Spring is on the way

It has been sunny and warm here the last few days - definitely Spring weather. And the Monarch Butterflies love it. I was happy to find these lovelies flitting about in a green field filled with wild radish plants. Their bright orange wings clearly stood out against the brilliant green foliage. I took some of the standard type of shots with them perched on the purple flowers, but then I became obsessed with idea of trying to catch them in flight. Oh, what a challenge! Who knew that butterflies were so fast. But my persistence paid off and I was able to capture some interesting flight shots. I was especially impressed by just how flexible they are. As they get ready to land on a flower, they push their wings far down and at the same time arch their bodies up. I have never clearly observed this behavior before. But the magic of still photography reveals the action. I love Monarchs. To me their wings are like small panes of stained glass - a delight to the eye and the heart.

What I saw at the Bird Festival

 White-tailed Kite

Common Merganser take off

 

I had a wonderful time at the Morro Bay Bird Festival last weekend. The weather was perfect. I spent time with many friends and had the opportunity to see lots of birds. And best of all, I was able to capture some great photos.

 

The top 2 photos are of a White-tailed Kite eating a mouse. I have taken many White-tailed Kite photos, but I have never captured this behavior before. He was perched on a post at the side of the road and was not about to fly away until he finished his meal. I was able to get very close by shooting out the side window of our car. Usually these birds are skittish and keep their distance, so it was a real gift to be so close. 

 

Later in the weekend we took a pontoon boat ride on Lopez Lake. We were very lucky that it was not too cold or windy. When this female Common Merganser took off,  I was in the right place to get a whole sequence of shots. It was amazing to watch her run acoss the water, all the while madly flapping her wings, trying to get enough lift to take off. The glassy water made some beautiful reflections. 

More happy news

poster featuring my Flicker photo and a photo of me

that will be shown at the Morro Bay Bird Festival 

this weekend

California Quail

More amazing good things are coming my way. This morning when I opened up our local newspaper - The Tribune - I found that my Flicker photo was featured on the front page of the Local section. Woohoo! And the photo that my husband, Don, took of me is there too. So we both got published at the same time. This whole experience has far exceeded my wildest expectations. 

Tomorrow is the beginning of the Morro Bay Bird Festival - an annual event that has been going on 17 years. I am going to be honored at the Festival and a poster of my winning Flicker photo is going to be on display at the registration area of the Festival. I am also going to be signing prints of my photo at the opening reception on Friday evening. Can you believe it???!! 

I have to keep myself a little bit grounded, so I went out to photograph at Montana de Oro State Park and found a lovely California Quail. This 'lookout' male stood on guard and alert in a nearby tree while a covey of Quail fed on the ground below. He sounds the warning if he senses any danger and the whole group instantly disappears into the brush. I have tried many times to find a cooperative 'lookout' and get a shot like this. At last, my persistence has paid off. 

My photo is on the cover of AUDUBON Magazine!

Yesterday when I went to pick up the mail I had a wonderful surprise waiting for me. The 2013 Jan/Feb AUDUBON Magazine had arrived with my photo of a Red-shafted Flicker published on the cover. Woohoo!!! And when I opened up the magazine I discovered that a full version of the photo was also published as a double page spread inside. I am floating on air. It may take some time for me to return to Earth. I am the Grand Prize winner of the 2012 photo contest. There were more than 6600 photos submitted from over 900 photographers. I feel highly honored to be chosen as the winner, especially when I look at some of the other amazing photos that were submitted. I have always thought of myself as primarily a landscape photographer. But I now am fortunate to live in an area that is rich with bird life and photo possiblities.  So at the beginning of 2012 I decided to embrace bird photography as part of who I am. It is extremely challenging. I can't tell you how many 'missed' shots I have taken. But many, many times I have sighed to myself and hit the delete button. My heart skipped a beat when I first looked at this photo. It captured the essence of the bird in his environment. I caught this male just as it just took off from the nesting hole after doing some 'housecleaning'.  At least 2 young Flickers successfully fledged from this nest. That makes me very happy.

 

2012 is now coming to an end and 2013 is just around the corner. May we each find what is best in ourselves and share it generously. May we each have some adventures and find joy and love in our lives. May we be kind to each other and take care of our Mother Earth.

I wish each of you a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

'Tis the SEASON

CHRISTMAS DREAM

 

"Blessed is the Season

which engages the whole world

in a conspiracy of LOVE."

                                                          - Hamiltion Wright Mabi

 

Peace and Love to each of you.

Alice

AUDUBON Magazine Grand Prize Winner!!!

Northern Red-shafted Flicker

 

I am so excited I just have to share my good news with you. My feet have not touched the ground yet.

Last week I got an email stating one of the photos I had submitted to the Audubon Magazine Photography Awards contest was being considered for an award. They needed to have a full resolution file to judge the overall technical quality in the final round and some more information about how I took the shot. They wanted me to return the image using a program called DropBox. So I had to download the program and muddle through how to use it. I sent in my photo and started to wait. I was very happy just to have made it to the semi-final round. I literally had no expectation of anything beyond that.

On Monday November 19^th I got another email from a senior editor at Audubon informing me that my Red-shafted Flicker image was a finalist for an award and congratulating me. And she would like me to call her. After several messages left back and forth I talked with her on Tuesday and she told me I had won the Grand Prize. I just about fell off my chair. I had trouble believing it was true. Later I also received a phone call from the managing editor telling me what I had won. I didn’t even know! Five nights with Incaterra accommodations in Peru at 3 different locations for me and my guest (Don – of course). We will be going to Machu Picchu as part of the trip. That has always been a dream of mine and now the dream is coming true. Also a $1000 gift certificate from B&H….AND a Celestron AllView Panoramic tripod.

My image will be published in the January/February issue of Audubon magazine and in Nature’s Best magazine. This is huge. The best part for me is that so many people will get to see my photo. I would love for our local Morro Coast Audubon here in San Luis Obispo county, California to get some recognition. I took the shot locally in Montana de Oro State Park and I also hope more people will see just how important our California State Parks are and support keeping all of them open. They are a treasure.

I have so much to thankful for this year.

Eastern Sierra Autumn color

 Lee Vining Canyon

 Golden Aspens

 Lundy Lake

Mono Lake

 

My Open Studio weekend October 20-21 went very well. Whew! But after all that hard work it was time to get away and 'play' some. Don and I headed to one of our favorite places in California - the Eastern Sierra. It was a bit late in the season for Fall color, but we were lucky. This year things were happening later than usual. While many of the golden leaves had already blown off, there was still some beautiful color to photograph. A small snow storm had closed all the passes the day before, so for our first two days (until the passes reopened) we almost had the place to ourselves. What a treat. We were able to photograph Lee Vining Canyon and Lundy Lake without the hoards of other photographers that usually crowd the area. We did wish there were a few more clouds around to make the skies more interesting, but the clear skies worked for us on the evening we spent at Mono Lake. There we were delighted by the pastel bands of color that formed over the lake and that were reflected in it. It was so peaceful. Being in this spiritual place enriches my soul and makes me feel more alive.