Photos of the Week

I'm so happy that spring is finally arriving and the cold sterile days of winter are past.

I've been watching eagerly for the arrival of the crocuses. I checked on Friday April 20 and couldn't find any signs. But by Sunday April 22 they had started to push up out of the ground.





The next day they were a bit higher. However, I was checking for them on my way to work, early morning, so the flowers weren't open. I imagine they were opening later in the warmth of the day.



The gophers are out and about. This one let me get a little closer than most.



Those claws look fit for digging.



The first of the perennials are emerging at Innovation Place. The gophers usually feed on these since they're some of the first greenery, but they don't seem to have found them yet.



And the first of the trees are starting to flower. This was in the morning:



And by the end of the day they had already progressed quite a bit: (same branch)



And here is two days later. It would be interesting to see a time-lapse of the process.



A group of Bohemian Waxwings has been hanging around Innovation Place, eating last years fruit:



and juniper berries:



and drinking from the puddles:



And my friends the jackrabbits (with dirty feet!)



This one was digging in the dirt and finding something to eat. It looks like some new dandelion leaves, perhaps it's the dandelion roots as well. Occasionally it would roll in the dirt as well, but I didn't catch any photos of this.





The other morning it was a pair of Canada Geese. This morning it was a pair of Mallards checking out the pond.



Last spring there was a big "outburst" of water boatmen in the pond. So this year I've been watching for them. Up to now I'd only seen the odd one, although still impressive that they can swim around amongst the ice. On my way home this day there were a few groups of them trying to get out of the water onto some floating bark. I'm not sure why since they usually stay in the water. Maybe to warm up in the sun?



They're quite attractive if you look at them close up. I've also been watching for the fishing spiders but haven't seen any yet.

And of course, the pelicans are a true sign of spring in Saskatoon.



See all 36 photos

Signs of Life

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. 

- Hal Borland 

Amazing how the pelicans show up exactly when the weather warms up.



I didn't notice them at the time, but the reflection make a good backdrop for this pelican in flight.



From a distance I thought this was one of the Common Goldeneye that hang around all winter. But through the telephoto I could see the red beak and slightly different coloring of a Common Merganser.



The jackrabbits are looking a little scruffy as they shed their thick white winter coat and expose their new tan summer colors.



They're pretty tame around Innovation Place, but still a little suspicious of the paparazzi.



A pair of Canada Geese were checking out the island in the pond at Innovation Place. So far none have decided to nest there. Probably a little too much pedestrian traffic. I love the patterns their feathers make.



I couldn't resist a few last ice shots. You wouldn't think it, but there is actually life under that ice - the first few water boatmen are already swimming around.





So much life on this island - pelicans, cormorants, gulls, and Canada Geese, safe from people, dogs, cats, coyotes etc.

I haven't found any crocuses yet, but other buds are bursting.



These were all taken with the Tamron 18-400 lens on my Nikon 7200.

See all 19 photos

Waxwings

Through my home office window I could see a bunch of birds in the trees. It turned out to be a flock of waxwings. I always get Cedar and Bohemian waxwings mixed up. I assumed these were Cedar but when I went to confirm, I found they were Bohemian. The Cedar waxwings have a yellow belly, whereas the Bohemian have rust red under their tail. (Cornell says the red under the tail can be hard to see, but it was quite obvious in the photos.)



I grabbed my camera and opened the window to get a few shots. With the window open I could hear them chittering. I didn't get any great photos but it was fun to watch them.



They were obviously eating the berries in one of the trees, I'm not sure what they were finding (if anything) in the other trees. There were even some on the ground that appeared to be scooping up and eating snow.



Suddenly, without any obvious trigger, they all flew away at once.

Photos of the Day

Another foggy frosty sunrise.

By the River

Sunday morning I was walking instead of running, so I took my camera with me, just in case. I remember thinking I probably wouldn't take any photos because I've had enough of winter. I returned four hours later, with almost 800 photos. (Don't worry, I won't inflict too many on you!)

With the temperatures and the water level in the river going up and down, there is lots of interesting ice and icicles.



As the water washes in and out, it changes the color and light and reflections so I end up taking numerous shots of each subject (part of the reason for so many photos).



I got lucky on this next shot with the "shooting star" reflection in the river.



The weir was pretty with the early sun backlighting the fog against the blue shadows.



I can't decide if I like the fast shutter (freezing the motion) or slow shutter (smoothing) version of this wave. What do you think?





If any of these photos catch your eye, you might want to click on them to view them larger. There's interesting detail that you won't see in a small version. If you're on your phone ... never mind!

There were a few Canada Geese around. I always feel sorry for the ones that hang around all winter. (If I was a Canada Goose, I'd head south!) You can see the ice on the back of this one.



Sometimes I wonder why I keep taking Canada Goose photos. I already have a zillion of them. But I keep taking more, hoping, I guess, for something better, or at least different. Occasionally I get lucky. I just happened to have the camera ready when this one decided to stretch its wings. And the sun just happened to be in the right place. (I only had time for one quick shot and I didn't get lined up well so I almost cut off its head. I used Photoshop to extend the background, which it does amazingly well, and I don't feel too guilty about.)



The other common bird on the river in the winter are the Common Goldeneye. Although you often find them along the shore, as soon as you arrive, they turn tail and head away, making it hard to get anything but butt shots! This was one of the few that was a little more cooperative.



This one was either showing off, or just stretching its wings.



And just when you're about to take their photo, they dive!



There were also chickadees around, and flocks of sparrows, but not very cooperative. At one point I heard a bird call but couldn't see the bird. It sounded a bit like a crow or magpie, but also a bit different. Eventually I caught a glimpse and it was a blue jay. It didn't want its picture taken either.

I found a few reflections by the Prairie Lily boat.



And by the Broadway Bridge



And more ice on the way home.





It was a fun photo walk, with a good variety of results.

See all 40 photos

Photos of the Day

Spring seems reluctant to arrive this year. First a big dump of snow, just when it was starting to disappear. And then more cold. -23c this morning and a breeze that probably made the windchill -30. So I wasn't really thinking about getting my camera out. But the sunrise across the park was too good not to try, so I thought, "just one photo, it'll be quick".



Of course, it wasn't (either one photo, or quick). The light was changing fast as the clouds and fog blew past. Several times I put my camera away, only to pull it back out a few minutes later. I should know, once I overcome the inertia and start taking photos, I seldom stop at one!



I was basically taking my mitt off, shooting till my hand got too frozen, and then putting my mitt back on. A glove would have been nice, but I only had my big mitts which were too clumsy to operate the camera.



Closer to the river, there was lots of fog. The common goldeneye ducks were drifting in and out of view. And a Canada Goose actually appeared (more or less) at one point.



Of course, the bridge is always a good subject, especially with the foggy sunrise.  I like that I caught the pigeon, so typical of the bridge.





Much as I enjoy the views, crossing the bridge is always the coldest part of my walk. No matter how calm it seems down below, there's always wind (and windchill) on the exposed bridge. Some mornings I'm very glad to reach the end of the crossing!



The last few days a flock of Bohemian waxwings have been hanging around Innovation Place, sometimes in the tree right outside my office window. They seem to be pecking at the bare tree but I'm not sure what, if anything, they're finding - no berries, maybe some kind of insects left over from last summer? Unfortunately, the gold tinted windows of the Galleria aren't ideal for photography. The camera struggles to focus and it's hard to get rid of the tint. This is the best I managed.



Meanwhile, indoors, the amaryllis are continuing to bloom. They're beautiful but they're not in a great spot for photography, with cluttered surroundings and a distracting background. Your eyes tend to  focus on the flowers, but that doesn't work as well for a photograph. I tried blowing out the background, which sort of works.



Then I switched to closeups which avoid the background issue. And I always love the details anyway.





See all 15 photos (all taken with the little ZS100 and processed with Lightroom)

Photos of the Week

It's nice to have the sun up by the time I walk to work. Although it's still winter here, we've had some wonderful frost. I haven't taken many photos, but I grabbed a few the other morning. (Only a few because it was -20c with a wind)





This last one is more abstract. I really like the photos and writing of Guy Tal and this image reminded me a bit of him. (Not that my images are up to his standards.)

I fear that future generations will judge us harshly for our failure to place proper value on wildness, diversity, open space, spirit, solitude and other treasures of the natural world still available to us today. May they at least know that some of us tried. 

~Guy Tal

While it might still be winter outside, some of the plants inside think it should be spring. The Amaryllis in the Galleria at Innovation Place are starting to bloom. The first day I only had my iPhone.



The next day I had my little ZS100, which did a better job. (There's soon to be an improved ZS200 that's the same size but with a longer telephoto.)