Nature… Once Again Open For Business
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature on July 23rd, 2008
Yes, I know. It’s been awfully long time since I last wrote a blog entry. And was getting into such a rhythm! Well, here goes hopefully another streak of consistent blogging.
The good news is that I have taken lots of photos over my 7 week absence. No, I didn’t go on vacation or anything like that. But I have been busy taking photos. In fact the camera which I got 2 months ago now has over 10,000 clicks on it. That puts me on pace to get about 60,000 pics in a year. Geez… I thought I was taking fewer pics, but getting more keepers. Hmmm… I am getting more keepers however, and I feel like I have a much better eye for what is worth capturing and what is best left to memory. Read the rest of this entry »
Yak, Yak, Yak and a Slice of Bread…
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature, Random on June 4th, 2008
So what do you get when you put a slice of bread in your backyard at lunchtime? A flock of happy yakkers!
So if you read my previous post you already realize that I have a yard full of European Starlings and their fledglings. The fledglings mission is to yak enough so as to have food shoved down their throats by their parents in hopes of silencing them. It is actually quite amusing to watch. Frantic parents trying to hush their kids with offerings of food.
Not only are they creating quite a bit of racket, but also seem to be creating a shortage of suet not only in my feeders, but also at the local grocery stores (I bought the last 2 econo had just the other day). The racket continues, but it is obvious they are trying to be more self sufficient. This morning they were all along my driveway picking through the freshly mowed lawn. I don’t know if they were getting much to eat, but at least they were making it look good. Read the rest of this entry »
Yak, Yak, Yak (That’s bird talk for “Feed Me!”)
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature, Random on May 31st, 2008
When I first captured a picture of these interestingly colored birds and looked it up online I was surprised to find out it was European Starling. First of all I was fascinated with their color and how it changed in different light, but secondly was that they made that trip all the way from Europe to my bird feeder. I wonder what part of Europe they originated from?
It all started about a month ago when I started noticing them show up in my backyard. The number of them seemed to increase with each passing day. I suspected they weren’t that organized on their flight over here so there were some stragglers still arriving. It was obvious they were depleted in their resources, which was evident by the continual disappearance of the hanging suet. It was getting expensive to keep these guys fed, but they still are a good deal. 2 suets for $3.34 + tax. Heck, anything that is less than a gallon of gas is a good deal in my book.
Patience Is A Virtue, 53 Weeks A Year?
Posted by Mark Riutta in Random on May 29th, 2008
Any experienced photographer can attest to the importance of patience. In this digital age of photography one would think that a hit and run, mafia like approach would generate far more keepers than in the film days. Just hold down the shutter and rattle off a couple dozen frames. One of those is bound to be good. Right? But those of us who have been blessed with those rare opportunities to capture that unique image know that it takes more than equipment to make it happen. Read the rest of this entry »
The Show Must Go On
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature on May 23rd, 2008
In this fast paced world in which we live it can be easy to forget that nature operates on a very different clock. Our schedule has very little to do with when the sun rises in the morning and when it sets in the evening. If we need to do something when the sun is down we turn on a light. Even before electricity we “bucked the system” so to speak and used artificial light to extend the hours of our day.
In nature that is not the case. Daytime creatures go by a different clock and abide by the rules nature sets forth. They have no means of providing additional illumination once the sun has retired for the day. Wherever they are when the sun goes down is where they will have to stay. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Year and 42,000 Clicks Later
Posted by Mark Riutta in Random on May 21st, 2008
It’s hard to imagine that a little over a year ago I got my Canon 20D digital SLR camera. I updated my spreadsheet where I track the total files downloaded from the camera and guess what… since May 2nd of last year I have taken 42,597 photos with it! I know that sounds a little… okay a lot obsessive especially when you divide that number by the total days and it comes out to 112 images per day.
Now in my defense I will say that it is rather easy to rack up a lot of photos per day when shooting sports in burst mode. What would be depressing would be to come up with the number of “keepers” that I got out of te 42,000+ photos I took. Fortunately, it would be a rather difficult exercise to determine that because if I had I am sure it would be quite low. Read the rest of this entry »
All It Takes Is One
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature on May 1st, 2008
Supposedly, if we know what we are doing, it should only take us one time to get it right. Not only is that true of taking photographs, but also in life. But I think we all know and have experienced that in order to get it right we have to make some mistakes.
And it can also be said that some of our greatest creations are a result of a mistake. Usually, the mistake is one in which we didn’t expect would turn in our favor. But there are times when the mistake was the result of our own enthusiasm that created an opportunity possibly at the expense of somebody or something else.
It was a proud moment for me was when I returned home last night with a collection of eagle photos on my memory card. Upon reviewing them I realized I had captured one in particular that was quite interesting and worthy of sharing with the world. It definitely was unique and unlike eagle photos I have seen before.
How does that saying go? To ignorance is bliss? And so I was. It was only after doing some research online that I realized my error. I had disturbed some eagles and this unique photograph was the display of protective behavior. I suddenly felt like I had done something terribly wrong and had capitalized on it for the sole benefit of myself.
After about 24 hours of not being sure what I should do I suddenly realized that I could do something positive with this experience. I could educate others in regards to the do’s and don’ts about eagles.
First of all eagles will always flee their nest when humans are near. They will abandon it and try to draw attention away from it. This is very dangerous to nesting eagles since the parents will abandon their eggs and eaglets. As you would expect the eggs would need to stay warm, but once hatched eaglets have very little protection from heat or cold. They rely on their parents for that. So if constantly disturbed the parents will be unable to provide the necessary protection they need to survive.
Yes, seeing them glide effortlessly making large circles just above the trees was a magnificent display. And after witnessing this I immediately thought how easy it would be to do this over and over again. But now that I know what is actually happening I realize that I have no right being there for that is their home and they need to live their life undisturbed.
I offer for you these photographs that I know will be a rarity for my collection because I will not do it again solely for the purpose of getting the perfect image. I’m not saying these are the last images of eagles I will capture. But I will respect their space next time and remember that it is a privilege to observe them not a right.
I do this so that others can enjoy without endangering their survival. I would rather find where they go to watch for prey and hunt. That is where we can share common ground and I will feel free to photograph them. For me this is a lesson about respect. I have learned that I respect wildlife more than I value capturing rare images.
So hopefully this will at least serve as an education in regards to the delicate balance we have with eagles. Those large imposing birds are not fearless. Your presence can have irreversible effects on them. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. If do you come across some of these magnificent birds, enjoy the moment and move on.
Below is a short video clip where you can hear what a bald eagle sounds like:
By the way… to avoid disturbing nesting eagles the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recommends maintaining a distance of 330 feet in wooded areas and 660 feet in open areas. You can read more about this in their publication National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines (Click to view PDF file)
There are tons of Bald Eagle facts on the Internet. Simply Google “Bald Eagle Facts”.
Perfect weather for the geese…
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature on April 29th, 2008
You and I both know, it’s late April and things are supposed to be warming up. You would think that nature would at least provide some advance warning for the migrating birds so they could stay south another week or so. But no. I guess they didn’t get the bulletin either.
A trip to Copper Harbor was my idea this time. I figured that even though it was in the mid 30’s and very windy that it would at least give me a chance to see some early raptors in migration. Well, halfway up there it was snowing so hard you wouldn’t be able to see a bird if your life depended on it. But by the time we reached the harbor the wind died down and the snow stopped. At least for a while.
The bad news was that Brockway Mountain Drive or Hawk Highway as it is known during this time of year was still closed for the winter. The good news is that there was plenty of other wildlife to point my camera at.
This time of the year lots of birds stop in Copper Harbor before crossing Lake Superior. For many this is just a layover on their trip in to Canada. We were fortunate to see a few “travelers” out and about in this ugly weather.
The Bufflehead and the Lesser Scaup are diving ducks. They were all over the place.
They would fly in a group a few feet off the water and then land with the precision of a jet fighter landing on an aircraft carrier.
And of course they live up to their reputation as being diving ducks.
And then there was Harold and Wilma.
They were the so called “early birds” this season. I think they were regretting that right about now.
We finally drove around them. They weren’t about to leave the road for fear of losing their way I suspect.
But as I was taking photos a little ways down the road guess who comes honking along…
I did get some interesting photos of the lake.
And a surprise sighting of the day… The Kewadin Beaver.
A closer look at his tail and fur.
He was walking along side the road heading towards the lake.
And just when we thought we had enough pics guess who we happen to find along the road… Harold and Wilma. Looks like they found a little better place to rest and wait for the weather to change.
Another day with a camera…
Posted by Mark Riutta in Nature on April 24th, 2008
I think a camera is the ideal invention and here is why.
- It’s a great excuse to get outside.
- It’s a great way to occupy time.
- It’s a great way to eliminate excess cash.
And after you have snapped off about a 100 or so images…
- It’s a great way to get you back inside.
- It’s a great time to bond with your computer as you wait for your images to download.
- It’s the perfect way to fill up your hard drive.
And after you reviewed your priceless images…
- It’s a great reminder that you have so much to learn.
But what the heck… what else was I going to do?!?
Some pics from yesterday which will probably be the last nice day for a while.
Catching a sunset…
Posted by Mark Riutta in Random on April 22nd, 2008
I’ve always been fascinated with sunsets and have tried on many occasions to capture them in photos. Anyone who has ever tried doing so I think will agree that it can be quite a challenge.
There are a number of things working against a photographer trying to capture a sunset. First of all there is the extreme dynamic range. The sun is a lot brighter than the surroundings and the camera can only capture about 4 stops of light. The sun passing through the edge of our atmosphere greatly reduces its intensity, but it is still a lot brighter as compared to the surroundings.The other problem is lens flare (see my first image for an example of some mild lens flare). This is simply one of those problems we just have to accept when using a digital camera. The problem is that the sensor is reflective so when a bright light source hits it straight on it reflects back out the lens. And because a lens is comprised of a number of glass elements there is a pretty good possibility some of the light reflected off the sensor gets reflected back again which shows up as lens flare. Some lenses have less flare than others and sometimes you can adjust the aim a bit to reduce or possibly eliminate it. If you have a filter on the front of the lens remove it when shooting sunsets to prevent the filter from introducing even more reflections. By the way the same problem exists when shooting the moon since it is actually very bright.To combat the extreme dynamic range I have found that I need to reduce the exposure by 1 or 2 stops under what the camera thinks is right. And don’t aim directly at the sun when getting the exposure setting. Instead focus on something darker that is near it. Once you have the exposure locked then recompose and release the shutter. Review the image with the histogram to see if there is any highlight clipping.
If there is a lot of clipping reduce the exposure another stop and try it again. If you run out of exposure compensation adjustment then stop the lens down more. I usually start with f/16 when shooting sunsets and go smaller as needed to prevent clipping. The trick with all of this is that as the sun gets lower in the sky it has less light so you need to remember to reverse the process as it nears the horizon.The other thing to keep in mind is to not go overboard with under exposing. It may seem like a great way to avoid clipping, but it will introduce noise in the image. You still want to get the exposure as high as you can without excessive clipping of the highlights. I always take multiple shots varying the exposure compensation so I have some alternatives should I find I was being too aggressive one way or the other. You can always set up exposure bracketing to help with this also.
Keep in mind that there will be a point, as the sun nears the horizon, where you will need to reverse the process with exposure compensation and aperture. And depending on how dark it gets you might need to go into mirror lockup mode and remote trigger the shutter. Just be careful to not use too long a shutter because the sun moves rather quickly and will become a blur if you use something longer than 1/30th of a second. Be prepared as this part of the sunset goes by really fast as opposed to the point leading up to it where it feels like it is taking forever.Photographing a sunset is not easy. I respect those who do so well. A lot of it is finding a lens that has little flare and to only photograph it when the suns intensity is low. But if you realize how you can improve your chances you just might get some decent shots.
-
You are currently browsing the archives.
Subscribe via RSS- A Year of Making Movies August 12, 2011
- Why I Hate to Love Apple July 28, 2011
- A Look Back At My 2010 December 30, 2010
Featured Images
