RETROSPECTS 2020 - #6

Barn Swallows, Dubuque, Iowa

The month of June was again filled with good wildlife sightings but one great opportunity came with an invitation from my photography friend Kevin. He owns an old barn near his house and we were shooting Barn Swallows that had their nests in the building. We did that already two years ago and I didn’t hesitate a second when he invited me again this year. Kevin has produced some amazing photos with swallows in flight and approaching their nest during this summer. I used my chance that afternoon and focussed on two spots at the barn and tried to catch some nice gestures while the birds interacted with each other. Time well spent again and definitely a highlight for me in June 2020.

AT THE BARN SWALLOWS

I had again the pleasure to follow an invitation of my photography friend Kevin this evening for shooting at an old barn he owns at the edge of town. The main attraction is several pairs of Barn Swallows that have their nests under the ceiling and feed their offspring. I heard the young birds when parents arrived with food, but they were obviously still too little and we couldn’t see them. The barn doors are open and the building is surrounded by meadows, grassland, and some weed patches. With other words, there is an abundance of insects and enough food for the little birds.

This location requires a lot of thinking about the light. Shooting in the barn required a flash as the main light source. With the open doors light pours in also from the outside and the question is, how can we use flash and ambient light solely or in combination for telling a story about the swallows and their summer habitat?

The first photo was shot through the open barn door. The swallow sits on an old rusty gate and the only light source is the low sitting sun. The trees behind the meadow are far away and provide a lovely soft background.

This bird sits on another one of the open doors. The grass in the back is in full sunlight and makes for a good background as well. A hint of flash takes care for the dark side of the swallow inside the barn.

Same location as photo #2 but for a brief moment the sun was hidden by a cloud and I chose a much shorter exposure time for the ambient light. The flash doesn’t overpower the bird and with 1/800 s I was able to nail the gesture the Barn Swallow made at that moment.

Kevin had photographed in the barn earlier this week already and today he tried to make a picture of a Barn Swallow with open wings, approaching a resting place. That is quite a challenge! He pre-focussed on a particular spot and waited for his chance but the birds did not use this place as often as earlier this week.

My thanks goes to Kevin for inviting me! I had again a great time!

PHOTOS OF A GRAY BUT EVENTFUL DAY

As my headline already says, it was a rainy, windy, and gray day. No reason to stay home. There was a lot going on in the Green Island Wetlands. Yes, photography sucks a little bit if sky and water look gray but a number of clicks were made. 

Forster’s Tern

Shortly after arrival in the wetlands I spotted a Forster’s Tern flying at me. This is not a bird we can see every day in the Mississippi Valley, although I have photographed them before. Not the sharpest image either but I want to mention its presence.

Sandhill Crane

I saw this single Sandhill Crane twice today. No partner around. Two weeks ago we still saw a pair in this area and it makes me wonder if the other bird is on a nest somewhere between the reeds. Sandhill Cranes mate for life and both parents incubate the eggs during the day, but at night only by the female.

Barn Swallow

Hundreds of swallows have arrived. I saw Barn Swallows everywhere in large numbers, desperately hunting for insects. With the cold weather we had today, it may have been a challenge for so many birds to find enough food after the long way of migration. Among them were Tree Swallows, but this species has been here since a few weeks already, and also a few Bank Swallows were present.

Cliff Swallows (and possibly a Bank Swallow)

A kettle of at least 200 Cliff Swallows used one of the parking lots for boat trailers as a place to rest, warm up, and for catching insects all around. The Cliff Swallows build mud nests, mostly on a sheltered cliff or underneath bridges. I look forward to watch them here in the Little Maquoketa River Valley again this summer.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2018 #03 - 4 PICS OUT OF THE KAYAK

Green Frog, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

The last three evenings were used to paddle the Mississippi River and its backwaters, but only yesterday I took the camera with me. Aiming for wildlife during the last two hours with daylight and shooting from the low level in the boat have been often a key for success.

The mix of duck weed, algae, and aquatic plants that have reached the surface is a great habitat for many species. Don’t worry, this is usually just near the shore, the main channel in the backwaters of Mud Lake is clear and easy to paddle. This Green Frog blends right in and the reflection of its eye in an open spot of the water made me choose this image for today’s blog post.

Young Barn Swallow, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

A new generation of swallows is learning how to catch insects in flight. I have seen all five species we can find along the big river but this young Barn Swallow posed perfectly on top of a water lily.

Painted Turtle,  Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

Painted Turtles enjoy the sun as much as we do, but most of the time they slide into the water as soon they detect some movement. This one seemed to know that I was not a thread in my kayak and stayed on this piece of drift wood until I was only five feet away.

Eastern Kingbird,  Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

The young Eastern Kingbirds were hunting for insects right at the boat ramp. Even if I’m not always in favor of a backlit situation, I still prefer this shot over the ones I took while I left the boat launch.

Sure, I could make an image of all these critters from shore, but shooting out of the kayak delivers most of the time a perspective that is almost impossible to obtain by standing on land, much higher above the water level.

All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens

CHARMING SWALLOWS

Barn Swallow

My photography friend Kevin invited me for a late morning shooting in his barn on the south side of Dubuque, Iowa today. The barn is actually the home of a couple horses but it also gives shelter to several Barn Swallows. While we watched one of them still sitting on the nest, others were feeding their offspring already. There was a lot going on and we had plenty of opportunities to experiment with our camera and flash settings in order to get some good shots. We both had a great time to work with the birds.

The barn has a few windows and the upper half of the doors were open, allowing some day light to enter the room. The challenge was to incorporate the ambient light while our speed lights were used to freeze the action without making the flash too dominant. I wanted to preserve the warm feeling and colors that we found inside the building and pair it with the charming gestures these beautiful Barn Swallows have shown to us. The current warm weather provides plenty of insects and it never took very long until the adults returned with a bill full of food for their nestlings. What a fun morning! Thank you again Kevin for this great opportunity!

IMPORTANT STEP IN A BARN SWALLOW’S LIFE

Juvenile Barn Swallows, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa ------

The great weather we had lately continued and there was no doubt that paddling on the Mississippi River was a good choice today. We had some good German friends here a week ago and we told them that they are in paradise here in eastern Iowa. Paddling twice this week the same trip that they did last week makes me believe my own words 😉.

Almost back from our tour today and approaching Mud Lake Park we suddenly saw three juvenile swallows sitting on a piece of drift wood. I let the kayak carefully slide into a field of Arrow Heads, a water plant that is very common along the river. Parking the kayak between the plants makes it more stabil, increasing the chance for a sharp image. After I made some quick static shots the adult Barn Swallows suddenly arrived. The young swallows stretched their necks and called for food but the adults did not deliver. Immediately I thought I was the problem, maybe I was too close to the immature birds? But after watching the situation for a little while I figured out that we just witnessed an important stage of a young swallow’s life.

The adults didn’t care much about my presence, they just tried to encourage their offspring to catch their own food. They approached them, but didn’t feed them. I shot like a maniac. Being in a kayak doesn’t deliver always a sharp image but I got a good share. It all became clear when all juveniles suddenly took off and joined their parents in their efforts to catch insects in flight.