It’s been a long 5 or so years since life as seemed semi-normal. It’s time to grieve for all the losses and get back into life. I hope you enjoy these photos from 2025. This year is just beginning, and looks so bright. . .
Tag: bird photography
The Season of Birding Festivals
Spring is coming quickly, and it’s time for birding festivals. It is a wonderful time to connect with like-minded people, learn new things, and explore birding areas with knowledgeable people.
This year, I’ll be speaking, teaching, and leading a workshop at the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival. The festival runs Friday March 20th thru Sunday March 22nd. Registration for the events start on February 1st.
One of the best events is the Crane View Trips. These are led by a knowledgeable individual, and participants are allowed to get out of the bus, when it’s safe to do so. It’s amazing to see the sky or fields filled with these amazing birds. Other birds that might be seen are Canada geese, and other migratory birds.
Overall, it’s worth the trip. Hope to see you there. . .
Looking Back on 2020
WOW! I made through 2020, but looking back I discovered that I shot less than 10 shoots. Most years, I’ve reached this number of shoots by the end of February. We made through Pandemic lock-downs, travel restrictions, and other limiting factors. I taught only 4 classes, 1 bird festival, and sold a couple prints. With all this, there is visible growth in my photographic vision, and I’m looking forward to 2021. Here, I’m posting my best from 2020.
May the New Year be filled with may photography opportunities. . .Karen
Changing Times. . .
It’s amazing how quickly our world changes! I hope this post finds all my followers in good health. As we navigate this new world filled with a dangerous pandemic (virus) and travel restrictions, I think it becomes more important to find ourselves behind our cameras documenting the world.
The act of being creative puts perspective to the unseen and sometimes frightening aspects of our lives. I sit here at home contemplating opportunities that have been canceled in the past few weeks and in the upcoming future. There is a lot to fear, yet it is an opportunity for a new future and growth in vision.
I believe that this is an opportunity to hang out at home, work previous images, and plan / execute new subject matter / ideas. It’s like we have been asked to take a step back from our normally busy world, and breathe. I look forward to the photographic images that emerge through this time of transition and change.
The photo above was taken last year on my way to the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival. I spoke on bird photography. It was an amazing trip and opportunity to meet fellow photographers. This year, the festival was canceled due to the pandemic. I was going to lead a photography tour highlighting the migratory Sandhill Cranes. Maybe, I’ll get to do this next year. . .
I did venture to the Port Susan Snow Goose Festival. It was a quiet year for sighting birds at a close distance. This photo was taken last year (2019). A year made an immense difference in flock sizes and attendees of the festival. It seems like there was a shadow hanging overhead in the background.
Many of the festivals and gatherings for photographers (and others) are canceled in the foreseeable future, so what are we to do?
First, I think it is important to continue shooting. It might sound difficult to achieve in this home-bound times, but it only requires a bit of creativity. Maybe, it’s time to learn a new photography skill. It could be choosing subjects at home that will improve skills. Everything we learn as photographers translates into better photographs. Now is a great time to try new things.
Second, I believe it helps to create assignments to complete. An example would be to shoot a photo a day, or select a word and try to accomplish it in a photograph.
Third, this is a great time for planning. I’ve been working on planning 6 to 12 months from now, making the plans flexible. I know that these plans help me with creating course content for my classes / workshops, designing new products to sell, and personal projects. Often times, these sessions reveal opportunities for books, articles, and blog entries.
One last thing. . .all of my classes will be taught online until further notice.
Bird Photography Interview
Karen
Create ~ Visualize ~ Evoke
Choices, Exposure & Composition
The experience included hundreds of sandhill cranes flying overhead, with some landing in the field below. Their sounds waft in the air, like a light trill. Unlike ducks and geese, the cranes seem to fly without formation, and their flight is affected by wind gusts.
At a distance, it becomes easy to place hundreds of these amazing birds into a single frame. The photo above is taken with a 600 mm lens. The challenge becomes “how are the birds placed in the frame?”
One thing to remember is that these birds are not small. There size ranges from 3 to 5 feet tall (depending on sub-species and male/female), and their wing span ranges from 5 to 7 feet across.
The photo above is a grouping of 3 birds against the sky. Light is important in all photography, and especially important when photographing birds. The light in this image is late afternoon sun, and it casts a warm glow in these cranes. It is important to light up the head (or face) of the bird.
In this photo, the light brings the cranes out from the blue background. Without the sunlight, the birds would blend into the background, and be more difficult to see. As for where to focus. it is good to select an area with a large concentration of birds. It is easier for the camera’s auto-focus to actually focus on the subject.
As for exposure, expose for the birds. The background isn’t as important as the cranes, and it’s okay for it to go light or dark. The shutter speed needs to be fast enough (1/250 sec or faster) to keep the cranes from blurring. At a distance, an aperture of F8 should offer enough depth of field to keep most of the birds is focus.
Tip – Use the available light. Set the shutter speed to stop the action, and the aperture to keep most of the flock in focus.
Karen
Visualize ~ Create ~ Evoke
Othello Sandhill Crane Festival
This is one of the best birding festivals! It is located in the heart of eastern Washington, the programming is amazing, and it is during the height of the Sandhill Crane migration through the area.
Celebrate Birds Through Photography
March 24th, 2018 at 9 am
Othello, WA
Hope to see you there. . .
Happy Shooting. . .Karen
Skagit Eagle Festival 2018
It’s this weekend! I’ll be speaking Saturday, January 27th at 11 am in Concrete, WA.
“Creating Magical Moments With Bird Photography”
at the
Concrete Historical Theater
Happy Shooting. . .Karen
Sandhill Cranes and More in Othello
I spoke this past Saturday at the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival in Othello, WA. It was an amazing experience! The room was filled at 9 am for my presentation Celebrate Birds Through Photography.
This festival is incredible in both its size and number of speakers/tours. It is well worth the adventure to Eastern Washington for the event.
It was interesting to discover how easy it was to see the cranes flying, but nearly impossible to see them in the fields. The photograph above is of a field with over 50 cranes amoungst the cattle.
Looking upwards, it was easier to see the cranes flying through in small groups. Thankfully, the sky was blue with white clouds. The cranes stood out against the background, and were easier to see.
The other amazing birds we saw were yellow head blackbirds. I actually thought they were blackbirds landing behind reflectors on the irrigation pipes. What a pleasant surprise when I discovered they were beautiful yellow and black birds.
Happy Shooting. . .Karen
Visualize ~ Create ~ Evoke
Painting With Light on the Oregon Coast
Thought I would share my latest venture. June is the time to teach on the Oregon coast at the Sitka Center for Arts & Ecology. Hope you enjoy & please share. . .Life is Good!
Happy shooting. . .Karen