February

Week of February 7, 2010

So far this winter, both snow and wildlife seem to be lacking.  The light snow pack is allowing grazing animals to be in places they typically aren't, which means the predators are also out of sight.  The breeding season is under way for both coyotes and wolves resulting in both species being on the move more, providing greater chances of seeing one of these animals.  Though I've heard of some good sightings,  I personally haven't had much luck.

This coyote had stopped to get the attention of its mate, who was about 100 yards back but out of sight.  The coyote would howl or yip for a few seconds and then wait for a response.  The two howled and yipped at each other for several minutes before this one moved on and the other soon followed.

Song Dog

PW1006

Week of February 14, 2010

Well, happy Valentines Day...

So this is winter?  A fitting title to this image, I think.  By the date, it most definitely is winter.  But the lack of snow in this image sums it all up.  In all fairness, this area near Old Faithful Geyser doesn't typically hold a lot of snow.  This winter however, it has remained snow free all season.  There has been so little snow, the heat from the ground melts it off pretty fast.

I chose this photo this week for a couple of reasons.  Old Faithful looks really nice against the sky.  The late afternoon light really helped to bring out the colors and contrast in they sky, water, and the red ground.  I also wanted to show the lack of snow in the Upper Geyser Basin.  Perhaps we'll get some late season snows like last year.  Otherwise, we could be destined for another long fire season this summer...

So This Is Winter?

PW1007

Week of February 21, 2010

What a difference a week makes... This image was taken last weekend.  This grey wolf was working its way back to some other wolves and crossed the frozen Lamar River to do so.  You can see the ice and snow on the river.  Where the wolf is standing is directly in the middle of the crossing.  Yesterday, this entire area is now open water.

This wolf had crossed the bridge and then slept about 100 yards off the road for about 2 hours.  There are some images on my blog showing where the wolf was sleeping and also of her howling back to the other wolves.

This image was made with a Canon 50D and a 500mm lens.  I really like the ice heave in the upper left corner and the small areas of open water behind the wolf.  The body position of the wolf was also nice.

The Crossing

PW1008

Week of February 28, 2010

Some days, it can seem like I'm just not going to get any decent photos and then, all of a sudden, I come across something amazing.  This past weekend in northern Yellowstone, I wasn't having much success photographing anything.  I decided to head back towards Mammoth earlier than I usually would.  As I neared Blacktail Creek, I saw a large bull elk near the road.  I pulled over and actually found five very large bull elk.  The late day light was magnificent and I spent the remaining light photographing these creatures.

This image was made near the end of the shoot.  This big guy had sat down to rest and began stretching his neck, no doubt tired from carrying that heavy rack.  The last light of the day hit the distant peaks of the Absarokas and the entire scene was really amazing.  While I felt at one point I wasn't going to get a decent shot on this day, I ended up taking home a memory card full of great elk images.

Majestic

PW1009

March

Week of March 7, 2010

This week of personal ups and downs brings the end of a lot of things for me.  Relevant for photography is the end of the winter season in Yellowstone National Park.  Interior roads start closing down and by next week end, all interior roads will be closed.

Something else Yellowstone relevant that is near an end this winter is the long standing Druid Peak Pack.  What earlier this year was eleven wolves has dwindled down to one.  Mange and inter pack rivalries has led to the death of several Druid Pack members.  Others have dispersed and left the pack.  Information about the demise of this pack can be found here; Billings Gazette article.

This wolf is not a member of the Druid Peak Pack.  The photo is a few weeks old.  I haven't had much opportunity to be out shooting this past week.  This wolf trotted down a hillside towards the road.  I liked the vertical composition given the wolf's body position.  Of course, a long telephoto lens was used shooting out of my window.  The wolf being on a hillside provided a nice "eye level" angle for this image.

Winter Wolf

PW1010

Week of March 14, 2010

The roads in the interior of Yellowstone close today for the winter season, but most facilities have been closed for a week now.  I took some time this week to enjoy Yellowstone at its quietest.  I took a walk down to Black Sand Basin and then over to Daisy Geyser, out to Artemesia Geyser and then to Old Faithful.  I hadn't been to Black Sand in several years and enjoyed the thermal features there.

This image is of Sunset Lake, a large hot spring at the end of one of the boardwalks.  The late afternoon light was nice and a strong breeze at my back revealed the colors and patterns seen here in this image.  I really liked the way the steam, hot spring, and sky flowed in this photo, along with the colors.

This image was shot from the boardwalk with a Canon 5D Mark II camera using a 17-40 L lens at 17mm.  The wide angle on a full frame sensor helped to give this image a lot of depth even though there is not a strong foreground component.

Edge of Sunset

PW1011

Week of March 21, 2010

I decided to treat myself this week and am currently in Badlands National Park near Wall, South Dakota.  It's a relatively short trip from Yellowstone and since it's my birthday, I thought a road trip should be in order.  I actually saw only the second wild bobcat I've ever seen today but unfortunately it snagged a prairie dog and took it into the long grass to eat and I never saw it again.

As sunset approached, clouds blocked the horizon.  I noticed some clearing below the clouds and quickly headed to this overlook to photograph this scene.  I tried several compositions but liked this one best, showing an overall view of the painted badlands below the rugged landscape.

This is my third trip to the Badlands but the first where I've had any real success photographically.  Though beautiful, I find this landscape difficult to photograph.

The Badlands

PW1012

Week of March 28, 2010

While in the Badlands, I spent a fair bit of time observing and photographing prairie dogs.  One behavior I was determined to photograph was a 'jump-yip'.  Prairie dogs have a very complex communication system.  This is necessary since they live in colonies, or prairie dog towns, that can number in the thousands.  A prairie dog will leap up on its hind legs and yip, known as a jump yip.  It is believed this behavior is used either as an "all clear" signaling a predator has left the area or it can also be used as a territorial warning to other prairie dogs.

I was watching and photographing this prairie dog from my car window and heard a yip from another nearby.  This one responded by leaping up and yipping.  He jumped so high that he actually fell backwards and to the side slightly.  I was able to capture it in this photograph and it almost looked like he had been shot, which he had been, but with my camera.

I'm Shot!

PW1013

April

Week of April 4, 2010

Winter returned to Yellowstone this week, in the form of a big spring snow storm.  The mountains received almost a foot and a half of new snow while the valley areas of the park received over six inches.  Most of the snow pack down low was already gone, but the additional snow in the mountains is much needed. 

I headed out of the park finally, earlier this week, going out to Oregon for a change of scenery.  In doing so, I saw the Canyon Group along the way.  The snowy weather had them bedded down alongside the road.  As I pulled up, I was able to get a few photos before she got up and moved away.  This image is cropped from the original, but she was still pretty close to the road on a small rise.  I used a 500mm plus 1.4 extender braced against the window of my car in order to get this shot.

I was pretty excited with this image, but it is Yellowstone and you never know what you may see...

Sleeping Beauty

PW1014

Week of April 11, 2010

I just finished a ten day trip in Oregon where I traveled through and photographed a wide variety of landscapes.  The first part of the trip took me though the Columbia River Gorge, where I hiked every day and photographed over 15 named waterfalls.

The waterfall here is Elowah Falls.  It is just a short hike from the trailhead to see it.  This vantage point was off an unmaintained trail downstream from the falls.  From the bridge at the falls, the mist created from the 289 foot drop of McCord Creek was so strong, taking photos from there was very difficult.  When I found this location, I used a wide angle lens to incorporate the cascade in the foreground .  Above Elowah Falls is another waterfall.  Upper McCord Creek Falls is a double waterfall dropping about 65 feet and worth seeing too.  Taking photos of Upper McCord Creek Falls can be tricky due to vegetation growing along the trail.  Getting there involves doubling back and hiking along a cliff hundreds of feet above the the creek.  A railing provides some safety but it's still a bit hairy.

From here, I went out to the Oregon Coast at Bandon, the Painted Hills, and also checked out a tulip festival.  Next weeks Photo will also be one from this road trip, so check back for more.  Also, I've have a couple of entries on my blog with photos at here!

Hidden Glade

PW1015

Week of April 18, 2010

The last leg of my trip through Oregon took me to the Painted Hills of John Day National Monument near Mitchell, Oregon.  Storm clouds kept moving in and out in the late afternoon, which eliminated any chance of a colorful sunset.  The variable sky however, produced some very interesting light on the colorful landscape, as seen in this image.  Clouds put a shadow over the background hills which were covered in sagebrush while the colorful painted hills were in sunshine.  A few minutes after I took this photo, the clouds blocked out the sun for good. 

The hills themselves are fenced off so the erosional impact of people walking over them doesn't have a negative impact.  To make this image, I used a zoom lens at a medium telephoto length to pick out just the scene I was looking for.  All in all, a very cool place.  One thing to note, if going here, there's no gas for 30 miles in any direction.  Fortunately, I had a full tank when I left the interstate.  I also had to stay the night 40 miles away.  This part of Oregon is very isolated, but definitely worth the trip.

Painted Hills

PW1016

Week of April 25, 2010

I almost feel late to the party posting a grizzly Photo of the Week, with so many people I know already having seen bears.  But this was my first bear of the spring, a young grizzly seen near the Wraith Falls trailhead.  I actually was able to watch this bear for about 90 minutes as it dug up grubs and moved all the way to the Blacktail Ponds area before disappearing behind some hills.  I thought about calling this shot "Bearly Awake", but when viewed large, the bears eyes are open and it is actually eating, holding some roots between its paws.

The next day, after seeing this bear, I saw three more, a grizzly and two black bears, though all were too far away for photos.  This image was shot with a 500mm lens and a 1.4 teleconvertor on a Canon 50D.  Other signs of spring in Yellowstone include Sandhill cranes, bluebirds, and pronghorn back in their summer range.  I haven't seen any baby bison yet, though they should be common soon.

Contemplating Beardom

PW1017

May

Week of May 2, 2010

It's the 2nd of May and my luck with wildlife still isn't too great.  Usually by now I'd have a new collection of bear photos to share, but I've just been in the wrong place at the wrong time.  And I've been 'snowed in' at Old Faithful for the last week, which hasn't helped!

But it did allow me to get this shot.  Ice crystals had formed on my car windows over night.  When I went out at sunrise the patterns were pretty cool to look at.  But when I noticed them backlit by the morning sunlight, they were even more interesting, so I pulled out my macro lens and fired off some shots.  The blue colors here are where the crystals were in shadow while the warm yellow colors are where the sun was filtered through a tree and reaching the ice crystals.  It was a pretty neat effect.  I under exposed the image when I shot it in order to bring out the colors and detail, causing the background to go black.

Ice Feathers

POW1018

Week of May 9, 2010

Earlier this week I drove from Old Faithful, visiting Canyon and Mammoth.  Near Roaring Mountain, I came across a small bear jam... small bear jam meaning just a few cars and a small bear!  There was a large bull bison grazing in the same vicinity of this bear and curiosity got the best of her.  She repeatedly would approach the bison only to have the big bull chase her off. 

The action scene here was during one of about six approaches she made.  She would give up, find a place to sit, and watch the bison graze.  Then she would decide to try again.  Finally, the bear gave the bull a big detour and moved south, following Obsidian Creek passed Roaring Mountain.  I believe this is the same bear that was in this area last year at this time, photographed in my "Welcome to Yellowstone" image.  This photo, like most of my bear images, was shot with a Canon 500mm lens with a 1.4 teleconvertor.

Startled!

POW1019

Week of May 16, 2010

What a difference a couple of weeks makes.  Earlier, I was having a hard time seeing much of anything, now, bison calves are plentiful as are bears.  From May 4th, I've had 27 bear sightings and counting.  Included in that number is the bear family that was frequenting the Obsidian Creek area.

Here the sow grazes with the cubs close by.  Cars driving by as well as the movement of a multitude of photographers keeps the cubs attention.  Both cubs stand to get a better look at the crowds along the roadside.  The lighter cub used mom several times as a leaning post.  This image was shot was a 500mm lens and a 1.4 teleconvertor.  You'll see that a lot.  Bears should never be approached too closely for any reason.  A sow with young cubs can be especially protective.  Mom tired of the crowds after a couple of days and moved away from the roadsides.  Grizzly cubs only have about a 30% survival rate, so mom has her hands full in many ways.

Two Thirds

POW1020

Week of May 23, 2010

The grizzly sow with two small cubs of the year continues to show up every so often.  Lately, she's been seen in the Twin Lakes area.  A recent wolf kill could cause her to move her cubs away from there in order to keep her cubs safe however.

On this day, the sow led the cubs across the road.  I had a 1.4 teleconverter on my 500mm lens, so when they moved up on the road, I couldn't get the sow completely in the frame.  I decided to focus on the cubs and let the sow fall into the image however it happened.  I actually liked the result as the image highlights the smallness of the cubs, the size of the sow, and the size of her claws.  The road also ended up being overexposed, making it look less like a road.  Immediately after taking this shot, we (being about 30 people) retreated backwards to move out the bear family's way.  The bears, however, decided to cross and moved up into the trees to nap.

Under Protection

POW1021

Week of May 30, 2010

With four of my last five POWs being grizzlies, I thought I'd mix it up today.  Actually, I've had a bad cold this past week and missed some great griz action at Blacktail Ponds, were three griz and a few wolves were feeding on a bison carcass.  I still had a decent week with bear sightings however, but also had fun photographing harlequin ducks at LeHardy Rapids (when I wasn't suffering from a cold).

This drake followed the female on a rock in the rapids where they took turns flapping the water out of their wing feathers.  The drake, much more colorful then the hen, as seen here, gave quite a dramatic flap of the wings before preening.  Harlequins nest and feed in the fast moving waters of rapids, unlike other ducks.  They are a lot of fun to watch as they dive and scramble through places that you think they have no business being in.  Harlequins only stay for a short time in Yellowstone... I should probably try to photograph them again before they leave for the summer.

The Maestro

POW1022

June

Week of June 6, 2010

It's rained or snowed in Yellowstone almost every day for over a month.  As a result, rivers and streams and cresting and picture taking has been a bit more challenging.  Yesterday, June 5th, however, the rained stopped.  I was out early and had to make a decision; go towards Norris to see if the sow and two cubs was out or head over Dunraven Pass.  I chose to go over Dunraven, and it turned out to be the right choice.

On the slopes of Mount Washburn, I came across this sow grizzly with two cubs of the year.  The light was decent, it wasn't raining, and she grazed with her cubs along the road for several hours.  At one point, towards the end of the photo shoot, she even came down to the top of the cliff near the road and nursed her two cubs, much to the delight of every photographer there, myself included.  This was the stuff photographers dream of, and I was glad to witness such a thing.  This image was shot with a 500mm lens alongside about 20 other park visitors.

Joy of Motherhood

PW1023

Week of June 13, 2010

The rain returned last Sunday and it's been off and on again all week.  This weekend didn't yield much in the way of photos, but I did get a lot of bear sightings.  Over this past Friday and Saturday, I saw over 14 bears.

This photo is of the the Dunraven sow and one of its cubs.  The cub tired of playing with its sibling, apparently wanting a larger toy, so it pounced on mom.  After immediately bouncing right off, the cub rolled on its back and mom played with it for a few moments before she returned to grazing.  The cub decided the same sized sibling was a better toy and the two cubs returned to beating the crap out of each other for fun.  This image was shot with a 500mm lens with a 1.4 teleconvertor attached.

I posted this photo for the cuteness factor, but later this week, I'll post another shot to my blog as it tells a different tale.

Mom and Me

PW1024

Week of June 20, 2010

It's been a crazy week for me once again and I haven't been out shooting much.  These two bison calves are the highlight of a slow week.  They were part of a small nursery herd that had nine calves in it.

The standing calf tried half heartedly to get the sleeping one to play.  It even stepped on the sleeping calf, but it refused to move.  As I watched these two small calves, I watched the larger adults grazing nearby.  Any time I watch babies, whether it be bears, bison, elk, or any other animal, I also think about how much they have to grow to reach full size.  Bull bison can be very large and perhaps one day, one or both of these calves will be huge behemoths walking along the roads in the park.

For now though, they are small orange bison calves, one looking for a playmate and the other looking for some rest.  This image was made from my vehicle using a 500mm lens and teleconvertor.  It was during a light rain, so I kept myself and my gear dry by staying in the car.

Future Giants

PW1025

Week of June 27, 2010

So I found yet another grizzly sow with cubs of the year this week.  This time, the bears were in Hayden Valley.  I had heard they were out on Sunday, but I wasn't able to see them that day.  On Monday, I got up early and saw them off the road from Trout Creek, so I pulled over and joined the other cars and mostly watched.  I apparently had missed her crossing the road by about 15 minutes and she was 200 yards or more away when I arrived.  Using a teleconvertor on my 500mm I was still able to get some interesting shots, including this one of the whole family.  An RV was going up the next hill, the engine making a lot of noise.  This alerted the cubs and drew the attention of all three.

The early morning light was great.  Fortunately, they were in the short grasses for this photo and not in the taller sagebrush.  Shortly after this image was taken, she nursed the cubs.

Party of Four

PW1026

July

Week of July 4, 2010

I went off in search of photo subjects Thursday evening.  There was a carcass in Alum Creek on the north edge of Hayden Valley, but viewing distances were significant, and longer than my photography equipment could handle for decent shots.  So I continued north, heading over Dunraven Pass.  Near sunset, the grizzly sow with  two cubs made an appearance.  The light was wonderful but created slow shutter speeds.  As the bears made their way behind some trees, I waited patiently for them to graze through an area where the light was dappled with shadows, knowing the nice effect it would create.

I would have preferred the sow to have faced a little more into the sun, putting more light on her face, but I really like the resulting colors  here.  The shadow areas took on a strong blue while the areas lit by the setting sun are warmly toned.  This image was shot with a 500mm lens and a 1.4 teleconvertor.

Serenity

PW1027

Week of July 11, 2010

I haven't posted too many landscapes shots lately, so I decided to post one this week since I had a chance to photograph a great sunset on Yellowstone Lake this week and I also haven't seen much in the way of wildlife.

This image was shot on the shores of Yellowstone Lake near Bridge Bay Marina.  The three lines of clouds radiating out from a central point drew me into this scene.  I also liked how the trees on the right were framed by the line of clouds and the reflection.  The reflecting pool here is actually isolated from the lake itself by a thin sandbar.  I used a 17-40 wide angle lens to shoot this image, metering the overall scene.  The foreground grasses anchored the shot on the bottom.

Yellowstone Lake is a great subject at sunrise or sunset as it has many accessible miles of shoreline along both the East Entrance and Grand Loop roads.

Yellowstone Reflections

PW1028

Week of July 18, 2010

This photo is from the only time that I've been out shooting in the last week.  It was actually taken yesterday at Steamboat Point.  I heard at dinner that a grizzly was grazing at that location, so around 7 pm I headed out that way.  Sure enough, the grizzly was still grazing on clover in that area.  Clover is an important part of a grizzly's diet this time of year as it is high in protein.

The late day light was very nice, but the dark bear made shadows difficult.  I had to wait for the bear to face more directly into the sun so as to not lose detail in the dark fur.  This is one of a few photos I was able to get decent results.   The flowers are wild geraniums and this area was full of them.  I used a 500mm lens for this image on a Canon 50D mounted on a tripod.

Garden Stroll

PW1029

Week of July 25, 2010

This image is a bit of a departure from my usual images.  But it's a shot I've been after for a while.  I've been selling photos at Lake Hotel for two years and have received many requests for a photo of the hotel, so I've been waiting for the right conditions.  The conditions I've been waiting for  have been for colorful flowers in bloom and a nice sunset.

The Beach Fire, burning back near the Arnica Fire area from 2009 provided a potentially colorful sky at sunset.  The color here however are from some clouds that moved in near sunset, most of the smoke dissipated near sunset.  Fortunately, the small patch of clouds were right where I needed them.  The foreground flowers are lupine and they were blooming everywhere.  I used a wide angle lens to shoot the scene.  The image has already been successful in the gift shop.  I had it ready for sale only two days after taking this photo.

Lake Hotel

PW1030

August

Week of August 1, 2010

This grizzly was photographed on Dunraven Pass over Mount Washburn shortly before sunset.  Bear sightings this time of year are hard to come by as most bears are moving into the high country in search of army cutworm moths and whitebark pine nuts.  With a pine beetle decimating the whitebark pines in a lot of the high country, including on Mount Washburn, bears have to find other food sources to put on the fat they need to survive the winter.

This image was shot with a 500mm telephoto lens and a 1.4 teleconvertor to extend the length.  In light a a fatal bear attack near Cooke City this week, it's a good reminder that bears can be dangerous and never approached.  All photos should be taken with the longest lens available and/or from a car window.  

Last Light

PW1031

Week of August 8, 2010

Storm clouds moved across the sky a few days ago, but noticing a break in the horizon to the west, I headed off to try to get a fiery sunset behind this patch of lupine.

Conditions worked out perfectly, except for a strong wind which made getting the flowers sharp very difficult.  With shutter speeds as long a couple of seconds, the only thing I could do was wait for the wind to subside and then hope that it wouldn't kick up before the exposure was finished.  I also turned up the ISO to shorten the shutter speed and tried that as well.

This image is of Mary Bay, where several nice patches of lupine have been in bloom for the last several weeks.  I used a 17-40mm lens at the widest setting, and set up very close to the flowers.  I also used a very low angle so as to incorporate as much of the colorful clouds as possible.

Lupine are common in Yellowstone during the summer.  With August now here, Autumn flowers being to appear while the summer flowers fade.  Fireweed is becoming very common in many places right now.

Lakeside Lupine

PW1032

Week of August 15, 2010

A short hike to Trout Lake yielded some nice views and photographs.  Late summer wildlife flowers adorned the hillside leading to the lake and I spent some time shooting close ups of flowers.  But one of the first scenes that caught my attention was this one.

Late summer asters adorned the hillside with a view of the Thunderer off in the distance.  The Thunderer is a large mountain, part of the Absarokas, that dominates the view over Round Prairie near Pebble Creek campground.  I used a 17-40mm lens at the widest settings to frame this image.  The asters were really nice and the late afternoon light on the peak made for an interesting scene.  I stopped down to maximize depth of field. 

Trout Lake is home to a family of otters.  We didn't see them on this hike but did see plenty of nice flowers in bloom around the lake.  The arrival of late summer flowers such as these asters hints of the arrival of autumn very soon.  In fact, some of the high peaks had a dusting of fresh snow on them yesterday morning, though it was short lived.

The Thunderer

PW1033

Week of August 22, 2010

Driving through Hayden Valley early on Wednesday morning, I saw the potential of this scene as I approached it.  Stopping here is not uncommon, this is where Alum Creek joins the Yellowstone River.  Often in the morning, a soft mist can create some beautiful diffused light. 

The challenge comes from trying to find something unique to shoot here.  Instead of opting for the wide angle lens, I went with a telephoto zoom and framed the edge of the tress with the river circling around them.  I also have a tendency to underexpose when shooting here in order to bring out the dramatic colors.  This time I opted to slightly overexpose, creating the nice pastel colors and giving the image a more dream like quality.

Ultimately, I preferred this image compared to the more typical wider views that are usually photographed from this location.

Serendipity

PW1034

Week of August 29, 2010

Asters signify the end of summer.  They typically bloom in August and September, bringing autumn with them as well as cooler temperatures.  Of course, one only has to see the weather forecast for the Yellowstone region to see autumn and cooler temperatures are here, as snow is in the forecast for several nights this week.

These two asters were photographed with a 100mm macro lens.  I wanted a composition showing just a portion of one flower but when I noticed the the second flower, I wanted to keep it in the image, out of focus, to balance the first one.  Because asters are relatively flat, when looked at straight down, I was able to use an f-stop around 4.0.  This kept the center of the main aster in focus as well as most of the petals while putting the background flower out of focus, but not too much so it is still recognizable as an aster.

Eclipse

PW1035

September

Week of September 5, 2010

This week I've been struggling with strep throat.  So needless to say, I haven't been shooting much.  Hopefully I'll get over this soon.

So I went back a few weeks and decided to use this photo from our hike to Trout Lake as photo of the week.  The late summer display of goldenrod and asters was really nice.  There's some indian paintbrush in their too.

This shot was taken with a 17-40 wide angle lens on a Canon 5D mk 2.  The lighting was mid to late afternoon.  I shot this hand held as I did not bring a tripod with me.

Autumn has returned to Yellowstone now.  Bison continue to display rutting behavior though the main show is done.  Nights are cool, days are nice, with fresh snow on the high mountains.  Elk will begin their rut soon.

So hopefully my health will get better and I'll be able to get out and photograph all the above!

Trout Lake Summer Garden

PW1036

Week of September 12, 2010

I finally was able to get over my strep throat.  And this week brought some changeable September weather, with cold temperatures and snow in the mountains.  I took a drive through the park yesterday, seeing the telltale signs of fall; aspens and cottonwoods barely starting to change color, willows changing, golden grasses everywhere, rutting elk, and grizzlies foraging for whatever they could find to eat in order to pack on the pounds for winter.

This photo shows a storm clearing over Mount Doane.  It was taken with a telephoto zoom lens at sunset.  A few patches of snow are visible on the mostly bare mountain.  I wanted to show the huge storm clouds as they dwarfed the mountain, so this ended up being the image that most captured the moment.

The next few weeks should bring about autumn in Yellowstone in full.  Fall colors should start to come in strong over the next couple of weeks, the elk rut should really get into action, and the mountains show continue to get covered in their winter coats.

Summer Storm

PW1037

Week of September 19, 2010

Aspens and Cottonwoods are now starting to turn gold, meeting the browns, crimsons, and yellows of the grasses, willows, and other shrubs throughout the park.  The grasses take on a beauty that only autumn can bring.  This also means the elk are in rut, the deer and pronghorn will soon follow, and finally, in late November, the bighorns will finish out the breeding seasons.

This nice sized bull was taking a rest from constant burdens of maintaining a harem of cows.  Or perhaps he was chased away by a larger bull.  In any event, he chose an area near the road for a nap, which was nice for photography.  He rested here, occasionally lifting his head to look for danger or to find a better position to balance his heavy antlers.

Moment's Peace

PW1038

Week of September 26, 2010

As the elk rut continues in full swing, aspens, cottonwoods, and willows put on their fall color, Yellowstone Park begins to slow down for the season.  Several locations in the park close for the season today, including Lake Hotel, Canyon Village, and the Old Faithful Lodge.

For park wildlife, things are just heating up.  All animals are in a feeding frenzy, trying to pack on weight that will see them through the winter.  Failure to put on pounds now can have fatal consequences in the months ahead.  For bull elk, it is a critical time.  Bulls expend a lot energy tending to harems of cows, breeding, and fighting off competitors.  At a time when they need to be conserving energy and putting on weight, the big bulls are using a lot of it.  This can greatly impact their ability to survive the winter.

This bull is scenting the air as he approaches a female, trying to determine if she will be receptive.  Late day light put the background in shadow while painting the bull and the grasses in a beautiful warm glow.

The Warrior

PW1039

October

Week of October 3, 2010

This shot is from several days ago before I headed out of Yellowstone for the end of the summer season.  I've never had a shot from Great Fountain Geyser that I've been satisfied with, so I decided to head to this location when I saw there might be a nice sunset.

What really drew me to this image was not only the fiery sunset colors reflected in the terraced pools but also the deep blues reflected from the rest of the sky.  This image was shot at about 17mm with a Canon 17-40L lens.  Photos of iconic locations can be difficult to make unique.  By "iconic", I refer to photos that are commonly photographed and easily recognized.  Great Fountain Geyser is one of several iconic locations in Yellowstone.  Creating a unique image here can be difficult and is really dependant on what kind of clouds and color there may be at sunset.  I was finally satisfied with the images I was able to get after this sunset.

Great Fountain Geyser at Sunset

PW1040

Week of October 10, 2010

This past week found me in Miami as I took my first (and probably last) cruise.  Edyta, Justyna, and I took a cruise out of Miami through the Caribbean, visiting the Bahamas, St. Thomas, and Puerto Rico.  The trip wasn't focused on photography, but I took a few moments to snap a few photos along the way.

We spent a day and a half in Miami before the trip.  Our first night there gave witness to one of the best sunsets I've seen this year.  We happened to be on South Miami Beach as this sunset occurred and I worked hard to find a place where there weren't any people in the shot.  Most Florida beaches don't offer much in the way of foreground material, so I just used the reflected color for the foreground.  I also didn't have a tripod, so I shot at ISO 400, handheld, with a shutter speed of about 1/30th of a second at F16.  This image was taken with a 24-105L lens on a Canon 5D mk 2.  I'll post a few shots on my blog later from other moments in the trip.

Miami Heat

PW1041

Week of October 17, 2010

This week's photo is a final look at the Bahamas.  Our first and last stop on our Caribbean cruise was in the Bahamas.  This image, taken near mid day, was possible due to the storm clouds in the background.  Harsh midday light might have made this shot impossible, or at least, not as dramatic.  But the storm clouds on the horizon and rising over the clear blues of the water made this shot a favorite for me.

This image was taken with a wide angle lens.  I took a somewhat low angle, but also really wanted to get the curve of the bay as a leading line in the shot.  I also wanted to be sure the blues in the water were obvious enough while not missing out on the interesting clouds.  I feel like this image conveyed what I was trying to convey when I took this shot.

Caribbean Blues

PW1042

Week of October 24, 2010

As our October road trip continues, we headed north in search of some fall colors.  These bald cypress trees had some hints of autumn amidst their leaves but overall, the scene was still pretty green.  That didn't matter, I really liked the way these trees were lined up as each of the five trees moved back diagonally left to right.  Duckweed covers the swamp, providing a layer of green on the water.

This image was taken at a swamp just outside of Charleston, South Carolina.  Alligators were around in the water, but at the early morning hour, they were still reluctant to show themselves.  Bald cypress often have knobby knees that grow up out of the water around the trees and these knobs help them obtain oxygen.  Hanging off the trees is Spanish moss.  It's pretty common to find Spanish moss covering trees along the Southern coast.  I shot this image early morning, handheld, with a telephoto zoom lens, composing the image to show the diagonal line of the trees.  All of these images since October 10th have been edited to my laptop, so I may need to check them again when I get home to ensure color balance, contrast, etc are appropriate to the true nature of the scenes.

Cypress Swamp

PW1043

Week of October 31, 2010

Halloween brings autumn colors, pumpkins, and cool temperatures.  This photo has all those except the pumpkin!  Autumn colored was peak when we visited Niagara Falls last week, providing a colorful backdrop to America's most famous waterfall.  Stormy skies can yield nice sunsets and I hoped these skies would be painted dramatically in reds and oranges, but it didn't happen.  However, some nice subtle color did occur on the clouds, adding drama to the sky in this composition. 

A huge mist cloud is constantly present from Horseshoe Falls, best viewed from the Canadian side of the falls.  This image was taken from the Observation tower at Prospect Point, viewing American Falls.  I shot this image with a 24-105L lens at a shutter speed of 3 seconds at f11 and an ISO of 200.

Happy Halloween!

Autumn Sunset at Niagara Falls

PW1044

November

Week of November 7, 2010

On my blog, I talked about my surprise when last week I arrived back in Montana and found the cottonwood trees in Paradise Valley ablaze in autumn colors.  These two sets of trees were part of four lined up in a meadow in front of Emigrant Peak (el. 10,915 ft).  The first day I tried to photograph this scene, cloud cover didn't allow for any nice light, so I came back the next day.  My second attempt proved successful when the cloud cover broke up at sunset, allowing the beautiful light on the landscape that you see here. 

I shot this scene with all four groups of trees, with three of the four, and then with just these two.  I prefer this more simple image with the two sets of trees.  This image was shot with a 24-105L lens on a Canon 5D.  I stopped down to f11 and shot at about 1/160.  With the beautiful weather this week, there are still a few trees with beautiful color in the area but a winter storm is on the way for this week.

Montana Gold

PW1045

Week of November 14, 2010

The roads into Yellowstone closed this week, on November 8th.  Before the roads closed, I took one more trip into the park and spent an early morning at Old Faithful.  While waiting for Old Faithful Geyser to erupt, I saw that Beehive's Indicator was in eruption (the small geyser on the right in the photo).  Beehive's Indicator doesn't always guarantee an eruption of Beehive Geyser, but it's reliable enough to have earned it's name.  Beehive can erupt anywhere from a few minutes after the Indictor starts to 20 minutes or so. 

I wanted to photograph Old Faithful in the light I had and it was due any second, so I wait a few more minutes.  As soon as Old Faithful finished, I took off towards Beehive.  As I made it to the boardwalk on Geyser Hill, Beehive went into eruption.  Fortunately, eruptions, while infrequent, can last about five minutes or so.  I had time to find a position to photograph it and was pleasantly surprised to see a rainbow.  I shot several compositions but liked this one the most as it gives plenty of room for the rainbow without including the boardwalk (along with a new railing).  This image was taken with a 24-105L lens, handheld, 1/1000 at f11.  And so I guess seeing one of Beehive's infrequent eruptions is the equivalent to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

The next several Photos of the Week will be posted to my blog at http://apps.stevehinchphoto.com/Blog/  and this page will be updated in mid-December when I return from Europe.

End of the Rainbow

PW1046

Week of November 21, 2010

Since I've only been in Poland for a few days, I haven't been out shooting much, but I did manage to photograph this colorful little songbird in Edyta's backyard.  The bird was perched on a limb close to her kitchen window.  They are common birds here in Europe, but it was the first one I've seen, so I had to photograph it!

The name, whether in English or Polish, is rather embarrassing for this beautiful little bird.  In English, this bird is called a Great Tit.  I'll leave that alone... In Polish, the name is gil, which translates to snot.  So either way, the bird is embarrassed for it's name!

I waited about half an hour for one of these birds to land close enough to the window and in an area without distracting branches blocking the bird.  Also, it was fairly dark and rainy, and since I was hand holding the lens, I had to bump the ISO up to 1600.  But this was on my 5D, so it could handle the ISO with a little noise reduction.  I was pleased with the results of this colorful little subject.

Backyard Songbird

PW1047

Week of November 28, 2010

This week's Photo of the Week comes from the streets of Siedlce, Poland.  It snowed last night and into this morning, so I headed out early to try to find some interesting scenes with the snow.  While the snow isn't essential to this scene, it does cover the sidewalk, replacing it with a more appealing foreground.  Another foot of snow is supposed to fall here tonight.

This image was shot with the 24-105, which was my go to lens through my last road trip.  It proved to be a solid go to lens again this morning.  The textures on the building initially drew me to this scene.  The challenge was to create order amidst the chaos of texture and color.  When I saw the lamp post, I realized that it would make a good focal point amid the chaos, so began experimenting with compositions using the lamp post as part of the scene.  There are so many colors and textures, but the windows and the lamp post provide some focal points to balance those amazing textures.  Once, I had the image on the computer, I also noticed that each part of the building was a rectangle, with a smaller rectangle, the window, inside it.  This also helped to create visual order in the image.

Rectangles

PW1048

December

Week of December 5, 2010

This week's Photo of the Week also comes from the Polish city of Siedlce.  The image was made this morning, the first sunny, non-snowy day in a week.  Snow storms have hit Europe all week long.  However, the clear, sunny skies this morning, along with a little back lit fog, allowed this image to have a bit of pop.  I had seen this house a few days ago and wanted to photograph it in interesting light.

This house belonged to a photographer, Adolf Gancwol-Ganiewski, who was killed at Treblinka, a Nazi concentration camp near Siedlce during World War II.  Adolf was a well known photographer and his images are important in Poland as they show life in before the war, focusing on Siedlce and the areas around.  More than 900 of his images survive in the Siedlce Museum.  Gancwol was born Jewish but was baptized when he married and changed his last name to Ganiewski.  However, when the Germans occupied Poland, Gancwol-Ganiewski was moved into the Jewish Ghetto in Siedlce and later sent to Treblinka where he was killed.  In a way, this photo serves as a tribute from one photographer to another, who fell victim to one of the greatest tragedies in world history.

Tribute

PW1049

Week of December 12, 2010

This cathedral dominates the skyline through out Siedlce, Poland.  Commonly referred to simply as "the Cathedral", this church survived the brutality of World War II.  I've seen photos of this cathedral during the war where everything surrounding it is nothing but piles of rubble, yet the church stands untouched.  Pope John Paul II worshipped in here and a small plaque outside documents the occasion.

I wanted to create an image of this imposing building that gave the viewer the same feeling as I had when seeing it.  I shot it on a foggy day, during sunshine, and finally, I  tried a night shot.  This night shot worked best in conveying what I wanted the viewer to feel.  Poland is a country where cathedrals dominate each town, where even the smallest village has a large cathedral.  The fog and night lighting combined to create the atmosphere I wanted in order to best photograph this building.  The image was shot with my 5D mk 2 and a 24-105 lens. 

Of course, this photo is dedicated to my girlfriend, Edyta.  The hospitality of her family made this another successful and fun trip to Poland.  And of course, today is my mom's birthday, so I also dedicate this image to her!

The Cathedral

PW1050

Week of December 19, 2010

This week I showcase a cathedral of a different kind.  The towering peaks of the Northern Rockies are nature's grandest cathedrals.  And they are at their most grand when covered in a white gown of snow.

Electric Peak sits inside Yellowstone National Park on the northern border.  It dominates the landscape at over 11,000 feet.  In late summer, the peak is bare of snow, but when the winter snow comes, Electric Peak shows it's best.  This image was made just outside Yellowstone National Park.  I used a telephoto zoom lens to isolate this shoulder peak which was receiving light while the peak of Electric was among the clouds and falling snow.  I liked this tight shot and how it contrasted the warm light on the foreground ridge and the cooler light under the clouds on the main peak.  This is one of those shots where I was doing something besides photography but had a camera readily available when I noticed some nice light.

Peak of Winter

PW1051

Week of December 26, 2010

Well, this is the 52nd Photo of the Week on my website, which means a couple of things.  It's the end of 2010 and it's Christmas.  I have a lot to be thankful for in 2010 as it was a pretty great year.  While I might not be exactly where I'd like to be for Christmas, seeing Old Faithful under a beautiful sunrise sky makes for a satisfactory second.

This photo of Old Faithful was taken at sunrise on Christmas morning.  I had photographed at sunset here the day before, having been drawn to the interesting foreground textures and patterns.  Seeing the brilliant colors, I quickly made my way back to this spot to shoot this image.  Old Faithful had erupted about fifteen minutes before, but the steam still made for an interesting mid-ground component to the photo.  The colors are right as they came out of my camera.  It really was this beautiful and I love how snow takes on interesting colors, especially at sunrise and sunset.  The image was shot with my 5D mk 2 and 24-105 lens, handheld.

As the last Photo of the Week for 2010, I wish everyone a very happy holiday season and a wonderful New Year!

Christmas in Yellowstone

PW1052