Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2013/02/24
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Absolutely fantastic! As usual. I can't pick a favorite. I like them all. I agree with Ted. Leica should hire you to promote their products. Tina On Sat, Feb 23, 2013 at 10:44 PM, Doug Herr <wildlightphoto at earthlink.net>wrote: > For most of the month I've concentrated on the central valley's anatidae > (ducks, geese and swans). Before long spring duck migration will be upon > us (it has already begun for Sandhill Cranes and hummingbirds). The male > ducks have their brightest plumage of the year and toward the end of > hunting season they've learned where people are benign. The month started > for me with a trip to Chico California; several good duck refuges along the > way provided opportunities for photos of Snow Goose, Greater White-fronted > Goose and American Wigeon: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/sngoos06.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/gwgoos06.html > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/amwige01.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/amwige02.html > > between duck refuges I also spotted a Ferruginous Hawk, a winter visitor > to the area: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/accipitridae/fehawk05.html > > (all the above photos: R8/DMR, Leitz Novoflex 560mm f/6.8 Telyt) > > I was diverted from ducks mid-month by reports of Rock Wrens at nearby > Folsom Lake. The Rock Wren is a species I have very few adequate photos of > so I spent a couple of weekends tracking this bird down: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/troglodytidae/rowren01.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/troglodytidae/rowren02.html > > (Rock Wren: R8/DMR, 280mm f/4 APO-Telyt-R, 2x APO-Extender-R) > > And to finish the month I ducked out at Colusa National Wildlife Refuge. > The male ducks are easy to distinguish from each other: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/citeal04.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/gwteal03.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/nopint02.html > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/noshov05.html > > Female ducks are more difficult to identify but the details in the bills > reveal their secret identities. The Northern Shoveler has a big dorky > bill: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/noshov04.html > > The Northern Pintail's bill is uniformly (or nearly so) dark: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/nopint05.html > > and the Gadwall's bill is yellow-and-black mottled: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/gadwal06.html > > Another bird which can be identified by the bill is the Ross's Goose. > This species is very similar to the Snow Goose (first link in this post) > but has a smaller bill which lacks the black "lips" of the Snow Goose: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/rogoos01.html > > Something spooked the Ross's Goose flock and they all left in a flurry of > wings and water spray: > > http://wildlightphoto.com/birds/anatidae/rogoos02.html > > (R8/DMR, 280mm f/4 APO with and without extenders) > > All comments welcome. > > Doug Herr > Birdman of Sacramento > http://www.wildlightphoto.com > > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > -- Tina Manley, ASMP www.tinamanley.com