Scenic Aperture

On the second day after the only major snow storm to hit the area this winter, I headed to Squaw Creek NWR in northwest Missouri to check out the action. I knew Squaw Creek did not feel the brunt of the storm as we did in Nebraska. In fact, there was only about an inch or so of snow on the ground south of the Missouri state line. However, I encountered a completely different type of “snow” storm once I arrived at Squaw Creek. This one was a blizzard of snow geese who have apparently decided to head north very early this year. Normally, we don’s see geese in these numbers until mid-March. I have no idea how to estimate the numbers, but I am confident there were at least a several hundred thousand out there today. Our winter has been so very mild - I don’t believe the water at Squaw Creek has completely frozen over at all this year – so a few geese and several eagles have wintered over in the area. But now the numbers of both are way up.  The eagles follow the geese as they migrate up and down the Missouri River valley each fall and spring.

In addition to the geese and bald eagles, there were a large number trumpeter swans this morning too. I’ve noticed trumpeter swans several times this winter but their migration is obviously underway too as there must have been 200 or so swans out there this morning.

This “snow storm” was much more fun that the other one Friday night. The video and photo below were both taken with the Canon 7D with Canon EF600mm.

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Snow Geese - a different kind of "snow" storm - click for a larger version

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One week ago today I flew through Denver on my way to Rocky Mountain National Park to photograph bull elk. Boy, what a difference a week makes. Last week I arrived to light snow flurries but it was nothing really. Today Denver and the entire Midwest is getting hammered by a huge winter storm. I heard Denver is expecting 20″ of snow before it ends tomorrow. Here, the weatherman is predicting 7-11″. I’m glad I got in and out before all of this started.  Too bad for the elk, it must be miserable tonight.

Before more time passed, I wanted to post a few more shots of my final morning at Rocky Mountain National Park. Of my four shoots, I was treated to the best light on my last morning. Again on that final morning, the big bulls did not disappoint. I arrived at my favorite spot a good 45 minutes before sunrise and lucky for me, the bulls were right where they had been the previous two days. They continued to graze on exposed grasses for about 90 minutes until, as if on queue, they all turned and slowly walked back into the forest. There was obviously some unspoken (grunted?) signal that was easily communicated between them.

So here are some of the results from my final morning shoot at Rocky Mountain National Park. Shooting large animals is a lot of fun and these elk were patient and tolerant subjects. Again, thanks for looking.

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Canon 7D w/ EF400mm f/5.6 1/320s +0.33 iso 400

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Canon 7D w/ EF600mm f/4.0 1/320s +0.67 iso200

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Canon 7D w/ EF400mm f/5.6 1/320s +0.33 iso 200

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Canon 7D w/ EF400mm f/5.6 1/400s +033 iso200

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I’m spending the weekend in Rocky Mountain National Park. I came specifically to photograph bull elk.  I scored some really cheap Southwest Airlines tickets so I flew to Denver, rented a car, and drove  to RMNP. Although the best time for elk photography is during the fall rut, winter is not a bad time. Although it can be extremely cold, there are fewer people and the snow adds a nice dimension to the scenery. I have been to RMNP enough to know that the bulls, still sporting their huge racks, spend the winter in the low elevation pastures just inside the eastern park entrances. I came here hoping to see a few bulls; I was not disappointed.

I arrived around noon on Friday and scouted the rather small portion of the park that remains open in the winter. My first glimpse of elk came shortly after I arrived. It was a small herd that was hunkered down in a stand of pine trees – mostly cows and a couple of young bulls with small racks – not what I was hoping to see. There were probably 20 in total, all laying among the pine trees which I presume offered some protection from the elements. I tried to compose a decent shot of the group but there was not much to work with. However, an amicable magpie perched on a half-burned branch not more than 30 feet from where I was setup and gave me a few minutes of photo ops. I left the herd soon after the magpie flew away and continued my scouting all the way to Bear Lake where it was snowing and blowing quite hard. I realized this was not elk habitat and and even if it was, there was no way I was going to stand in the snow and wind. I headed back down toward the low elevation pastures hoping for better luck.

I wandered around in Moraine Park where I observed a large herd during the fall rut a few years ago – this time nothing. Now it was beginning to snow at the lower elevations too and I decided to head back toward Horseshoe Park which has been productive in years past. It was getting late and the sun was close to dropping below the western peaks but as I rounded the final curve approaching Horseshoe I could see that the big bulls did in fact make an appearance. Just off to the north, 30 or 40 bulls were feeding in the pasture not more than 50 yards from the road.

It was snowing here too and the light was going fast. I quickly got out of the car with the Canon 7D and Canon EF 400mm. I had to keep one hand on the tripod so the wind would not blow it over. It was freezing cold; 18 degrees, according to my dashboard thermometer, with wind gusts that must have approached 40 miles per hour. I only lasted about 10 minutes before my fingers and face were numb. It’s amazing that elk can survive in these and much worse conditions.  I continued to shoot handheld from the relative warmth of the car until the light was gone. I was quite pleased that my first day ended with a great “bull” experience.

Saturday morning the big boys were still in the same place and continued to feed, seemingly oblivious to the half dozen humans who were watching from the protection of their cars. I too decided the warm car was the best place from which to shoot this morning and fired away hoping for a few handheld keepers. Knowing now that the north end of Horseshoe park was where the big bulls were hanging out, I headed back to the hotel for a nap and some post processing. I planned to return in the afternoon.

After a few hours of PP’ing the morning’s images and a short nap which was interrupted by construction activities just outside my room, I headed back to Horseshoe. I arrived about 3:30 PM and had the place to myself – no bulls yet. But I was patient, confident that they would show up again. After about 45 minutes they eventually emerged from the forest but for some reason stayed far from the road – probably about 200 yards. I watched for awhile but realizing that my shots from this morning and friday afternoon were much better than the ones available now, I headed back for dinner.

Tomorrow morning I plan one more trip to Horseshoe Park before I leave to catch my return flight. I hope the bulls give me one more opportunity with some good light. The forecast looks promising. Here are the best shots so far. Thanks for looking.

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Canon 7D w/ EF400mm f/5.6 1/250s +0.67 iso 400

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Canon 7D w/ EF24-105mm @ 40mm f/5.6 1/400s -.067 iso200

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Canon 7D w/ EF400mm f/5.6 1/500s iso 400

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Canon 7D w/ EF600mm f/4.0 1/2000s iso200

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Photo of the day: Red-tailed hawk near Lake Manawa State Park in Iowa shot with Canon 7D with Canon EF 400mm 1/1600s at f/8.0 iso400

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It’s New Years Eve, time to look back at 2011 and take stock of some favorite images from the past year. These are my favorites, maybe not my best, but the ones that stick in my mind for one reason or another. I chose one image from each month to include in my BEST OF 2011 gallery. You will notice there are only eleven images. For reasons I have now forgotten, my camera did not leave its bag during the month of May.

So except for May, each month of 2011 included interesting photo shoots and many fond memories. So please indulge me while I reminisce for just a moment. It all adds up to a pretty good year and a lot for which to be thankful. Thanks to my friends who visit and leave comments on this blog. Your kind words are appreciated. All the best to you in the New Year.

Cheers!

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