What is this Blue Stuff?

This morning was rather unsettling. While still lying in bed I opened my eyes and looked up out the window and saw bright blue skies. After days and days of not seeing the sun it was rather disconcerting. Well actually I did briefly see the sun for about a minute yesterday through the clouds while I was on my way to the big city of Ukiah. I guess there is no real need to worry because as soon as I started to type this at quarter past eleven this morning it started to sleet. This quickly turned to snow and now it is hailing graupel or corn snow. The clouds have moved back in and there isn't a scrap of blue sky to be seen anywhere. Thank you Lord for the sunshine, chrisPhotographed with a Canon 7D MkII and a Tamron 150-600mm G2 lens.

Deck the Halls With Boughs of Holly

Today was the perfect day for some bird photography. It just lifts up your spirits to see the sunshine. I have been chomping at the bit to get outside and sit in the photoblind. I gathered up some Holly boughs from a friend and put them up by the bird feeder. I climbed into the blind and the birds started coming in a steady stream. I think they were enjoying the sun as well! This image was my favorite of one of the many Chestnut Backed Chickadees that came for some free sunflower seed. God bless and Merry Christmas. chris Image created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens at 320mm. Camera settings used AV mode,ISO 1600, F 5.6 at 1/160th of a sec. Camera was supported with a Manfrotto 190 PROBX tripod and a Bogen 3055 Heavy duty ballhead. If you are still looking for a late minute Christmas gift please take a look at downloading a copy of my book, "Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography" on Amazon. Just cut and paste this link to your browser. http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Backyard-Photography-Chris-Hansen-ebook/dp/B00N59LMXW

Thank You Lord for the Sun

This morning I awoke to bright sunshine streaming into our bedroom window. After over two weeks of gray light it was a very welcome sight. After breakfast I worked on my bird feeder getting it set up and filled. Jay needed a ride downtown because he was going to the big town of Corte Madera with friends. On the return trip I had to stop for road construction. When I looked to my left I could see a mossy tree trunk in the darkened forest brightly lit up by the sun. I composed an image of it just in time for the traffic to start moving again. By the time I arrived back home the fog rolled in from the ocean submerging my house in its gray light. God blessings to all, chris Image created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens at 300mm. AV mode,ISO 400,f 5.6 at 1/160th of a sec.

Beautiful Day for Squirrels

The past few days have been weather wild. There have been gusty winds, hail, sleeting snow and pounding rains. To wake up to the sunshine today was a blessing. This morning I got off to a late start working on changing my feeder set ups. This afternoon I got around to setting up my camera and my best image of the day ended up being a Douglas Tree Squirrel that came to check out what that lovely peanut butter smell was coming from the feeders. When God gives you squirrels you photograph squirrels. I was happy with that! God's love to all, chris

Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens at 310mm, Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a Bogen 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV mode, ISO 400,F stop F5.6,Shutter speed 1/400th of a sec.

Gotta Love Those feet

Today we drove to Kelseyville, Lake County in Northern California for an Academic Decathalon that my son Jay's high school team was competing in. The weather was just superb. There is plenty of free time at one of these competitions so Lenore and I wandered around the lake enjoying the sunshine. At one point we found an American Coot standing in the clear water with those signature feet showing.I couldn't resist a capture of that. So here it is.

God's love to all,

chris

Valley View or Bolt

Today was almost a non photography day. Between going to church and domestic chores I was really too busy for much photography. Serendipity intervenes on occasion as it did today.I was putting away some extra hardware from a project I had done when I noticed that the bolts looked pretty cool on the old weathered wood. That lead to photo number one.
We we were working in the garden late this afternoon when the sun began to bath the valley in sunlight. Since we have a lot of clouds from the recent rain this was a photographic episode not to be missed. I raced upstairs and created an image of our valley view from our bedroom window for image number two.
It turned out to be a photographic day after all.

God's love and blessings to all,

chris

Mr. Mango

I have't done much photography over the past few days. Life has been filled with domestic responsibilities and fun. I haven't had much dedicated time to photograph just snatches here and there. Here is one instance where I saw Mr. Mango Annika's cat doing what he does best. He was dozing in the sunshine on the living room rug.

God's blessings and love to all,

chris