Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Going Vertical #19 #20 #21

From http://natureandwildlifephotography.blogspot.com/2010/05/going-vertical-19-20-21.html

Osprey (GVP #19) This one was cropped from a horizontal shot. I liked the V and how the osprey filled the frame once cropped. This is the female osprey and I'm guessing there should be chicks in a couple weeks. I was watching an episode of "Life" I think and they mentioned that Osprey chicks need as much as 8 fish a day! That's a lot of fish to catch, especially if there's 2 or 3 or 4 chicks to feed EVERY DAY!
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Sunrise and Sika Elk @ Chincoteague NWR, VA (GVP #20) This sunrise photo is not cropped and the sun and reflection worked well with the vertical format. There was a lot of luck involved in getting this photo. I woke up a little late, just 30 minutes before sunrise. I showered, got dressed, had breakfast and loaded my camera gear in the car, AND drove in to the refuge all in that 30 minutes. Then within a few more minutes I was driving along that first straightaway and saw the sun and the elk... Their even spacing and slow pace gave me 2 or 3 minutes to shoot.


In years past I've only been to Chincoteague during the Fall, and I've only been there on 2 trips (which both included nearby overnight stays and repeat visits). Going in Spring was exciting to me. I was hoping that I'd see new stuff, new species, and it worked out well.





American Black Oystercatcher

I've never seen an oystercatcher before. Other new species I saw included: Cattle Egret, Piping Plover, Clapper Rail, and some other yet identified sandpiper (I think).

The weather along the coast was a bit uncooperative after the elk sunrise. The cloud cover moved in and it got gray and seemed like it was going to rain soon. That last a few hours. I thought about giving up and moving on, but luckily I hung around and the weather improved.

I took almost 3,000 shots in 2 days. This vertical project kept me thinking about framing and shooting vertically. Again I shot more vertical than ever before. It's got me being more purposeful in my shooting, taking less for granted, and taking more control.

Nikographer.com / Jon
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2 comments:

Unknown said...

I Love your shots. I want to be able to get some like these over the years. Keep up the great work.

Pat Ulrich said...

I've really been enjoying your vertical series as they've come up in my reader, Jon! It's a really great example of both good execution of an interesting composition element, and also taking on a creative project. Great work, as always!