16 Apr2015
Written by Ruth Hoyt. Posted in Birds, Blog
I was thrilled to capture a series of images of a Green Jay while photographing on the Laguna Seca Ranch this evening. The jay was calmly perched on a dead tree limb, but suddenly it noticed a Summer Tanager in the brush and fluffed itself out as much as possible. I assume this behavior was to create an illusion of being larger than what it actually was. The jay relaxed slightly a couple of times but then re-fluffed, which gave me plenty of chances to test my camera’s frame rate and buffer! (Canon EOS 7D Mark II, 300mm f/2.8 lens + 1.4x extender, ISO 1600, 1/4oo sec @ f/5.0)
A Green Jay fluffs out to make itself appear larger.
15 Apr2015
Written by Ruth Hoyt. Posted in Birds, Blog
I’ve got ranch guests at the Laguna Seca Ranch this week who brought props for their photos. It seemed a little odd to have additional color at the water hole, and I didn’t take many images, but when I saw this Pyrrhuloxia on my computer monitor, it stopped me in my tracks. Does it look like a painting to you, too?
Pyrrhuloxia on a lichen-covered perch with a backdrop of Indian Paintbrush flowers
14 Apr2015
Written by Ruth Hoyt. Posted in Birds, Blog
I guided two photographers at the Laguna Seca Ranch yesterday. The afternoon was mostly cloudy so I didn’t expect to take action shots, but a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher suddenly appeared on a dead snag over the ranch pond. Suspecting what he was about to do, I made a quick camera adjustment (to 1/2500 second) and captured photos of him as he flew up from his bath-on-the-fly. What a thrill it was to see the results!
13 Apr2015
Written by Ruth Hoyt. Posted in Birds, Blog, Insects
Last week I had planted an attractive section of Prickly-pear Cactus with blossom buds in the sand in front of one of the Laguna Seca Ranch’s photo blinds. I hoped a bird would pose as it looked through the curve of the cactus pad, and it happened yesterday morning. What I didn’t expect was the honeybee to come along at the same time as the Long-billed Thrasher. When I inspected the photo, the bonus bee was sharp!
12 Apr2015
Written by Ruth Hoyt. Posted in Blog, Mammals
I was photographing with ranch guests on the Laguna Seca Ranch last night and Shirley said, “Oh, look! Is that a mouse?” But she knew in her mind that it wasn’t. The little critter with little dark eyes and long whiskers was excavating from below, shoving and tossing dirt with its nose and forehead. It’s a Pocket Gopher, my second one this year! We watched as it cleared a path from its subterranean home. I suspect all the rain we’ve been getting has collapsed many of the burrows and they have a full-time job reopening their paths.
Pocket Gopher on the Laguna Seca Ranch
