The Way We See It: Behavior

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Chasing Chickens

Chicken Dance (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

I tend to be a minimalist when compared to most wildlife photographers. My ego might claim that this constraint is by design, a way to force creativity, but reality is less kind than the fiction. I am a minimalist because I live within a restricted budget. Teaching offers great flexibility to a creative, but financial success is not one its perks. Were it not for the budget limitations of being a public school educator, I’d probably be a walking camera store rather than a minimalist. So whenever I plan a wildlife shoot, I’ve learned to dwell on the details... details are the difference between producing something good and making something great.

Head On (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

Prior to leaving for Moorhead MN, I studied the maps of the Bluestem Prairie SNA and searched the web for photographers who have worked these blinds in the past. Since my dates at the lek were scheduled well beyond the peak mating period, I was less than confident that this experience would be much better than my shoot at the grouse blind in 2008 (See: I Laughed in the Face of Chaos Theory).

Truce (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

Climatic chaos (the late Minnesota spring) was my only consolation. Historically, the prairie chicken lek is most active in mid-April, and the interesting territorial behaviors diminish as daylight hours grow and the temperature warms. It turns out that this year’s unseasonably late snow might have been an unexpected bonus. The cool weather delayed the hens, so the males were forced to maintain their territories until the females were in the mood. By the time I was able to get to the blinds, the males were out in full force booming, hooting and fighting for a piece of turf. If these males intended on propagating their genes, they had better stick around to strut their stuff. In the end, it was the combo-platter of preparation and luck that conspired to create an unprecedented opportunity to capture the drama so late in the season. Lucky or good, I don’t care... May 4, 2013 was a great day to photograph prairie chickens in Northwest Minnesota.

Get Out! (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

In the next post, I’ll focus on the gear and techniques I used to get the shots.

Sunday, May 5, 2013

I Laughed in the Face of Chaos Theory

After the Dance (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

I spent the pre-dawn hours of April 20, 2008 in an observation blind at Crex Meadows Wildlife Management Area. It was predictably cold, and as daylight approached, I feared that we were in for a tough shoot. A heavy sky blanketed the prairie with gray, and the grouse we hoped to photograph appeared to have all but abandon their lek. Four cloistered hours later, we managed to produce a few “keepers” (see Tip #63), but I was far from satiated.

Booming(Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

Expectation is the wildlife photographer’s curse. While there have been occasions that I have happened upon an interesting nature event, most of my good work is the result of research and repetition. Pre-planning a trip and documenting annual ephemeral patterns is the only way I can manage to shoot with some degree of predictability. However, as pessimistic as it sounds, it is important to prepare for the disappointment. While animal behavior can be defined by statistics, and climate data can suggest a trend, chaos (“the butterfly affect”) influences the patterns we see on any given day.

Choose Me! (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

Preparing for a shoot requires a plan to cope with the unexpected. Just when a pattern becomes evident, you’ll find that predictable events of the past may not be easily predicted in the future. Unlike a studio shoot where light can be controlled and a model can be posed, ecological systems dictate nature’s events. One perturbation to life’s chaotic web often results in an unintended consequences. It is the unpredictability that draws me to this craft. If it were easy, I’d be bored and the pursuit of my art would relegated to someone else.

I Dare You to Cross the Line (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

So it was with my prior experience in the blinds at Crex Meadows and the recognition that there is no “sure thing,” that I embarked on my weekend adventure. A rain/sleet mix accompanied me as I traveled towards the northwest. Arriving near sunset, I had enough time to check-in at the lodge, but lost the opportunity to check-out the blind. I set my alarm for 3:45 a.m., and laughed in the face of chaos theory.

Deflated (Tympanuchus cupido) - Bluestem Prairie, MN
Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x Converter

Watch the blog for future posts about the ecology of the Greater Prairie Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) and discussions about the making the images.