There is a silver lining to all that crazy winter weather we had this year, and that is the incredible California wildflower super-bloom this spring. I was worried that I would miss it since we had gone to New Mexico, where we experienced some horrendous winds. I love New Mexico, but this year wasn't the best. By the time we got back through Arizona and into California, I … [Read more...]
A Squadron of Javelinas
I was in the zone. Nothing existed except me and thousands of sandhill cranes. In the middle of the action, I had something amazing in front of me that I was photographing, and everything else was muffled out. My intensity communicated to all that I didn't want to be bothered. Someone was talking ... to me I think ... my focus slightly wavered and then I was immediately … [Read more...]
Dolphin Acrobatics and Photography in British Columbia
This is why I do it. I go out in my little boat, Snoopy, in the summer months and sometimes I come home with a bad back as a result. I drag my camera gear out there and usually come home with some photos of splashes or maybe nothing at all. But sometimes ... I have the best day of my life. One of those days when, in the middle of the action, I realize it is a day I will … [Read more...]
Black Bears Matter Too – My Experience in the Great Bear Rainforest
Photography is a waiting game. A physically demanding waiting game too. Standing in one place, essentially sitting on a scene, waiting for magic light, or waiting for an animal to appear, makes your body stiffen up and leaves plenty of room for your mind to create doubt. In the Great Bear Rainforest, on the coast of British Columbia, I stood at the edge of a river in the … [Read more...]
The Fairy Glen, Isle of Skye, Scotland
One of my last photo locations on the Isle of Skye was the Fairy Glen near Uig. It's a smaller and softer version of the Quiraing with rounded grassy knolls topped with it's own castle -- a rock known as Castle Ewen. I spent a delightful afternoon exploring the miniature landscape. At least it seemed miniature compared to some of the more dramatic landscapes on Skye, but … [Read more...]
The Quiraing, Isle of Skye, Scotland
I don't have any photos from my first visit to The Quiraing on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. But that visit sits foremost in my memory. What a day! It was crazy. It was about a 45 minutes from from the B&B I was staying at, so I left in darkness in order to be up there well ahead of sunrise. When I left it was absolutely pouring rain. But I didn't go to Scotland to … [Read more...]
What is the Best Focal Length Lens for Bird Photography?
Last winter I returned to one of my all time favourite bird photography destinations: Cibola National Wildlife Refuge which is on the border between California and Arizona. During my first visit to Cibola the previous year, I discovered some problems with my wildlife photography gear, which resulted in my not getting any long lens photos. Bummer! That was one reason why … [Read more...]
Learning to Clam – Grizzly Bear Cubs in Khutzeymateen British Columbia
Each of my days with the grizzly bears in Khutzeymateen Provincial Park, British Columbia, was unique. Each day held its own mysteries and revealed its own surprises. On board the zodiac in the early morning hours, we puttered up to a spot where a creek comes out to the inlet, and discovered a mom with her three cubs! They were just hanging around eating grass as … [Read more...]