circadianreflections

“I wander the long road home seeking tomorrow.” ~Anon

April 30, 2012April 30, 2012Posted in Birds, California, Nature, Nikon, Photography, WildlifeTagged California Quail, D300s, Nature Photography, Nikon, Wild birds2 Comments

“I wander the long road home seeking tomorrow.” ~Anon, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004-.

Via Flickr:
Copyright © 2012 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

At last! These little guys are so darn skittish and quick that I’ve failed for years to get a crisp photograph of one.
I got lucky recently while out in the country one morning and got several good photos…well worthy enough to share anyway. “)

Don’t you love their fancy head adornment?

Nikon D300s| Nikkor 70-300mm VR f4.5-f5.6

Pipilo

April 25, 2012April 25, 2012Posted in Uncategorized1 Comment

Pipilo, originally uploaded by dmzajac2004-.

Via Flickr:
Copyright © 2012 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

Fortunately for him he visited the bird feeder before the squirrels did. They don’t leave the birds anything once they find it.

Nikon D300s| 70- 300m @260mm | f5.6| 1/400 sec| ISO 500| Manual Priority| Hand-Held shot through my still dirty windows.
Santa Clara County, California, backyard birds, rainy day photography

There is something about the stars that set the Gypsy blood astir…

April 24, 2012April 24, 2012Posted in Astrophotograhpy, California, Landscapes, Nature, Nikon, PhotographyTagged Astrophotography, D700, Long Exposure, Night Photography, Nikon, Star TrailsLeave a comment

I am inspired by William Bliss Carman’s thought about things that stir the Gypsy blood for the title of this piece. The stars do stir my blood and I wish I could travel up there. Perhaps someday we will.

This tree was absolutely gorgeous, and in a perfect location for shooting a star trail at the end of a day of shooting wildflowers, creeks, and a waterfall in Northeastern California. I’d gone up with some friends to meet more photography friends in a Meet-up group we’re in. While we set up for the shot and finished up we listened to little frogs croaking, and following them were crickets. A lovely round of natures music that I’m sure continued long into the night.

My battery died short of where I wanted it to for this sequence of star trails. A lesson learned! I will insert a fresh battery from now on.

A Nocturnal Adventure

April 22, 2012April 22, 2012Posted in hikes, Nikon, Photography, TravelTagged Long Exposure, Night Photography, Nikon D700, San Francisco CaliforniaLeave a comment

I finally got this shot! I’ve wanted to take a photograph from here for over a year. Last year my friend Dali and I did some recon trips to get the logistics worked out. It’s a tricky place to get to, and a rare view I believe. We’ve kept this shoot on our “short shot list” but haven’t been able to fit it into our schedules until now. It was well worth the effort, risks, and steep climb to get it. The weather this evening was perfect. It was warm, with a slight breeze, and the fog was thin and stayed outside the Bay while we were here. I don’t know if I’ll ever get back here to photograph this view again or not, but I do hope so.