Muse - Ardea herodias

Ardea herodias (Great blue heron) - St. Croix River
Canon 7D + Canon 300mm f2.8L IS

Muse; noun... Source of artistic inspiration. 

Derived from the nine mythological goddesses who symbolize the arts and sciences.

Here the word muse is used in a way that defies convention. Loosely interpreted, this elegant form is a muse that feeds my compulsion, challenges my vision and animates my craft. 

©2000-2012 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.

Tip #67: Birds in Flight? Check the Wind!

Nest-bound (Ardea herodias), St. Croix River
Canon 7D + Canon 300mm f2.8IS L

BIF (birds in flight) is a popular sub-genre of the avian specialist. Expert BIF photog’s capture striking images with detail and action that this nature generalist can only dream about. In my endless effort to “unsuck,” I discovered (stolen) two key secrets that can increase the number of BIF keepers. 

1. Birds face the wind and defecate prior to “take-off.”
2. Birds fly into the wind in order to land.

Flight Light (Ardea herodias), St. Croix River
Canon 7D + Canon 300mm f2.8IS L

So, if you want to “Chase the Flight,” hold a finger to the wind and you too can predict where your flyers are heading.

Landing Gear (Ardea herodias), St. Croix River
Canon 7D + Canon 300mm f2.8IS L

©2000-2012 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission.

Think Different -> See Different

Swish, swish, glide... swish, swish, glide... the pattern repeats on our journey to the sediment laden thickets. The river is glass and we're paddling towards Wisconsin. I can barely make out their prehistoric silhouettes against the orange glow of dawn; it's 5:20 a.m., Mothers' Day, and its us and the birds. 

I can hear the mating chorus of the spring migrants, and I begin to dream about my options. I've been here before... it's my third opportunity. Do I play it safe, freeze the action, capture the portraits, push for detail, or do I take a risk? Swish, swish, glide... we're getting closer.  

There's Always a Story

Landing Gear Down
Canon 7D + 300 f2.8IS L @ f3.5

Unfortunately,... you'll just have to wait until I find the time to share it. Until then, enjoy the warm light of a very early morning on the St. Croix River.

©2000-2011 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission

Spring is in the Air

What's this naturalist, photographer, and biologist to do when he's not hiking a trail or chasing the light? The answer I'm about to offer is likely to surprise you all... he's planning the high school prom. The life I live is a veritable hall of mirrors defined by both paradox and coincidence. I happen to be a one-time field ecologist who now finds both security and passion in educating future doctors, researchers, environmental activists, and citizens. The work that fulfills me each day, is fraught with a strange irony. I loathe opulence, and am likely to be one of the few who has ignored the royal display of wealth plaguing the media landscape throughout the week. Yet, here I am the co-coordinator of the most opulent event sponsored by my employer each year. Call me the prom guy, charged with organizing a self-indulgent event for the massess. 

Spring is Here!

I’m not sure if we can chalk it up to climate change, but spring arrived early this year.

Minnesota is famous for an endless winter that often extends into May. So worried are we about the unpredictable weather in my fair state, we long-timers recommend that you hold off your “Spring Planting” until Memorial Day. My Californian family mocks me when I state such things, but it is the reality of living due north.

But this was not “the way” for 2010! A warming trend began in early April and we have had nothing but great weather since. While I now feel a tad embarrassed about all of my winter whining, I know that the wonderful weather is an ephemeral blip in time.

As a way to embrace this rare and early spring, I decided to visit a nearby heron rookery on the St. Croix River. The rookery resides on an island between Wisconsin and Minnesota and access to the colony requires a boat. Mid to early April precedes the “leaf-out” of riverine cottonwoods (Populus deltoides) and is an ideal time to see nest building behaviors.

Canoes are a wonderful way to visit sensitive aquatic habitats. We set off in pre-dawn light and paddled the short distance to the island rookery. Positioning the boat within a cattail marsh, I had pleasure to capture the movement and flight of these giants as they descended onto their nesting platforms. While photography from a canoe can be quiet a challenge the rewards are definitely worth the effort.

Welcome back Spring!

©2000-2010 BTLeventhal.com / Bruce & Tamy Leventhal. All rights reserved. No image on this site may be used without permission