For years managers at Farmington Bay WMA have killed carp as a management tool. The dead fish bring in hundreds of Bald Eagles but this year, because of the West Nile Virus outbreak in the eagle population, managers had to decide whether or not to proceed with the fish kill. That decision has been made.
Yesterday morning I had a great time photographing an adult Red-tailed Hawk in northern Utah County as it hunted rodents from power poles. The experience was both rewarding and frustrating as I’ll explain.
It’s not often that I photograph a perched Barn Owl doing anything but resting. Opening and closing their eyes is about as exciting as it usually gets.
The purpose of this post is two-fold – to feature some interesting blackbird behavior and to demonstrate why I always shoot in RAW instead of JPEG.
Harriers have been a common subject for me over the years so I don’t often notice something new about them. Recently I did and the following three photos illustrate my point.
It’s become our tradition to spend New Year’s Day in northern Box Elder County looking for raptors. Just over two weeks ago this adult Red-tail gave me a good look at the entirety of its visible plumage.
Despite all the color these are not summertime images. This Killdeer walked on ice to get to its bathing spot
Whenever I see an injured bird my heart sinks and for some illogical reason my angst is even greater when it’s a raptor. For that reason I was very curious about something about this hawk that I first noticed through my lens.
Yesterday morning the normally placid Farmington Bay Pied-billed Grebes were in a feeding frenzy and I had a wonderful time photographing the action.
Three months ago I posted some shots of a coyote intrigued by its own reflection in the Great Salt Lake. I rejected one photo I liked because of what I thought was a metal wire that ruined the image. I should have paid more attention…
Many bird photographers tend to largely ignore the most common species in their areas and I’m as guilty of that as anyone.
There seems to be a sort of “supply and demand” philosophy – the more common they are the less appealing they are as subjects. That’s too bad for at least a couple of reasons – familiar birds can be just as interesting and beautiful as many of the others and what’s “common” where we live and/or shoot is very often uncommon or even nonexistent for folks in other areas. This post is meant to make up to some degree for my own poor judgment at times in choosing subjects.
Snow, cold, fog, dreary skies, poor light and polluted air – that’s all we’ve had for many days and I’m sick of it! This morning I need a reprieve and hummingbirds will provide it..
A trio of Western Grebe chicks on the back of a parent can certainly be eye-catching. And in this case they piqued my curiosity.
I’ve said before that plain sky backgrounds in flight shots aren’t my preference. But habitat in the background provides its own challenges for the photographer.
A Bald Eagle in my own suburban yard in the middle of a big city – yesterday it happened once again! But my delight was tempered by something ominous.
