Categories
Aussie Wild Photography Birds Marine Mammals Photography River Otters

Holiday Crowds.

Do you know what it is like when you live in a place that people want to visit on vacation? I do after having lived, worked and played in some of the worlds most sort after holiday locations. Surfing , fishing and getting away from it all was tough in Australia when the crowds surged during the Christmas break. Well in my current playground, Point Reyes National Seashore, sharing the turf with all the visitors can be just as hard. What becomes really difficult is keeping the wildlife under wraps and protected from the “Yellowstone Effect”. That’s when someone catches you with your camera out and then pulls up to see what is happening. This cascades and there is no hope that the shy wildlife living in this part of the world hanging about. There are a few animals in the park that have become accustomed to people in busy often visited areas such as elk, coyote, owls and a bobcat or two.

Sanderling catching sealice
Sanderling catching sealice

This year I also ran into photographers and lots of them. One day I calculated I had seen over a hundred thousand dollars in equipment and lenses being carried around. Well what do you do when you have all these semipro, pro and smartphone wielding image makers at every corner? It’s a National Park and of course it belongs to all of us as Americans and we must encourage visitors to see the beauty of it so I just try to embrace it. Biting my tongue and long hikes saved my soul but I also reached out. I spent one day hanging out with a photographer I had never met before, threw a budding photographer in my truck and showed them what they had come to see and gave a couple of tips here and there. Admittedly there was a few photogs that I did my best to hide from but it was my New Years Day experience that was most enlightening. Having arrived at a beach before sunrise in the morning I set up looking for a wildlife landscape I wanted. This area can have elephant and harbor seals, otters, elk, various sea birds, ducks, osprey, and has interesting terrain. This place is a heaven for photography with the right light. Anyway I had a great morning and never ran into another human being. I tend to be very focused on a subject but while watching a seal in the surf line I noticed an otter trying to get around some rocks during the big tide. Just as it was about make a dash across the beach out of the corner of my eye there was a photographer making her way along the sand. The otter seen her too and started to back off and get nervous bobbing its head up down, side to side. Trying to recover the situation I shouted out “Oi get down there is an otter” not in a bad way but if she did there would have been opportunity for her to take an amazing image. She yelled back “anyone can take photos here”. Oh crikey I thought I’ve just poked the hornets nest. Well that didn’t go well and the otter took off to boot. I watched as this lady made her way down the beach and sat on a log near a sleeping elephant seal. During the 10 minutes following a second larger seal, the one I had been observing was eyeing this smaller animal and barking out its “get out” warning call. Soon the big guy could not stand it any longer and lumbered it’s huge body from the surf. After a short rest it lined up the rival and did a full tilt charge. Now with a much bigger male bearing down upon it the sleeping seal woke up and made a dash up the beach. Undulating it’s mass like a giant bouncing sausage it was headed right at my new found friend siting on the log. Seriously I was laughing so hard when she jumped up and did the same thing the seal had done to get out the way of the charging bull. Later I was back at the trailhead and packing my vehicle when this lady made her way back. As she approached I said ” they are faster than you think hey?” and I got a smile and a laugh. From there we had a cordially and pleasant conversation. We found a few things in common including a connection to West Point and her military service. She went on to tell me about the missions she had done recently around the world including in Puerto Rico where she put her skills to work as an electrical engineer. We talked a bit more about National Parks, photography ( she had just purchased a new camera ) and wildlife before I thanked her for serving our country and we parted ways. To me it was just another reality check about never knowing whom or what you are going to run into when out and about taking photos. Hope you all enjoyed the holidays!

Cheers RB

Elephant Seal Look
Elephant Seal checking competition on beach
Categories
Aussie Wild Photography Birds Wildlife

Here we go folks 2018.

Here we go heading into the year 2018. Wow did the time fly in ’17 as we went head first into the world of art shows and selling my images. This consumed a vast amount of my attention on top of spending time out in the field. I also have a full time job (REI) in the mix and our fishing travel business www.flyfishislablanca.com . My wife and I learned a lot during 2017 and like most endeavors occasionally found out how to do things the hard way but it has all been worth it. The people we have befriended and the riches of knowledge we have gained in both business and the wild, priceless.  All in all we are very happy as we jump into this coming year and I look forward to more consistent posts here as I’m increasingly disenchanted by the social media platforms that are pay to play. Here I will be sharing images, videos, short stories, interesting facts, photography tips and equipment information. Occasionally I will just open up my heart and mind and lay it down how I see it.  There is so much I want to share with anyone whom wants to take the time to read, view and interact with me. What you will not get here is specific locations of any wildlife, advertising or promoting products for my profit. There will be times that I could offer some of my prints for clearance, scratch and dent or discount offers. Other than that the links to my online store will always be there. Now what I’m really excited about starting to share here is the images that are documentation type with a story to tell. Not every photo we take as photographers should end up on the wall and most do not. The good ones are very,very rare, the bad ones are plentiful and the interesting not so perfect ones somewhat regular.

Okay well I’m getting all my ducks in a row here and I look forward to interacting with anyone whom is interested in what I have to say or my photography during 2018.

Cheers

Randall

Surf scooters slipping between swells
Surf Scooters slipping between swells
Categories
Birds Raptors and Owls Wildlife

Owls, Hawks, Falcons and More!

Wow what a day I had yesterday! Trying to beat the New Years weekend crowds I decided to get an early start and walk the Tomales Point trail. I have to admit all the food and celebrations of the last couple of months inspired me to maybe burn a few calories on this 10 or so mile hike. Before even getting to the parking area I had already seen plenty of wildlife including a bobcat, elk, ravens and assorted birds. Now it all really began when I got to the the trail head and  I ran straight into my first raptor. It was a female Northern Harrier Hawk. I’ve seen these in many places including the marshes of Louisiana  but nothing compares to seeing these raptors hunting  low and fast over the coastal scrub of the Point Reyes coastline. They zip and dart low over the terrain trying to flush small prey animals out of the brush. Once food is spotted they strike with deadly accuracy. Of course when I pointed my camera in her direction she was off like a rocket. Challenge accepted and that was the start of an amazing birding day. If it was flying around Point Reyes yesterday I probably seen it and attempted to take a photo. Besides Harriers the species went like this  Meadowlarks, Merlin, Kestrels, Red Tail Hawks, Bluebirds, Burrowing Owls, Ferruginous Hawk, Vultures and more assorted birds. Sometimes I don’t even know what they are until I look them up! Now contrary to many peoples belief that just because you have a DSLR camera (Digital single-lens reflex camera)and a big glass lens, not all your photos will be good ones. Really it is not easy to catch the right light, the right moment and the precise composition timing you need to make a awesome photo. Most photos turn out to be mediocre documenting type snaps that may still get oohs and ahhs from friends but leave me thinking what I could have done better. A stick or blade of grass in front of a animal or bird may not be noticed by some folks but it will generally bug the hell out of a wildlife photographer. Lets not even talk about the photos where you miss the exposure triangle (I can recommend these books) and you end up with a blurry “artistic” shot…..

Anyway on my drive out of the parking lot hallway up the hill there it was a male Northern Harrier Hawk that had just landed on a perfect perch. These birds are somewhat spooky in my experience and I just stopped right on the road until I could figure out how to setup. The sun was right behind me lighting his face. Their faces do look some what like an owl and I watched as he settled down and started preening. What a show he put on preening all his feathers with his beak interspursed with a karate/thai chi like stretching routine  that kept me in awe. Did I get good photos? Yes. Did I get amazing photos?  Well lets say I got some that I’m really happy with and a couple I just really like. Mainly because I was there and it reminds me of the moment. That is wildlife photography for me in a nutshell. Its living the moment, recording the moment and sharing that with those that cannot or did not see it. The image below is one of those moments that I feel is given a bit of life by the outstretched leg and wing. I’ve also added the last photo taken that day as a tribute to the photographers, wildlife lovers and supporters that became our friends during 2016. The sun has set on this year and now we soar into 2017!

Cheers

Randall Bryett

Northern Harrier Hawk
Northern Harrier Hawk
Sunsets on my 2016 photography hikes.
Sunsets on my 2016 photography hikes.