Daily Image - Feb 2019 Archive

26 Feb 19 Generally our last stop for photos on the way to the condo is a location called Beaver Creek. I've seen elk, deer, heron, ducks, crane, geese, ravens, eagle, and moose there, but never a beaver. It's a lovely spot whenever you visit and I like to go back there during our stays just to see what might be hanging around. It was from this location that I got the shots of the dueling cranes I shared a while back. During our Oct '18 visit we paid the area a visit following a light snowfall to see what might be hanging out and as a turnoff of Hwy-287 leads you down to Beaver Creek proper on what might best be called a logging road with lots of bear beware signs, I was hopeful that we might get a sighting although I believe I was alone with that desire. As it turned out we didn't see anything save for a couple of birds so I had to settle for landscapes and macro shots. This is a landscape in looking downstream toward the Beaver Creek viewing area. The evergreens looked as though they had been dipped in powered sugar and the logs lining the stream like they had been frosted. It was a bit chilly but the experience simply delightful and the views spectacular. This is pretty much straight from the camera save for some slight dodge and burning. Bear Country Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 500; 1/1000 sec @ f / 9.

05 Feb 19 Today's mailing is one you almost didn't get. Yesterday's 2.5" inches of snow became closer to 5" by morning with howling winds and falling trees! Woke up Monday morning as usual only to lose power a few minutes later. No worries, we have a back-up generator . . . . . only it didn't come on. Went out to see what was wrong and found all the doors frozen shut. Of course with no power it is hard to thaw things out but finally succeeded using a propane torch judiciously applied to all the locks. System said low oil pressure but that wasn't likely with a dip stick showing full to the top. Tried a few tricks none of which worked and in the process drained the small battery very low. A lot more sleuthing determined that the regulator to the propane tank was frozen keeping the generator from getting fuel. Called the propane company who had just delivered the propane, obviously not properly dry, who said wasn't their problem; call a plumber. Now we had a problem as we needed heat to thaw the regulator but we needed the regulator thawed to provide the electricity for the heat. Fortunately remembered and found a heating pad called Hotshotz (tm) that contains a liquid and a little popper you push to make it hot. Got it hot, placed it on the regulator and got the propane flowing. Then bought a 15' length heat tape and wrapped it around the regulator while we still had the generator running and providing power to keep the regulator warm and providing propane to the generator, which is still running as I write this. Maybe we'll get power sometime in the middle of the night. But I digress. While driving along the Firehole River we spotted a couple of fishermen, one in mid stream and another on the bank removing the hook from his catch. You are seeing the gentleman on the bank with his catch. The two had been fishing for three days and this was his first catch although his partner had caught several. It was a bit humorous as his "trophy" was a 3" fingerling. He was bent over taking a photo of it to show his wife and having a good laugh. We chatted a bit while he took his shot, then he carefully removed the barb-less hook and released junior back into the river. Look closely directly under his left hand holding the phone and you'll see his catch. Look carefully, it isn't as large as the phone. Other than a little dodging and burning, this is straight from the camera. Catch of the Day Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/1000 sec @ f / 9.

04 Feb 19 We finally got some snow today which started falling on our way home from church and continued until dinner. I believe we may have gotten a whopping 2.5." Something along the lines of what fell the morning I left the condo to come home. The falling snow which sorta covered the ground reminded me of the only group of bison we saw - 29 in size - one afternoon trying to graze on the grasses near a small geyser. They were ambling back and forth while several photographers, us included, were standing along the roadside doing our best to capture their portraits. Then there were the few who thought it would allow them a better shot if they walked out to greet them. I was strongly considering remaining for a while in hopes of a good show but as it was a bit on the chilly and windy side, and the bison seemingly more interested in food than foolish photographers, we drove off to see what might await us elsewhere. This is straight from the camera. Keeping Warm Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 500; 1/2500 sec @ f / 9.

19 Feb 19 As you drop down out of the mountain pass and reach the valley that is basically Bozeman, MT you immediately find yourself in some truly beautiful farming countryside. In the fall the crop lands turn a golden yellow and it is varying shades of yellow for as far as you can see. I'm rather certain it's similarly green in the late spring but when we visit in May the crops have yet to make their appearance so I'm just guessing. This is a pano of the crop land on the west side of the road just prior to starting up the pass. Since it is in B&W you'll have to imagine the colors as you want them but what the camera recorded was a brilliant blue sky with white clouds, a few green trees at the far left of the frame, and everything else in some shade of yellow or gold. This particular farm has a wind brake of some type tree that turns golden in the fall - they are too far away to comfortably identify - and you can see them running edge to edge across the middle of the entire scene. The majority of them had already lost their leaves so one can only imagine how spectacular it must have been at peak color. But peak or not, it is a lovely sight to see. This is an 11 frame pano that I've cropped just a small amount and converted to B&W. Pano on the Silver Screen Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 200; 1/1000 sec @ f / 9.

07 Feb 19 18F overnight temp and daily in the low 30s, the waterfall in the pond was showing signs of freezing up so we had to give it a bit of a boost today by wrapping it with heat tape and insulating that, just as we did with the propane regulator on Monday. Also had to have the propane service add ethanol to the propane tank to keep that regulator from freezing up some more. That on top of a few more required activities on my part has me falling back on a set of images from last week I made from Yellowstone instead of another winter shot. AND . . . . this being Theatrical Thursday, I'm going with one of the several creative versions of that set. This one is supposed to represent a watercolor albeit rather crudely but one that might make for a nice puzzle. You're looking at the Gallatin River as it exits the park heading north toward Bozeman. This is looking south heading into the park and it is a view you don't get heading north towards Bozeman as the trees block the view. Early afternoon sun was bathing the trees making the drive back to the condo difficult as I found myself wanting to stop every mile or so and shoot. Didn't quite do that but I did make several stops and each one provided views equal to this one. That section of the Rockies is beautiful year round, but nothing compares to it in the fall. The yellows are always abundant, but not always so with the reds. Last fall provided both. So even if the animals were not making their presence known, the foliage was and it made the trip TOTALLY worthwhile. If you've not seen the greater Yellowstone ecosystem in the fall you owe it to yourself to do so. Other than the creative manipulation, this was straight from the camera. Water Colorish Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/320 sec @ f / 9.

21 Feb 19 Today we take a look at that same storm I shared yesterday 20 minutes earlier. As I took the photo looking across Hebgen Lake to where the condo sits I couldn't help but wonder if this was how it all looked for Noah when those rains started falling. At some point it had to have been cold precipitation. Midway between here and the photo I shared yesterday is where the dam that creates the lake is located and the fishermen and their one dog who were braving all this weather. I tried in vain to give you a sense of the wind that was accompanying the clouds but couldn't find a way so you'll just have to accept that the winds were as nasty as the clouds look. This is a color image straight from the camera so you can imagine just how dark the clouds were; it was almost eerie. At the time I took the shot it wasn't yet snowing but in another 5+ minutes it was almost white out conditions which was also a bit eerie considering the black of the clouds providing the white snow. A great start to a very interesting drive that day! This is an 8 frame pano straight from the camera. I'm standing in the middle panning left to right so there is significant distortion; the guard rail is straight at this location. For Forty Days Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/160 sec @ f / 9.

20 Feb 19 I've written several times about Quake Lake so all should be familiar with it by now. This was how it looked on the morning I departed the condo last October. You recall I mentioned that the first half of that day's drive was in a storm which I once again encountered at the end of the day. This is how the storm appeared as I was driving along the road parallel to Quake Lake. Behind me the sky was even darker, snow was swirling, and the road beginning to ice up. In addition to the snow removal truck there were a couple others out braving the snow. Just prior to reaching this location I had turned around to go back to the Hebgen Dam location to shoot a couple fishermen and their dog fishing in the blizzard. Got to hand it to those MT fly fishermen, they are persistent! I'll share of a shot them later and you'll get a good idea of just how tough they are! After shooting this shot and a few others, I headed out to take that storm head on. It was to be a fun adventure. This is what the camera recorded. Heading into the Storm Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 320; 1/800 sec @ f / 9.

28 Feb 19 If I have to choose between being a farmer or a rancher I guess I'd have to go with rancher although in the long run it's likely more work. Then the question becomes where would I want to do it and as I have zero experience as to where would be the best location, I'll just have to go with emotion and pick a pretty place. So I pick this place and likely there will be just a few who will agree with me, maybe just two or three, but that's O.K. This is Sheridan MT found along highway 41 midway between highways MT 287 and I-90. No industry in the area that I have been able to identify, just ranching and a tiny - 1 block - business district but it does have fuel and food so what more can you ask for. PLUS lots of beautiful horses, working dogs - I'll illustrate in another image - and cattle. Likely a good location for some prime beef and a barbe. About 5 miles back (leftward) the road was still icy and this was the first time on that Saturday drive home that I encountered clear roads which were to be such all the way to the evening's lodging in Haugen, a drive I won't soon forget. Other than come cropping for composition and a bit of dodging and burning this is straight from the camera. Ranching in Heaven Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 200; 1/1250 sec @ f /11.

22 Feb 19 After seeing those red pussy willows at church a couple weeks back we visited one of our local nurseries and found that they had a selection of them all about 3 feet tall so we decided to add one to our garden. No sooner had we found a location for it then our snows arrived and did their best to cover up all the buds. I figured they would all be lost to the two storms but with all of the snow now departed and a promise of MAYBE a little more tonight the buds are all still remaining on the thin branches and still red. Amazing to my way of thinking. Here is a portrait of two sets of opposing buds that I took of those earlier clippings but red nonetheless. This was shot in the studio against a black velvet drape using the 200mm macro and fill flash and is straight from the camera. A Hint of Red Nikon D500; Aperture Priority; ISO 640; 1/60 sec @ f / 9

01 Feb 19 So if I really stretched (pun intended) things last Friday, I'll do so again this Friday but in the opposite direction. Today we'll take a look at something under 4X magnification. But first the back story. Last Sunday as we were cleaning things up after church service I noticed that the pussy willows that were the main part of the floral arrangement were of a red hue vice the yellow hue I've always noticed in the past. I asked the member who makes the arrangements if I could have a twig or two and she graciously provided all I wanted. Following that we went to a location near our house where Jan has often pruned off a few stalks and noticed some of those were also showing this red hue. So I knew I had to capture this new to me species of pussy willow. Excited I was and I almost sent out this mailing Monday but am now glad I didn't because those red hued buds are presently sprouting the normal yellow flowers. Now I'm wondering what's going on and thankful I didn't make a fool out of myself with an earlier mailing. But when I took the photos of those buds on Monday they were definitely red!! Today we will be looking at one bud close up, real close up because it is a 4X magnification. You may recall my chattering last year about purchasing a new macro lens, one that would do extreme close up work. Well, this is that lens being put to work. A bit about it in the technical paragraph. This likely doesn't look like any pussy willow you've ever seen, but it is just the same, just very close up! The color is just as I saw it and the camera recorded it; definitely a red hue. The lens is from a company called Laowa; it's a 25mm focal length f 2.8 with a 2.5 to 5x capability. Very limited range, focuses almost touching the subject, and is very touchy. It works best with the camera on a focusing rail as the zoom is quite tight. It's very sharp, has virtually no diffraction, but requires a lot of light to use. Definitely a specialty lens but if you are a serious macro devotee this might be one you would like; and it's not expensive costing under $400. This is exactly what that lens captured. Up Close & Personal Nikon D500; 2.5 - 5.0 macro; ISO 400; 1/60 sec @ f /2.8 with full flash mounted on a tripod.

08 Feb 19 It's 28F as I write, heading for 35F for the next three days and more snow, with a total accumulation of 1" to 6" depending on which weather "service" you consult. Sunday's high temp is either 35F or 53F, again depending on the individual service. I think my father's approach to calling the weather was likely a better one: "look outside your window, if you can see Mt Rainier it's gonna rain, if you can't, it is. Plan accordingly." Of course one might need to adjust that a bit for Jan & Feb. But the snow idea is one I like especially as it serves as both a great insulator as well as the clouds necessary for the snow serving to keep the escaping heat from going into space and thus raising the temp. But . . . . while we have both the snow and clear weather, I get to play outside with all the lovely sights provided. After cleaning up the property from the stored solar energy that had fallen across our drive and keeping us "trapped" on Monday, we took a drive around the area to see what I might capture with the camera. We stopped at the west end of the Hood Canal bridge and managed to be there at just the right time to have the sun back lighting just about everything. I got to shoot some delightful winter scenes and this is just one of them. The snow had fallen on the grass and in various places had melted enough and subsequently refrozen to give the grasses little lights along each blade. The camera didn't quite catch the sparkle emanating from each ice clump that the eye could record but it did get it sufficiently for you to get the idea. This is straight from the camera. A Bit Crusty Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/320 sec @ f / 9.

06 Feb 19 During my grade school years - early 50s - I can remember several winters with strong winds that accompanied our Jan and Feb time-frame snowfalls. It was a fun time because once the storms had subsided there was lots of snow in the streets and we could go sledding for several blocks if it was properly packed. Of course the clothing we had back then was as sophisticated as it is now so our time outside was limited by our cold endurance. Fortunately it generally wasn't too cold. Fast forward to '69 when for a 20 day period the temp on the back porch of our SPC married student housing never got above 10F. That too was accompanied by some nice snowfall and we had a black German Shepherd - Heidi - that would pull us on our sled. Fond memories. In the years since the winter snowfalls haven't been all that memorable save for one in Dec of 2010 which was mostly memorable for the amount of snow that fell, the time of year, and how stupidly the city dealt with it putting numerous stores out of business permanently. This past couple of days has brought much of this together with already one 6" snowfall accompanied with very strong winds and several more days of possible snowfall predicted. All of this wrapped in temps in the low 20s with the temperature slated to stay that way for the next week. The best part however, which we didn't get as kids, is bright sunshine following the snowfall and conditions reminding me of what I got to see on a daily basis in Antarctica; Lov'n it!!! For me snowdrifts are a form of artwork that is hard to surpass. Add some sunshine and something to block it casting shadows on the snow and it doesn't get much more beautiful. This is a shot of some drifts walking distance from our house. I'm standing in the road, the bottom of the curve is the drainage ditch along the shoulder, and the piled snow is an inkling of how the rustlers supposedly built up snow over fences in the wild west to steal cattle. All that was lacking was a blanket over the barbed wire and a lot more blowing snow. I've cropped off the top of the shot to remove competing material but that's it. Childhood Remembrance Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 200; 1/2000 sec @ f / 9.

18 Feb 19 As most if not all of you are aware, the PNW is known for a small habitation of a very elusive animal frequently referred to as Big Foot but whose actual name is Sasquatch. Now there are those who claim that these creatures, like the Yeti in the Himalayas, do not exist but there have been many images and even a few videos that have recorded these creatures, albeit most of them not totally sharp. But then, in the excitement of actually being one of the few who are sufficiently privileged to see one I can understand how one might be subject to some camera movement. What most folks are not aware of is that there is another very elusive creature that inhabits the northern forests of the PNW, namely the VERY elusive Mountain Forest beaver. Few, if any, of these creatures have ever been seen, and in fact, it wasn't until just recently when a local forest was clear cut that I realized that there were some living near us. I had no idea that they even existed until I showed a photo I had taken to a forester who explained to me what I had captured. It was explained to me that the lodges are so well constructed that they fully blend in with the forest and are not even obvious to the foresters until they become apparent during the clear cutting. While I wasn't fortunate enough to actually capture one of the beavers, what I did record was a shot of some of their lodges. There are actually three in the photo, one up close at the left side of the photo and two more further back on the right. What was really amazing was the size of the lodges, some reaching more than eight feet in height so I can only image the size of the animal. Looking through an old Time-Life book - The World We Live In - that I bought back in 1955 while in grade school, in fact, one I had to save up for for almost 8 months to afford, I found an example of what one of these creature must resemble. It was thought to be extinct millions of years ago, just like the coelacanth, but, as we are now having many of these large fishes being caught I'm hopeful that one of these days we may be able to record one of these large beavers. For now I guess I'll just have to be satisfied with what I've recorded. In the background is a section of the Olympic mountain range. I had to do some light balancing with the original as the bottom portion was way to dark, otherwise this is what the camera recorded. Lacking a Beaver Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 200; !/1000 sec @ f / 9.