Pelican Fever - catch it!

Here in the Bay Area we're blessed with 2 different types of Pelicans (that I know of), American White Pelican, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos, and Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis. Both are a joy to photograph.

The whites take long leisurely flights, usually in formation. They feed from the surface of the water like ducks. The browns on the other hand take shorter flights, are usually solo, and feed by dive bombing the water.

Both produce stunning images when photographed in good light, low ISO, and at the right speed (somewhere between 1/1000" and 1/2000" for a good motion freeze). The whites are more predictable, but the browns give you a variety of coloring according to age and breeding.

I hope you can find one of your own, and happy shooting!




You can find product designs based on pelicans and other birds in my zazzle store. If you have a product in mind but don't see it, just hit the Contact Me! link on the front page and maybe I'll design it for you!

Lucky lucky me

I hate getting up before noon, but I love to shoot the sunrise, and get birds in the early morning light.

I decided to drag myself out of bed and go to the park. The weather report said it was supposed to be a clear day, but the visibility was minimal on the drive in.

I got to the park about 45 minutes before dawn and noticed that the skies were mostly clear, but there was a thick layer of fog. I don't think I've ever seen that before.

On the way to my "real" sunrise spot I passed by the lake, and saw this. Wow!

I set up my tripod and took a few shots. I took the shot above at ISO 100, f/11, 3.2". I rambled around the park looking for the best spot, when I should have stayed by the lake. Still, I got 9 or 10 really interesting images.


I put these images on posters, mousepads, postcards, and maybe more in my zazzle store.