Professional photographers do their share of planning when it comes to a particular type of photography.  The nature photographer can be aided by any number of resources used to determine the angle of the sun in a specific place, moon, planet, and star locations on a given day and time, weather forecasts for a specific location, as well as the typical migration patterns of birds and animals. But sometimes, sheer luck comes into play.  

That was true for me this week.  We know we live on the north-south flyway for sandhill cranes.  They migrate at certain times of year, so in the early autumn and late winter, I keep my ears and eyes open for them.  They seemingly drift overhead when the weather is nasty - wind, snow, and overcast skies are almost always part of the migration formula.  That could be due to high winds aloft that enable the cranes to use less energy on their way north, or simply because it is instinctually time to move.  Whatever the reason, they are a joy to hear and see.  And when they fly low over the mesa, it is a mesmerizing.  If all the elements align and I can actually access my camera, that is frequently sheer luck.  There were at least 200 birds overhead at any given time, a portion of the 20,000+ that migrate through here and the San Luis Valley of Colorado to points north.  

And although some years we don't see them at all because they drift east or west of our part of the flyway, we were graced by their presence this weekend. I am hoping you can view the photographs here on a larger screen because these birds were amazing.  I was using my Nikon D800 with a 70-200 mm lens, handheld.  The sky was blue with high clouds, or basically overcast, generating an almost abstract quality.

sandhill cranes 1  

sandhill cranes 4

The sky here rendered the birds in silhouette.  

sandhill cranes 2

I was shooting up at this point as the cranes flew directly overhead.

sandhill cranes 3

sandhill cranes 5

I will continue to keep my eyes and ears open this week as the cranes migrate from Bosque del Apache and points south, to their summer breeding grounds.

Thank you TTT, Terry T., Christina, Dianne, Elida, Sam, Lawrence, Steve, Wayne, Catherine, Barbara, and Lisa for your comments this week.

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image@