Northern Pintails in a Slough

Painterly image of a Northern Pintail in Flight

These beautiful birds pass through the prairies during their spring migration to their breeding grounds in the far north. They are one of my favorite birds to look at, but unfortunately they don’t seem to like me very much. This image shows the typical reaction that I get whenever I come across them. Actually I don’t think it’s just me; they really seem to be very skittish and they tend to spook very easily. And I also happen to really like this painterly image of a Pintail in flight. The golden evening light on the slough grasses in the background really make it pop!

Here are a couple of images of Pintails swimming in a slough. This was one of the very few occasions that I’ve been able to make nice images Pintails when they weren’t flying away from me!

Northern Pintails swimming in a Slough

Northern Pintail swimming in a Slough

White Feather on a Sandy Beach

Closeup on a White Feather on a Sandy Beach

I found this feather standing upright on the beach while I was in Kelowna a couple of weeks ago. I had been trying to make some nice images of the sandy beach at Waterfront Park in downtown Kelowna, but the light wasn’t cooperating and I really wasn’t all that inspired. When I saw this feather I thought it had some potential and so I switched to my macro lens. I laid right down on the beach beside it to get some closeup images from an interesting angle.

At the time I was out for an early morning walk with my Dad, but he was further off down the beach and nowhere in sight. When I was finished with the feather I stood up and saw him walking towards me. From the look on his face I think he thought I was crazy!

Pussy Willow Catkins in early Spring

Pussy Willow Catkins in early Spring

Another sure sign of spring is when the willow buds start to show up. I found these in Kelowna a couple of weeks ago while visiting my family there. The spring weather in Kelowna was well ahead of Calgary at that time, so it was a nice change from the long winter here. I’m glad that Calgary has finally started to catch up!

Bohemian Waxwing at Carburn Park

Bohemian Waxwing at Carburn Park

While technically year-round residents of the Calgary area, Bohemian Waxwings aren’t very common in the city and are typically only seen during the spring migration. This is the first one I’ve ever seen here, and it posed nicely for me until a surly Robin landed nearby and flushed it away.