Sedge Wren

 This little guy has a voice that won't quit. After an early morning songfest it stays low, about knee high in the dense prairie, making it hard to find. The monarchs had left and I was in the mood for filming so this was a subject of opportunity. Road noise and farm sounds were at a minimum allowing natural sounds to be recorded.  Recorded with my go to gear for video: Canon C100 with a 100-400 lens.

Prairie Evening

I spent a couple hours on the prairie yesterday with some new found friends and left with a renewed enthusiasm for it. It was a perfect evening: hot, calm, sweet light, and no mosquitoes. Even the clouds cooperated as they developed at sunset.

Prairie Headstand

The choice for these Turk's cap lilies was a background of green or blue. Green was an easy shot from the knees. Blue meant getting low which took some flexibility and effort, a perfect excuse for a reward at the DQ on the way home.

Technical: fill flash at -2 stops, on camera flash Sony RX10ii

Prairie Rose Cafe

I'm continuing my exploration of the prairie using high speed video recording on the iPhone. These small flies were busy one morning last week and tolerated the close up attachment that requires a distance of about an inch for optimum focus. Recorded at 240 fps which means one second of action translates into 8 seconds of video. Now if I could afford a more sophisticated camera that records in high speed. Most cameras limit the shooting time to a few seconds because of the intense onboard computer commitment to process and store that volume of information. The high end cameras have a pre-record feature so you can save the action after it has happened. This is a great feature since it can take several seconds for a camera to transfer the information to a memory card.

Bees & Butterfly Weed

I'm continuing my test of the iPhone for nature photography and videography. This piece was shot using the stock lens at 240 fps, replayed at 30 fps. Audio was also recorded at the time of capture. I used creative license and put the best buzzing at each of the flight times, along with dropping the level of background audio. New lens attachments are being tested and there will be a video available next week.

For those of you who are more interested in still photography I have started using Flickr regularly and can be found at:

Flickr Photostream

As always, just sharing my love of nature.

Enjoy,

Dale

A Tripod & iPhone

Standing out in the crowd

You can't get much lighter than that. My initial attempts iPhonography were dismal. Of course, it was the quality of the phone's camera. Then I noticed I was ignoring all the principals of photography. Getting back to the basics, a tripod and shooting the light, changed my shots. Technology in the 21st century may have changed but photography is still the same as it has been since the 19th century. Now I just have to remember to turn off the phone when out in the prairie.

Sky Lights

I went to the Butternut Valley SNA a few nights ago to photograph the Milky Way in the western sky but clouds moved in and reflected all the ground lights.  To get an idea where the darkest skies are check this website: Dark Site Finder

Technical: WB 2800, shadows opened in Lightroom, light on prairie from farm lights. 2 minute exposure

Monarch Migration

The monarch butterflies have been migrating for the last week. In a totally unscientific observation there seem to be larger numbers this year than I have seen for many recent years. Good news since the population was decimated by weather in Mexico last year.
Technical: Recorded in the dark with off camera flash, ISO 6400

Red Admiral eats Rattlesnake Master

The title could be a headline in a tabloid newspaper but actually describes the a common butterfly feeding on an uncommon Minnesota prairie plant. I like to photograph relationships and butterflies feeding on prairie plants provides a great opportunity to show the connection between them. It also easier to sit and wait for a butterfly to land than trying to chase it from plant to plant.

Turk's Cap (Michigan Lily)

This is my favorite July wildflower, followed closely by the butterfly weed. The intense red and petal design drew my attention to this particular flower. Do you see the diamond made by the petals? Playing with the f stops gave a muted green background. A soft vignette was also applied in Lightroom.

Prairie Colors

Now is the time to visit the tall grass prairie! The colors are brilliant and match the rainbow in variety.  Phlox are past peak but still present.  Butterfly weed is at peak and the yellows are just starting with coriopsis. Early morning dew adds to interest and the wind is usually less. Enjoy.

Simplicity

I was surprised to see a caterpillar on this iris when walking exploring the prairie one day in June.  This common buckeye caterpillar is more colorful than the adult which has a more graphic design. Now to find an adult this month. 

June Color

The prairie is starting its summer color with phlox and bedstraw. Occasional yellows are mixed in and monarchs are mating.  Golden Alexander's are about to pop. Subtract the mosquitos and it's heaven on earth.

Type A (ant) Behavior

Everyone sees butterflies and feels the mosquitos but ants are usually overlooked. They are constantly in motion and could be described as having a type A personality type. It might be a trap to ascribe personality traits to insects but if ants are type A  say have attention deficit characteristics. With this line of musing, maybe the mosquitos have attacked my brain.

Prairie Sunrise

I've rediscovered my prairie roots while doing an assignment to capture the essence several southern MN prairies this week. My first love is the prairie and after a hiatus of several years it is good to once again feel the wind and smell its fragrance.