Two Outta Three

Two Outta Three, a photo by Jim Arnold (jga154) on Flickr.

Frank and I spent the evening a couple of nights ago shooting owls. I only got these two of three owlets at one time. To view more owl shots visit my Flickr Photostream.

Common Murre, Shelter Cove, CA

Common Murre, a photo by Jim Arnold (jga154) on Flickr.

This little guy was either very docile or sick. I took this shot with my 100mm macro lens from around eight or ten feet away. Most of the time it's eyes were closed. About fifty feet behind me was the remnants of a boat. Post to arrive soon.

I Prefer Red Meat!

I Prefer Red Meat!, originally uploaded by Jim Arnold (jga154).

I went to Tulelake this weekend with Frank, Garry, and Heather. We spent two days photographing in the Klamath National Wildlife Refuge and Lava Beds National Monument.

Our focus for this trip was to get photos of the numerous Bald Eagles that visit each winter. We did see some eagles but most were not close enough to photograph. This one was breakfasting on a pole our first morning. I think breakfast was an American Coot (it's a little hard to tell at this stage).

We did see about forty eagles in a field, but they were too far away. Heather also spotted a suicidal goose in the field.

We did photograph sunsets and sunrises, but they were not spectacular, as well as deer and owls.

Ladies in an Acorn Cap

It seems everywhere you go in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area you find ladybug swarms. At least in the winter. they were a little warm and moving around when I shot this so a slow shutter didn't work and an open aperture made the depth of field too shallow.


Click on the photo to visit my Flickr stream.

A Little Calibration and Testing

I went to Frank's this morning so we could do some fine tuning to the auto focus on our lenses. We spent an hour or so using a SpyderLens Calibrator. A couple of our lenses were quite a bit off and it is nice to have a camera that I can adjust the auto focus for each lens.

After we finished we set up in his blind and tested on real birds. This is a White-breasted Nuthatch eating a piece of corn from some suet that was pressed into a hole behind the branch. All in all the shots were nice and sharp.

I could eat this whole pine cone.

I could eat this whole pine cone.
Originally uploaded by Jim Arnold (jga154)

This Douglas squirrel carried a similar sized pine cone from Frank's campsite about two hundred feet to his winter storage area. He was so quick it was hard to get a shot that was not blurred.

View larger image.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel
Originally uploaded by Jim Arnold (jga154)

Frank and I sat around the campground and photographed at least three different types of squirrels eating nuts till they couldn't eat anymore. Some were very chunky looking. They peeled the cones like an artichoke right down to the core.



Larger size image.