White-on-White

After keeping an eye on the bird counts at Squaw Creek NWR (northwest Missouri), and seeing another strong cold front about to move through the area, I decided I needed to get up to the refuge ASAP … bald eagle counts of over 225 and trumpeter swan counts of over 250 were incentives enough for me! So, yesterday morning I got up really early and drove to the refuge which is about 2 hours away from my home. I’m sure glad I decided to drive up at that time … the cold front has moved through and lots of birds are moving southward. Still a reasonable amount of eagles, and the trumpeter swan numbers seem to be holding on to high numbers. So a couple days of photography is definitely warranted!

Today’s post features a few of the many in-flight trumpeter swan images I captured yesterday:

Trumpeter Swans flying over the refuge

Trumpeter Swans flying over the refuge

Trumpeter Swans flying over the refuge

Trumpeter Swans flying over the refuge

Just a few short years ago, trumpeter swans could not be found here, but their migrating numbers have been steadily increasing over the past few years. Also, as you can see, the front has brought in tons of clouds. I really don’t like photographing with a bright, white sky, but these beautiful birds certainly help! Tomorrow’s goal is to grab some nice bald eagle images (fingers crossed)!

Photographic Equipment Used:

  • Canon 5D Mark 3 body
  • Canon EF 100mm-400mm, f/4.5-f/5.6 IS lens + Canon 1.4x TC (shot at 560mm)
  • Handheld, with IS “On”
  • ISO 500 and ISO 1250 (depending on lighting at the time)
  • Aperture f/8
  • Shutter 1/125 sec. to 1/1600 sec. (depending on ISO set at)

 

 

Posted in Bird Photography, Nature Photography, Travel Photography
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