Feb. 18, 2011 – Fri. – Ridgefield NWR

Home » Feb. 18, 2011 – Fri. – Ridgefield NWR

Feb. 18, 2011 – Fri. – Ridgefield NWR

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I came out to shoot today but the weather didn’t quite cooperate as I had hoped.  This time it wasn’t fog that was the problem, but more of a problem with dark gray clouds and rain.  It was raining when I got here at 7:20 a.m. and raining even harder when I left before noon.  A day cut much shorter than usual by the weather.  I was having to use ISO 1600 to get a decent shutter speed and without brighter conditions, colors were very drab.

But here I am at Ridgefield–an awesome place no matter what the weather.  I made only 3 loops around the tour today and decent shots were few and far between.  As I start out, heading north in the parking lot to start the tour, there are three deer walking along the road facing toward post #2.  I stop and take a shot from afar then drive around the first turn heading west, and take another shot.  You can see posts 2 & 3 in the second shot and the hunter’s gate in the distance.

These first 2 deer shots are at ISO800 and the rest at ISO1600.

A little further up the road, about where post #2 is, off to the right in the canal is a Ring-necked Duck pair.  I am surprised they didn’t fly which is what they usually do.  Here’s one of the shots of the male.

I drive around the loop to post #11 and see two mature Bald Eagles in a tree at least 400 yards away.  I waited to see if they would fly toward me but no luck.  This is a gigantic crop but it was fun watching these beauties.

As I’m waiting for the eagles to fly, a formation of Tundra Swans fly overhead.  I cheated a little here and added a tinge of blue to the sky to make it less drab.

On one of the next trips around I spot a Red-tailed Hawk which had just made a kill and had brought its meal up to a branch just off the road.  Here are a couple of frames.

That’s about it friends!  This is the best I could muster from this dreary day.  Hopefully, things will improve on the next outing.  Thanks for stopping by!

Posted in

I came out to shoot today but the weather didn’t quite cooperate as I had hoped.  This time it wasn’t fog that was the problem, but more of a problem with dark gray clouds and rain.  It was raining when I got here at 7:20 a.m. and raining even harder when I left before noon.  A day cut much shorter than usual by the weather.  I was having to use ISO 1600 to get a decent shutter speed and without brighter conditions, colors were very drab.

But here I am at Ridgefield–an awesome place no matter what the weather.  I made only 3 loops around the tour today and decent shots were few and far between.  As I start out, heading north in the parking lot to start the tour, there are three deer walking along the road facing toward post #2.  I stop and take a shot from afar then drive around the first turn heading west, and take another shot.  You can see posts 2 & 3 in the second shot and the hunter’s gate in the distance.

These first 2 deer shots are at ISO800 and the rest at ISO1600.

A little further up the road, about where post #2 is, off to the right in the canal is a Ring-necked Duck pair.  I am surprised they didn’t fly which is what they usually do.  Here’s one of the shots of the male.

I drive around the loop to post #11 and see two mature Bald Eagles in a tree at least 400 yards away.  I waited to see if they would fly toward me but no luck.  This is a gigantic crop but it was fun watching these beauties.

As I’m waiting for the eagles to fly, a formation of Tundra Swans fly overhead.  I cheated a little here and added a tinge of blue to the sky to make it less drab.

On one of the next trips around I spot a Red-tailed Hawk which had just made a kill and had brought its meal up to a branch just off the road.  Here are a couple of frames.

That’s about it friends!  This is the best I could muster from this dreary day.  Hopefully, things will improve on the next outing.  Thanks for stopping by!

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My Gear:

  • Canon EOS 5D Mark IV & Grip
  • Canon EOS 7D Mark II
  • Canon EF 500mm f4L IS II
  • Canon EF 24-105mm f4L
  • Canon EF 50mm f1.8
  • Canon 1.4X III Extender
  • Canon 2x III Extender
  • Canon 580EX Flash
  • Zoom H1 Recorder
  • Better Beamer
  • Manfrotto tripod/monopod
  • Manfrotto Gimbal Head
  • Sandisk Compact Flash Cards
  • The Molar Bean Bag by Vertex
  • Joby Gorillapod Focus & Ballhead
  • Canon EG200 Backpack
  • Storm Jacket Camera Cover
  • Kinesis Safari Sack
  • Original Bug Shirt Elite Edition

Software:

  • Adobe Photoshop CC
  • Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic
  • Nik Color EFEX Pro 4
  • Nik Sharpener 3
  • Nik Dfine 2.0
  • Nik Viveza 2
  • Nik HDR Efex Pro 2
  • Nik Silver Efex Pro 2
  • Nik Analog Efex Pro