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Getting Ready for Fall Bird Migration
Earlier in the spring I found myself searching endlessly for things like “how do you find wildlife in the Chicago area?” or “Is there any wildlife in the Midwest?” or even “how far from Chicago do you have to drive to find good wildlife?” Clearly, I was rage-searching because of a long winter without getting out and taking pictures of anything. But, I came across a few articles that explained that Chicago is right in the middle of one of the largest avian migration corridors in the United States. Every year millions of birds of all types fly through here and - to my surprise - people from outside Chicago actually come here for the migrations!
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Summertime in the Garden
It is hard to believe that summer is already winding down - at least from an academic year standpoint. It was a fun-filled summer for us, and one of the things I got to do was spend a little time out in our yard taking pictures of the garden.
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Oregon and The Redwoods
Our family travelled out to Oregon this summer to visit family, and as always Oregon was beautiful! I usually bring a camera but the these trips aren’t about photography - it’s a good old American vacation.
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Elk and More at Busse Woods
Elk Grove Village is home to a fair number of little areas that have wildlife in the suburbs, but Busse Woods is one of my favorites. I have been there many times over the years, but these images are some of my first this year at Busse. They have a tame herd of elk there in a wooded area and I try to go early in the spring and late in the fall.
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Spring Flora Around Chicago
I don’t usually seek out flowers when I’m spending time outside. Usually, I’m looking for some wildlife and flowers catch my eye, or I strike out trying to find the animal I’m looking for that day. However, I really do like plant photography and this Summer and Fall I’m hoping to do it more intentionally.
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Memorial Day Sunrise on the Water
Memorial Day weekend in our family tends to be the weekend we get a lot of Spring time chores taken care of. Planting the garden, getting out a watering system, miscellaneous yard work, etc. This year, I was able to get the kayak out for the first time since I put it away in the fall.
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Wildlife Around our Front Yard
I tried something this Spring that I had never done before, and I think it is the start of something awesome! My wife and I love sitting on our front porch when the weather is gorgeous (which is about 3 days of each Spring in Chicago) so I decided to hang a little bird feeder in our front yard about 12 feet from our chairs to see what I could attract. I figured why not get some practice in at one of our favorite spots.
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Hunt for the American Pelican
It was probably three years ago that I first stumbled across a video of American Pelicans on youtube just browsing one night and I knew that I needed a new adventure to go find them. However, at the time I thought pelicans were coastal creatures and living in Chicago I would never get to see them without a planned trip. However, it turns out that American Pelicans visit us twice a year! Life, not location, proved to be the harder of the two things to solve before I could finally find them.