Caribou, Moose, Dall Sheep and Ptarmigan in Trees

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Wildlife

Above: Mother moose sheds her winter coat, followed close by a yearling, Denali National Park, May 2, 2014.

My last post was the scenery I encountered during a long and hilly 50-plus mile bike ride inside Denali National Park. There were multiple large mountain passes, hot temperatures and in my case more then 10 pounds of photo gear.

I brought along my telephoto, predicting I would regret not taking it. While I probably could have done without, it certainly got me a few wildlife shots.

Both to my relief and disappointment, there were no bears on this trip. Bears in Denali are common, and traveling solo I didn’t want to see one too close.

These were far from the only instances I saw wildlife, most were too far away to do anything but acknowledge their presence.

Female ptarmigan in a tree, the Alaska State Bird.

Dall sheep in Polychrome Pass.

Male ptarmigan in a tree.

Caribou looks at you.

Caribou profile.

iPhone roadtrip: Fairbanks to Whistler

Black & White, Iphone, Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Wildlife

I recently returned home from a road trip through Canada, south through Washington, Oregon and California, then north through Nevada, Utah, Montanan, Washington and Canada again.

Because of the quickness both in taking and sharing pictures I really embraced my camera phone on this trip. This is the first of likely a half-dozen posts chronicling the road trip from my iPhone.

All these were featured on my Instagram account, follow me @rwoodpix to see what other adventures I embark on this summer.

The first leg of the trip was roughly 2000 miles, from Fairbanks, Alaska, to Whistler, British Columbia, to do some snowboarding. This first post features shots from the road.

Caribou cross the road near the Canadian border.

Leaving Tox, Alaska, on the morning of March 7, 2014.

Entering Canada

Liard River Hotsprings is a mandatory stop along the Alaska-Canada Highway in winter or summer.

Bison are common along the ALCAN,. The one center left moved minimally, so it was alive when we passed.

Blow out along the John Heart Highway.

Pretty light along the ALCAN.

Bohemian Waxwings in Black And White

Alaska, Black & White, Photography, Wildlife

Hundreds of Bohemian Waxwings flocked in frigid 20 below fahrenheit. I arrived unexpectedly on the scene and realized time was short.

I took five frames. Luckily I was at a very fast shutter speed, so four are nice and crisp. While all four images are fairly similar, they’re stronger as a set. Flowing patterns of birds in flight mixed with minimal tree reference and high contrast make complicated scenes and challenging composition.

In the day of digital photography it’s a great feeling to take only five photos and truly enjoy four.

Click on any image to view in carousel.

Waxwings three – Barely visibly birch trees

Waxwings two – Flight patterns

Waxwings four – Close up

Waxwings One – Sliver of a spruce tree.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Eerie Spiders

Alaska, Macro, Photography, Weekly Photo Post, Wildlife

Above: The much smaller wolf spider can be seen in the clasp of an orb weaver.

The weekly photo challenge for Nov. 1 through Nov. 7 is eerie. Of course it was announced just one day after I posted about the Paris Catacombs, which would have fit the bill perfectly. Not uncommon for me to have great ideas ahead of their time.

So for this challenge I’m heading to the archives. In 2010 I was slowly experimenting with digital – and often forgetting to make sure I was shooting RAW files.

I did have some extension tubes to attach to my old Canon Rebel XTi. Extension tubes increase macro capabilities by moving the lens farther away from the sensor. So when I saw a large orb-weaver spider killing a smaller wolf spider I ran to grab my camera.

Spiders are eerie enough when they aren’t cannibalizing other spiders.

Reservations for one.

Securing the pray for later consumption, July 11, 2010.

Securing the prey for later consumption, July 11, 2010.

Redpolls, robin egg, beehives and PRI.

Alaska, Landscapes, Macro, Photography, Wildlife

My old theme had been giving me problems, hence the new appearance.

A very similar story to the subject of this post was on Public Radio International during my drive to UAF: Magpies as pests. The story about how magpies, cousins of the fascinating raven I love to photograph, are often exterminated because of their aggressive nest-plundering habits. In defense of the magpie it was said other animals, raccoons, squirrels and deer probably steal more eggs. I’ve been unsuccessful finding the podcast, if I do I’ll post it.

In truth it’s just nature, the favorable location or easy meal will get taken.

I have three examples of similar subject matter today: First, a bird home overtaken by bees; second, former chickadee’s nest taken by redpolls; and finally, a scavenged North American Robin egg.

A beehive in a bird house at Creamers Field, late April, 2013.

Snow flies as a redpoll eyes its nest.

A redpoll warms the eggs, May 17, 2013.

Three of the four light-light blue eggs in a rotting birch tree.

Bright blue and broken.

Orbital.

Rough-legged Hawk

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Wildlife

It’s May 18, and it snowed in Fairbanks again today. Lovely fall weather we’re having. Such dramatic weather must be hard on wildlife. There has been some crazy bird spectacles, as reported by the Fairbanks News-Miner.

This included, to the best of my knowledge, a Rough-Legged Hawk hanging around Farmers Loop Rd. I got a few opportunities to photograph it, though nothing spectacular it was good practice in an area I have little experience.

A Rough-Legged Hawk hung around Farmers Loop Rd for a few days early in May, 2013.

Bicycle Beat: Munching Moose and a May Day Sun Dog

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Street, Wildlife

“Bicycle Beat” is an idea I have wanted to start for some time. And until recently was hindered by winter. Bicycle Beat is my reporting from a bicycle. I have often felt bike riding is the ultimate way to capture great photos. Unlike driving, stopping and turning around is almost instantaneous, and it’s much easier to spot interesting subjects traveling 10 mph rather then 50. Consequently, also much faster then walking, greatly expanding the range of your photographic canvas. Also important is inconspicuous. You draw a lot more attention stopping a car then a bicycle.

I went for a very brief 3-mile bike ride last night and in the short time happened upon two photo-worthy subjects. It’s been a very testy spring in Fairbanks, with multiple inches of snow the last week of May. Greenhouses are opening despite unavailable exterior space. One of them is Plant Kingdom.

Mayday! A sundog is visible on May Day. A sundog is an atmospheric reaction when light deflects off ice crystals in the air, producing a halo effect. They are common to cold weather.

The snow and cold on May 1, producing a sundog, mixed with the open Plant Kingdom sign, is a significant juxtaposition.

A sundog is frames the Plant Kingdom sign on May 1, 2013. It has been one of the coldest springs on record in Interior Alaska.

I slung my camera around my neck and hopped on my bike, only to travel another half-mile before finding another photo.

While I may have stopped a car to take the sundog picture, I never would have seen this young moose right off the bike path. Maybe 15 yards away, it would have been a great opportunity to get a wide-angle shot of a moose. Having a zoom lens however, my first instinct was to zoom in as close as possible. Probably 2 or 3 years old, I did make sure no mother moose was visible before shooting.

A moose munches off Farmers Loop Rd.

Very-Temporary Fossils

Alaska, architecture, Photography, Street, Wildlife

While nothing in Interior Alaska can be considered typical, Fairbanks – typically – isn’t very windy. This winter has brought no shortage of windy days. While occasionally bone-chilling cold, wind also creates exciting conditions. Ravens seem to have fun when currents whip up.

Ravens play in high winds above UAF’s Fine Art Complex. April 17, 2013.

The next day, slowly picking my way down a steep, slippery hill, my preferred route between car and classroom, I found evidence some ravens had been using strong winds and currents to their advantage.

Spiraling strike marks decorated the snow’s surface. A raven had been hunting, likely a small rodent. My friend accurately described it as a “very-temporary fossil.” Indeed unlikely the imprint would be preserved more then a day or two.

A hunting raven leaves evidence in the snow, April 18, 2013.

At the time I was en route to grab class materials, happy just to spot the strike, I didn’t linger. Deciding to court a safer path back up the hill, my attention was once more drawn toward patterns in the snow. I couldn’t pass the opportunity to photograph another strike mark. Even if it meant going back to my car to swap tennis shoes for boots.

A pedestrian walks up a path at UAF, near a imprint a raven left in the snow, akin to a temporary fossil.

A pedestrian walks up a path at UAF, near a raven imprint in the snow, akin to a temporary fossil.

Close-up of an imprint left by a hunting raven.

A Halloween murder… of ravens.

Alaska, Black & White, Landscapes, Photography, Wildlife

The wind whipped all Halloween. Soaring and swooping ravens took advantage of the strong drafts to have some fun. A flock of ravens is also called a murder, fitting for this last day of October.

Ravens have long held a place in lore. Tricksters and shape shifters are among the most common Alaska fables. Raven Steals The light is a popular North-West Native American story where the earth begins bathed in total darkness. Accounts vary, but the plot often involves the character of Raven pretending to be the grandson of an old man who holds all the light. Raven then steals it and shines it over earth and water.

“And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted – nevermore!” – Edgar Allen Poe

Ravens and tree. Oct. 31, 2012.

Critter Corner: Mt. Rainier and Georgeson Botanical Garder Frogs

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Wildlife

A few weeks ago I posted images of real bears in Denali National Park and a bear statue from UAF’s Georgeson Botanical Garden. Today I’m posting a similar diptych: A frog from Reflection Lake in Mt. Rainier National Park and a frog from the botanical gardens.

The first image the frog is the only subject, he was an itty-bitty frog, maybe half a deck of cards. The mostly brown hues were rather ugly, so I did a quick and dirty desaturation of the image, converting it to black and white. I think the the black and white does a better job accentuating the frog’s natural camouflage. The shadow provides a small amount of depth to the mostly flat image.

The second image I like a lot because of layers. Shooting through a fence, with more fence in the background. The frog is far from the main subject. What’s fun for me is comparing the two subjects, the real frog in nature and the artificial frog in a man-made environment. I enjoy both, though the statue was a little easier to shoot.