A rare visit for this male American Avocet in Banff National Park, spotted by friends who gave me heads up of its location. Next day it had moved on during clear weather.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mount Rundle
Was having fun taking picture of Mount Rundle at night. The sky was clear, the clouds had moved on, so I started to look for another element to include in the picture. Looked around with my headlamp and saw the tree, rest was straight forward.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mountain Bluebird
One of the most beautiful bird has to be the Mountain Bluebird. This male perched on top of a small tree, just for few seconds, all the time I needed to get the picture.
Until next moment,
Amar
Bald Eagle
Many of us may have images of Bald Eagle catching fish just below the water surface for food. But they are just as content to find a carcass and fill their stomach with. Here a Juvenile Blad Eagle removes one of the kidney from what might be part of a white-taled deer carcass in the river Kootenay National Park.
Until next moment,
Amar
"Mommoth Peak"
Last year I learned from a former Parks Chief Naturalist Larry Halverson how a mountain in Kootenay National Park was locally named "Mommoth Peak" by a retired Park Warden Hans Fuhrer. Now every time I make my way into Kootenay, I have to look at that peak and being me, try to take a good picture of it as well. After many tries I was able to take a picture I wanted, and as a bonus while the moon was setting. In this picture the elephant is looking right and the moon is about to tickle its fancy.
Until next moment,
Amar
Common Merganser
It's that time of the year when its great to go out and see birds. Everyday there are more birds to spot and listen to. The Common Merganser is one of many birds I look forward to seeing and taking pictures of. This large duck looks great surround by the beautiful colour of the Bow River. I spotted this male while walking on the trail next to the river, when it decided I was not safe enough to hang out with. While running across the water to catch air,I quickly grabbed few pictures.
Until next moment,
Amar
Canada Geese
It won't be spring without these guys and they let you know when they are around. These two were about to land but another pair below would not let them, so they had to make a quick turn through the trees and find a place of their own.
Until next moment,
Amar
Bald Eagle
Two Bald Eagles started to soar from the valley, they quickly rose with the help of thermal winds. I kept taking pictures until they were way too high.
Until next moment,
Amar
Black-necked Stilt
It was overcast, light did its best to push through. But not enough to light up the stage as the Black-necked Stilt danced.
Until next moment,
Amar
Elk
Three tips for a better family portrait in the mountains:
1. Choose a background where the family stands out.
2. Check to make sure the background is not blurred.
3. Have the background and the family in the same light.
And if you're working with a very large extended family with a language barrier, cross your fingers and hope for the best.
Until next moment,
Amar
Vermilion River
I'm missing the snow, winter for me is never as long as I like. But I have the pictures to remind when the snow was plenty and all over the place. Few weeks back I was in Kootenay National Park, enjoying a hike and taking pictures along Vermilion River.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mount Rundle and Northern Lights
Few nights ago I was trying to take pictures of Northern Lights. The event did not last too long and the intensity was low as well. Nonetheless I came away with couple of good images.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mount Rundle
I'm not sure what the next few weeks hold, but with the warm weather we been getting, it looks as if winter has been pushed aside. So I better start posting all the winter shots I have. This picture was taken when the winter still had a grip in the mountains, when it was still safe to walk on Two Jack Lake.
Until next moment,
Amar
Pine Grosbeaks
The attached pictures of the Pine Grosbeaks was taken a while back. Everything was set for me to take the picture, except for the light, it was coming from the back of the birds. So I over exposed the shot to get the details of the birds, in turn I lost some of the details in the snow but I got a beautiful back ground. I was happy with the trade-off.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mount Rundle
Last week I went out middle of the night, hoping to see northern lights. But the clouds that were moving in with snow took that opportunity away. Not wanting to come home empty-handed, I took advantage of the still water to take picture of Mount Rundle under the clouds and few stars.
Until next moment,
Amar
Garter Snake
Last Saturday I was having no luck getting any good pictures of birds that were back in the mountains after spending much of the winter in a warm place. But another opportunity presented itself. Two garter snakes were moving in and around thermal water not too far away. Compared to when I see them in the summer, they were bit slow sensing what was around them, they kept coming back to where I was standing. Which was great, giving me many tries to get the pictures I wanted.
Until next moment,
Amar
Mountain Chickadee
I'm always excited when I watch a bird manoeuvre through tight spaces at a fast pace. How such a small brain can make so many decisions to get from A to B without getting injured. Since they do make quick decisions and move so fast, it makes for a challenge to catch them in the air in tight spaces. I'll spend some time looking at them, trying to predict when they will catch air and then quickly take a picture. Always some luck is involved.
Until next moment,
Amar
American Marten
The American marten, a North American member of the Mustelidae (the weasel family). Sometime it's referred to as a pine marten, a name which came about from the slightly different Eurasian species of Martes. The Mustelidae family includes the very small least weasels to the very large giant otters. The martens are entertaining to watch year around, this one was hanging out on a branch, keeping its eyes on me. More then likely it saw me first and made its way up the tree for safety. As much as I wanted to hang out and watch it, I'm sure it was hoping I would make my way so it could come down the tree and carry on with its business. I moved on.
Until next moment,
Amar
Storm Mountain
Just having more fun turning winter landscape into black and white pictures. The morning light was doing its magic on Storm Mountain, just had to stop and take its pictures. I took four pictures and combined it together to create this panorama.
Until next moment,
Amar
Gray Jay
The Gray Jay is one of the bird found throughout the year in the mountains. It will eat just about anything that comes it way, in this case it was hanging around the trailhead, waiting for an opportunity to eat human food. Luckily all kept their food to themselves, but many did take pictures of it.
Until next moment,
Amar