LEAVING AND ARRIVING

I’m always sad when my favorite birds migrate south for the winter.  I have to remind myself how many Arctic birds migrate here from the North American tundra.  While I still await the snowy owls, last week the snow buntings arrived.  On the same sunny afternoon, I spotted this giant, rough-legged hawk on a seasonal road that happened to be plowed.  I crept slowly forward in my car with the window down, ready to shoot, when it took off.  It landed on the other side of the field in a stand of trees.  I got off another shot before it flew off again.  I decided to drive around the country block to see if it would return to the original tree.  It had, but took off even faster than before.  I was no match at playing tag with this striking hawk.

 

 

 

 

 

SNOW BUNTINGS ARRIVE

 They are such cute little birds that are fun to watch, but very difficult to photograph because they’re constantly moving.  They’re actually a type of sparrow.  The males are strikingly white with a black back, central tail, and wing tips.  Females have a reddish-brown coloring.  They’re also known as “snowflake” birds because the mostly white plumage of a bunting flock evokes the image of a snowstorm.  

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT CAUGHT MY EYE

 For a photographer living in a gray, winter climate, a sunny day is cause for excitement.  Monday afternoon’s sunshine and bright haze made me drop everything and head outdoors.  For nearly three hours, I sucked in the shadows and colors of the wintry landscapes.  More to come.

 

 

SNOW AND EVERGREENS

 A perfect match for wintry landscapes.

 

  

 

 

 

EXPLODING

 On my last photoshoot before the snows came, I visited several wetlands to take pictures of cattails and milkweed, which were blowing open and spreading their seeds for next season.  I couldn’t help but think of all the Monarch butterflies who will benefit when they return from their winter migration.

 

 

 

OPENING UP

 I’ll admit it.  I hated to see the leaves go along with the fall color.  But with the leaves gone, the landscape opened up.  The bones of the trees show.  Lakes behind the woods appear.  I most enjoy seeing birds that become visible.  I can now spot a hawk hunting from a tree top a quarter mile away.  Sometimes, I get really lucky, like last Tuesday, when I saw this bald eagle perched high in a beech tree.  There’s always something to see in nature, even when the world goes brown.