the photographing and video of the bald eagles. This is his passion. He loves to search out and photograph the owls as well. There had been reports of snowy owl sightings North of here so off we went.

The drive to the site was about an hour and a quarter. So we were up at 0530 and were rendezvousing with Stan and a couple of other photographers at 0700. We got up to the area and spread out on a search of the various farm roads. We spotted an owl sitting on a telephone pole, while another of the group and found an owl in one of the fields. We set up our gear at what we believed was a safe
distance. Shortly Stan came along and gave us more direction.

You will see that I was successful at getting some good photos of the owl. I am really happy with what I got. I also got some good processing advise from our host, Jay, to bring out the best of the pictures you will see. We only had one time where we got the owl flying in quest of a mouse on the snow. It seems that due to the weather their hunting has been very successful so they were not
attracted to our offerings.




(Remember that if you click on an image the whole set will go into a slide show mode.)

Around noon we headed for lunch in the nearby town, which was Ashton, IL. We had a very good lunch at the Huddle Cafe, and I purchased a coffee mug from them as a souvenir. After lunch we went back and found another snowy owl but it was way out in the middle of a field and did not seem at all interested in food. About 1400 we decided that the photo ops were poor to nil, and headed back to the Eagles. We thought that we might have some nice afternoon light, but as we drove the clouds built and it was totally overcast by the time we got to Lock & Dam 14 where the eagles like to feed. We did some photography, but the light just was not there so we finally headed for home.

It was a good day, and a real thrill to see and photograph the snowy owls. Tonight it is snowing and is expected to continue until about midnight. Then the temperature is to plummet to about -5˚F. The wind has already picked up, and will be a factor tomorrow. The temperatures will be about -15˚F to -25˚F with the wind chill!! Hopefully it warms up a bit in the afternoon so we can go photograph the eagles once again.

EAGLES, IOWA - DAY 1

Today it was quite mild here in Bittendorf, IA. The recorded high at the house was 42˚F!! We thoroughly enjoyed the comforts of the warm weather. At one point I took off my down parka and removed my gloves and hat!! We had a partly cloudy day. When the sun shown it was especially "sweet" in the late afternoon. Tomorrow promises to be another warm day for the area with a forecasts of 27˚F.

Here are a couple of pictures from an early and brief review of today's experience. I took over 800 pictures and have done a quick look at about 200!

Tomorrow we are off early to the North with eight photographers in five cars in search of a snowy owl or two. There has been several reports of sightings about one and a half hours from here. This would really be an added treat ifwe succeed in seeing them, and photographing them.

OFF to IOWA AND BALD EAGLES

BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE  (15 ˚F at 2000) - Jan 18

Had a great day for flying to Moline. IL. It was very clear in San Diego as we headed out Friday morning. The plane took off on time from the gate but it took a while in the take off line. The country is very dry, and we saw very little snow as we flew East. The first real snow was over New Mexico. After the Rockies there still was not much snow on the ground. When I commented to our hosts about that they reminded me that after the heavy snows of December there was rains that followed.

Saturday started out with snow which probably fell for most of the morning. There was a about an inch to an inch and a half on the ground when we came out of the Quad Cities Photo Club Winter Seminar Event this evening.

We spent today at the above mentioned Winter Seminar Event held in Davenport, IA. Our host is the past president of the Camera Club, and is still very involved in club activities. We had presentations in the morning by Mark Rasmussen, LightChase Photography, on celestial photography, night sky wonders (Milky Way, Northern Lights, Lightning, etc.) This is the gentleman that I often travel with and is a thorough teacher of what you are photographing, and how to photograph these events. After lunch there were presentations by Todd Spaak on getting out and opening up your vision to the wonders all around you, many of them small, and things we often overlook. It also was very good, and he is very enthusiastic about what he does, and has a strong sales background which has helped him in developing his business. Following that the local expert on the bald eagles and the photography of them did a presentation on how to capture these magnificent animals in your camera.

So now we are prepared for tomorrow and are looking forward to some great photo opportunities. There will be lots of people out tomorrow to do the same thing as it is Sunday, and the place we go to is well known in the area for the presence of the eagles. People travel from Chicago, Michigan,
Missouri, etc. to do this photography. We may be coming the furthest, but there will be many from all around the mid-west.

I may have difficulty getting these out in a timely manner as the internet connection here can be slow or cranky at times. I will try to post daily from now until I return to San Diego. Just be patient if there is nothing new for a day or two. Right now I have spent quite sometime getting on line. Thanks for visiting. Photos with the next entry, I promise.

ON A CLEAR DAY – JAN 14

Blog Bonus? Yup!!

Generally I get little to no feedback from my blog entries. There are the regular few who are nice enough to tell me that they have enjoyed the

pictures and the adventures. THEN, occasionally I hear from someone who I have not heard from in a great deal of time, but they are on my mailing list, and something will trigger their response to an entry. This happened this past weekend. First I had a note from a cousin who enjoys my bird photography because he is quite a serious birder and can no longer travel. Then I heard from an associate from the North Rim, Grand Canyon, that I have not heard from in years. This all because they wanted to share a particular part of the country that they know, and enjoy and thought I could find something there to enjoy as well, and possibly pursue my photographic art. To you, and to others who occasionally write, thank you for broadening my vision. I will not get to these places in the midwest this trip, but I will take note of them, for another time. Please feel free to either post to this blog or e-mail me directly. Thanks for stopping by.

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Today was the beginning of Santa Ana weather here in San Diego. This brings clear skies, and strong winds from the East. We did not experience the winds in La Jolla this morning, but by the time I got home, about 15 miles to the East, there were very strong winds. So

much so that our neighbor’s large awning was blown up and over their fence and down into our back yard!!

It was a beautiful day at the Cove. The earth shadow as the sun started to rise was beautiful to the West. The birds were posing at times, but there was not a lot of them. There were lots of photographers though. I counted 23 at one point. We did not trip over each other, and generally we were all considerate of our neighbor’s space and where they were shooting.

Here are a few pictures –> Pelicans, Double Crested Cormorants, Gulls. (If you wish to view the photos as a slide show try clicking on the first image and you will see the slide show icon.)

Now it is time to pack for Iowa and the opportunity to photograph bald eagles as they fly and fish for dinner. I leave on Friday, 17, January. Please follow the blog as I will try to post something daily.