TrailMark Bald Eagle

I made careful plans to shoot sunrise at Cherry Creek State Park last Wednesday. Despite living in the Denver area for nearly 17 years, I'd never actually shot at the park. So I got up nice and early and headed out with plenty of time to spare. The clouds and sun were working together in perfect harmony as I drove -- the sunset was shaping up to be truly spectacular, full of vibrant color and texture in the sky. I entered the park, found a place with a terrific view to the southeast, set up my tripod, and noticed that I'd neglected to take the camera batteries out of the charger I'd put them in the previous night.

No. Freaking. Way.

It happens.  And there was nothing to be done but sigh, get back in the car and drive back to TrailMark.

Returning to the park was impractical.  But God and a lone bald eagle took pity on me.  As I got back into the neighborhood, the eagle was sitting there in a tree right by the pond above a trail I'd walked and biked on countless times.  Surely it would be gone by the time I actually got the batteries and drove back to the pond, right?

Nope.

Bald eagles are surprisingly skittish from my experience.  For large birds with sharp beaks and talons that spend their time high in trees when they're not actually in the air, the presence of a person on the ground unnerves them.  Or at least, my presence does.  So I wasted no time snapping the raptor right when I got out of the car.

Lo and behold, he didn't move.  And I didn't really care for the small branch sticking up behind his eye.  I wondered if he'd let me get a little closer and shift position a bit ...

... he was definitely tracking me, but still didn't take off.  I'd managed to get a few steps closer but still had a few small branches obscuring his head and wing.  Maybe a touch closer and around to the left a little more ...

... still tracking me.  And still not flying away.  Aaannnddd still a branch slightly in front of his face.

*sigh*

Well, I was a few steps closer and he was still sitting there.  His face was clear now, but his body was cluttered with some branches ...

Body and face clear now.  I was close enough that I didn't have to zoom all the way out to 400mm any more.  But now he looked like he had a twig growing right out of the top of his head ...

Jackpot!  No twigs or branches where I didn't want them.  A little catch light on his eye.  That glowering expression eagles seem to have.  A slight peek at a talon curved around the branch.

I thanked my new feathered friend and returned to my car.  And he continued to act fairly indifferent to my intrusion on his morning.  I suppose living so close to development had habituated him to us funny two-legged beasts.

Every day has a sunrise.  Not every day has a bald eagle.  I was calling this a win!

Fairview Reservoir, December 2014

I've been itching to shoot a sunrise or sunset in my TrailMark neighborhood for a while. The timing is tough on weekday mornings with getting the kids ready for school -- I've looked out my window and seen more than one sky full of colorful clouds when I simply didn't have time to get out and shoot it. I tried this past Sunday, but conditions were too uniformly overcast for anything interesting.

Skies looked promising this afternoon, with mostly clear skies and just enough clouds to add some interest. So I headed over to Fairview Reservoir about 3:30 to see what might transpire.

I was initially a little nervous when the only substantial cloud was right in front of the setting sun.  But there was just enough space between the bottom of the cloud and the foothills for the sun to peek through and provide a nice starburst effect.

The pond is mostly frozen over, but the waterfowl still enjoy one little section of open water.

A number of Canada Geese came in for the night.  I should have bumped up the ISO when they did to shoot at a faster shutter speed and freeze their movement a little more crisply.  But I still like their silhouettes against the sky.

I found it funny that some of the geese didn't actually land in the water, but instead skidded to a halt on the ice and gingerly walked over.

It wasn't the most vibrant sunset in terms of color, but eventually some pinks and oranges did show themselves.

The ice had an interesting pattern that was brought out by the fading light, so I thought a shot with a lot of foreground was in order to showcase that texture.

Crisp and cold conditions resulted in the typical numb fingers when I finally packed up.  But they were a small price to pay for the chance to shoot another beautiful Colorado sunset!

Backyard Beauty, June 2014

I don't have the most "natural" of scenery in my backyard. But I've got a few bird feeders, and they can bring some photogenic characters. So when I felt like shooting this afternoon I went the shortest distance from my home ever -- less than one foot out my patio door.

Mourning dove didn't get any closer than our neighbor's gutter.  CHICKEN.

This goldfinch comes around a lot.  I call him Groucho.  His wing and tail markings are cool, too.

"Seriously, I can't even LOOK at you when you talk with your mouth full."

"No, I don't use gel.  Why do you ask?"

This male House Finch did keep a wary eye on me, lest I try to make off with any safflower seed I imagine.

The only reason the Mourning Doves even come around is because the finches are SUCH messy eaters.

Right foot slightly off the perch, in case a quick getaway is needed.

Honestly, I'm NOT going to take any of the safflower seed.  I swear.

"Look, ma!  I'm a weather vane!"

A very relaxing and recharging half an hour just watching the finches come and go!