Cabin Fever

I think I'm going to be in trouble this winter. I've had a strong bout of cabin fever the past couple of weeks and it's not even winter time yet. I have been looking at all of the cheap flights lately and day dreaming. We are redoing most of the flooring in our house so it isn't a very good time to go off gallivanting to parts unknown. I need to be content. Today I was looking over more images from the archives and I ran across two of these images from Humboldt county to the north of us. Maybe a trip to the coast in a couple of weeks will satisfy my need for travel? Be content and God bless, chris Images created with a Canon 7D and a Canon Ef-s 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM‎ lens

The Big Prize

This morning I was up before sunrise creating a new set up to photograph the birds. I moved the knothole feeder off to the side to lure the squirrels away from my bird feeder. I threw a walnut into the knothole feeder as further enticement for the squirrels. I'm always amazed at their ability to sniff things out! After completing the set up I climbed into the photoblind for my usual wait. A short time later a Douglas Tree Squirrel came by and checked out the bird feeder and then quickly moved on to the knothole feeder because it is much easier pickings than trying to hang upside down to get into the bird feeder. I got a great portrait of it sitting on top of the knotholefeeder and later got a really nice one of it getting ready to carry off the prize walnut. I had a great time doing photography and hope that you have a great weekend as well. God bless, chris Both images were created with a Canon 7D anda Canon 100-400 IS lens. AV mode, ISO 800, F 8.0 The camera was supported by a Manfrotto 190 XPROB tripod with a Bogen 3055 Heavy Duty ballhead.

Breakfast is Served

Today was a non photography day for me. Between picking up supplies for our new flooring and doing a lot of computer work on images I didn't have the time to do any photography. This evening when we were picking up some groceries I remembered that earlier this week I had photographed some raspberries that I had a had for breakfast. So I am serving up an image of raspberries. Enjoy your weekend and God bless, chris Image created with a hanndheld Canon 7D and a Canon 17-85mm IS lens.

Gotta Love Those Squirrels

Sometimes I just love to photograph the squirrels. In photographing the birds there is almost always going to be an opportunity to photograph the squirrels too. Eventually they are going to find the bird feeder and raid it. If you can't beat'em, join'em. I set up a feeder just to photograph the squirrels yesterday. I had an old knothole feeder that I haven't used for awhile and I just knew the squirrels would love it. Tomorrow I'll take it down but for now the squirrels and i will just enjoy it. Here are a few Douglas tree Squirrel images from the past few days in the photoblind. Enjoy and have a wonderful day, chris

Digging Through the Archives

Today I was digging through the archives looking for some work for a client when I ran across this image of a Varied Thrush that I hadn't processed. I really liked it because I have been seeing quite a few of them lately with the little bit of rain we have had. I always call them "Rain Birds" because they always come out when it rains. At least that is when I see them the most often anyway. May you have a blessed evening, chris This image was created with a Canon 7d anda Canon 100-400 IS lens at 330 mm. Camera settings used were AV mode, ISO 800 because it was dark and rainy! 1/60th of a sec at F 5.6. Most likely I used my Manfrotto tripod.

My Favorite Squirrel and a Chickadee Too

On Sunday afternoon I created a new set up for photographing the birds and squirrels. I found a fir branch partially covered in lichen and set it up near the bird feeder. I sat in the blind after I set it up for about an hour and only managed to photograph one Chestnut Backed Chickadee. I gave up and went back into the house. A couple hours later I looked out the window to check on it and saw my favorite squirrel munching away at the feeder. It was a little female Douglas Tree Squirrel. I walked out very slowly and just photographed her with my camera on a tripod over the top of the photoblind. Douglas Tree Squirrels are my favorite because they are quite feisty for their size and sometimes will take on the Western Gray Squirrels that are four times their size. They also resemble a cute little teddy bear! Both images were created with a Canon 7D and a Tamrom 150-600 mm lens. AV mode, ISO 800, F 8.0. God's love and blessings upon your day, chris

Roll Back the Fog

I have noticed over the years that my photography goes in spurts. Something will catch my interest and many times I will stick with that theme for a little bit. The birds always seem to be a constant but other things come and go and stay for a little while. Right now it must be the fog because this morning I found myself photographing it again. I was up early today due to the time change. When I looked out our bedroom window I noticed that the fog had rolled back to reveal the valley floor covered in fog with tendrils of mist reaching up into the mountains around it. I grabbed my camera and photographed it with a telephoto lens and then went for a walk. When I returned the fog had rolled back in and covered the valley back up again. Thank you Lord for the incredible view, chris Images created with a Canon 7D and a Tamron 150-600 mm lens.