"On the Waterfront" - Part 3

Thanks Charlie. I just went to the Cornell bird count results and see that there are a whole bunch reported in a northwest suburb of Chicago. That's much closer for me. Maybe I'll take a trip up there.

Mrs. Ed, hope you get to see the Snow Geese.

Here's one of the two Bald Eagles I saw on Saturday, way, way off in the distance. I couldn't see him without my lens. I just scanned the treetops where I know they sometimes hang out.

Snow Geese in the water and along the bank .........

A threesome ........

And the heavens cry out with the sounds of the Snow Goose ............

Over and over again they would rise up only to return to their former grounds ..........

Could it possibly get any thicker ..........

Awesome Captures!! Thanks for sharing these great photo's Linth! Your 195mm shot is wild! Any estimate of the population of Snow Geese at the location?

Thanks, Burd. It was estimated at 11,000. I feel as though I have gone through all 11,000 looking for yellow neck collars.
I have thus far found none, which is highly unusual. There is probably some Ross's Geese mixed in there, also, so I'll go back and see if I can find any.

One wonders how they have room to fly.

Wow, that's a whole lot of birds. It's incredible to think you never see one fall from being injured by another running into it.

Love that cross-over photo-superb! And that one in the cornfield is unbelievable the way the stocks don't stop the wings.

Great job!!

Gorgeous photos Charlie! I'm really enjoying them!

Nice captures Lith. Where are these photos taken?

Hi Linth, You said the settings were f8 AV mode. What were the other settings at?

Thanks, again, everyone .......

Meth, I spent all day Saturday on the eastern shore. I first went to Oakley Street in Cambridge to photograph the ducks, mostly Canvasbacks. I then went to Blackwater NWR and drove around the wildlife drive umpteen times. I did drive down to Hooper's Island hoping that the reported 300 (est.) Redheads would be close to shore. But, no luck, they were too far out. But, absent the Snow Geese population, things were a little slow. I only saw two Bald Eagles. I did read earlier this week that the White Pelicans were back.

Pelle, as I stated, I shot Aperture Priority (F/8) all day. When in doubt that is what I do. With the bright snow, sunny day, etc., the shutter speeds shot up to 1/6000 of a second on occasion. I used spot metering because that works best for me shooting "white" birds. White Balance was set for full sun. It was quite windy which didn't help. At times, I was afraid to walk away from my camera and tripod for fear it could blow over. When the wind gets into the large lens hood, the camera/lens will bounce a little.

Edited to add: "the ISO was set at 400".

I probably will be starting a new thread later today .....



This message was edited Feb 25, 2010 3:33 PM

Charlie... I think I already mentioned this to you, but I am planning a trip to Blackwater in a couple of weeks! I cannot wait!!! I will be shooting you a dmail soon to get more info.

I have so loved your latest photos! My family and I saw the famed snow geese for the first time last November... on Assateague... and it is truly an awesome sight to watch them take off. The noise is incredible too!

One moment my hubby and I shared that was so cool.... We got up early both mornings to shoot sunrise photos. The second morning was in the marsh. We were set up by 5:50am and watched, waited, and shot the various stages of sunrise. Even at that early hour, the geese were noisy. As the sky brightened, more and more birds started singing. Just as the sun was breaking the horizon, every single bird out there became quiet... for about 10-15 seconds... then all the noise started up again. It was almost as if they were "giving thanks" for the new morning! It was a memorable moment!

Linth...the only word I can think of is WOW! Those Snow Geese are unbelievable and what a wonderful job you are doing in capturing the moment...so awesome you can almost hear them. Well done and looking forward to many more!!

Incredibly awesome!!!