Eye of the Eagle

Today we were floating down the river through wild rice beds and doing some fishing and sightseeing. After several hours of this we had seen countless ducks, herons, eagles and more. As the weather started to turn we needed to get back before a storm rolled in.

As I came around a corner I got a glimse of this majestic bird perched on an old duck blind on the side of the channel. I backed off the motor and grabbed my camera gear. While my wife slowly idled the boat and the kids were amazingly quite I snapped away with my Canon Mark IV. I took about 100 total pics of this bald eagle before we floated by him. The pic below is my favorite. If you want to see the full large version of it go to our main page. If you view the larger version you can see the eagle has a band on his leg.

Long Time Away

Well it's been a long time since I've posted to the blog. Honestly after a strong start to the year I just haven't been into photography much since. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things and enjoy the hobby again. It's finally summer here in Wisconsin and with it some great photo opportunities.

Today I spent some time with the camera and tripod taking some pictures of my wife's favorite flowers, peonys. The sun was probably too high in the sky for the pics but I do like the way they turned out. Probably a little too ordinary for a stock gallery but some nice pics nonetheless. Below is one of my favorites of a white peony with an ant in the center.

Fun with Otters

Well it's been quite awhile since I have posted. This past weekend I had the priviledge to witness a staredown between a Bald Eagle and a River Otter. After the staredown, which the otter won I got a chance to watch three otters swim and play on the edge of the ice on the shores of the Wisconsin River. I followed them the best I could and layed on my stomach with my Canon Mark IV and focused through the trees to get the best pics I could. While most didn't turn out (as they were just out of great range), some did. I am in the process of finishing up some of these but just had to post this first one. Let me know what you think.

Fun with Snow

I spent the day up north and while there wasn't much snow on the ground it started to snow during the day. I took this as an opportunity to head outside and try to catch some wildlife in the snow. Earlier in the day there were deer playing on the frozen river and birds everywhere. Well once I headed out with the camera there was nothing for wildlife. I took the time to have some fun and try some different shots. Most of course did not turn out great but I found a couple that I like. The first one is of a wreath on the side of our house with snowflakes flying around it. The second is just simple shot of a pine branch in focus with the background and snowflakes out of focus. Just some fun with the camera and practice, practice, practice. While I didn't get any masterpieces it was time spent behind the lens and I need to do more of that. A good day. I hope you enjoy the pics.

Greatest Training Ever!

Well for those of you who have been reading this blog, you know that I have been taking training classes through Lynda.com.  I highly recommend them and more details will come later but below is a banner to their site and classes for those who are interested.  I highly recommend them!!!  They have taught me more on post processing in two months than I learned in two years.

Wasting Away in February

Well after a very busy January, February has been disappointing.  We are already on the 20th in a short month and I have done almost nothing photography related.  I have added zero photos to my average port size and the goal of fifty seems really out of reach.  Income is trending alright for the month but my activity has been non-existent.  It's been a very busy month at work and home and I haven't been fighting through to be motivated to keep shooting. 

As I look at the remaining days of this month I am split between throwing in the towel or finding a way to fight for the fifty.  February is a brutal month here in Wisconsin.  Time to start shooting!

Super Bowl Sunday and January Wrap Up

Well it's Super Bowl Sunday and in honor of that and the mighty Packers, below is a picture of the Green Bay sweep displayed on a chalk board with a football. 

For those of you wondering how my January ended up for goals, well.... just a little short.  I ended up adding to my portfolio average 49 new pictures.  Just one short of my 50 goal.  I tried rounding and still came up just fractions short.  So technically I missed the goal.  I am still happy with the effort though and will now turn my sights to February, a short and challenging month.  I'll keep you all posted.  I've also been learning a ton in Photoshop and will expand upon that further in a future post.

Well back to pre-game preparation.  Go Pack!!!