Taking a longer walk from the Schlosspark Rumpenheim back home this buzzard was waiting on a tree besides the dam. I was on the dam and on the perfect eye level – sadly it was facing the wrong direction and the sun was right behind it. Too late I noticed that is was actually a couple, but having Spike on a leach dragging me away it is wonder that I even captured it. A lot of retouching later…
We got quite used to the grey herons. In the last ten years you can find them around almost every billabong, but the white ones, especially the bigger ones, I did not encounter the frequently. This one was very shy and when I crushed into the scene with my bike and its screeching brakes, it was clear that he had a keen eye on me. Half the way on the ladder to the nearby perch it flew off and left me with at least two nice images. Need to learn how to approach shy animals.
The big advantage of living in a metropolitan area is that you basically are never alone, even in the woods. With the Frankfurt airport nearby and big autobahns like the A3 crossing our region it is even never really silent and so the animals adopt to people and noise and sometimes are not shy at all. I passed this nuthatch on my bike and when I turned and unpacked my camera it was sitting there, just watching me as I was aiming and shooting a it. Truth to be told… this does not happen this often and I spoil and…
Ahhh mating season! Although these shots were from last weeks visit to Maunzenweiher where it was still freezing cold (see the ice the birds sit on?) the first spring feelings among the mandarin ducks were already sensible. There was a lot of pushing, shoving and fighting going on among the colourful drakes. It was almost noon but sun was weak and hanging low, if at all. Most of these shots are retouched and still are far from perfect, but they tell the story.
I’ve been working at the Dögelmühle in Karben for more than twenty years, crossing the Nidda almost every day. It had been a more or less straight channel, with trees and vegetation cut back in order to provide unhindered flow. The effect of this is that you hardly could see any water birds that usually show up such places. Luckily a certain area had been renatured a few years ago and those measures seem to show effect: ducks, coots, swans and cormorants I found. One of the latter was resting in the middle of the stream on a sunken tree…
I never thought about taking pictures of animals at Friedrichsweiher. I have been living close to it for all my life and am well aware of its fauna, but somehow I always believed it is too busy with its playground, screaming kids and dog walkers that shouldn’t be there at all. Yesterday, when the weather picked up for a short time, I went there to shoot the young egyptian goose offspring, I noticed three weeks ago. The youngsters had already grown exceptionally well, although there were only 8 left, of the initial 9. Probably a stray cat or the fox…
Crows are everywhere in Offenbach. They are smart, get quite old and tend to rummage through waste bins. This fellow found a peanut on the ground. No time to observe it any further, as the Spike was running ahead, while the kids were heading in the other direction – photography takes time and patients…
The kids got their school reports and as a tradition we as a family do something special on that day. We went for a nice asian buffet (we ate far too much) and headed for the Frankfurt Zoo. When we arrived, it was raining and only about two hours left before it closed, so not the best signs. The images you see here were all shot with high ISOs and were partly very noisy. I had to push them through a few tools and so they are all heavily altered. The all new enclosure for the penguins is great. All…
Cold and slight sleet showers were not the ideal weather to go for a shoot, but I needed to get some fresh air and went for a walk to a nearby lake called Maunzenweiher. Usually there are a lot of ducks and a few herons around, but this time I even noticed two cormorants. I wrongly took the grey feathered head for a sign of age, but it is just the opposite: this one is young fellow – and although a lot of people were hiking, jogging and walking around the lake, it was again me stopping and pointing a…
… well, actually it is called the Fasanerie in Auheim (near Hanau) which is a wild park. Took my new Nikon D7200 for a walk, along with the family. No sunshine, low clouds and my trusty old Sigma 150-500mm that tends to be not the sharpest at 500mm. Usually I dial it down to 400-450mm and it will go up to F 5,6 or more. Bad conditions that would have been for my D90, but the D7200 cranks up the ISO on its own, when set to auto-ISO and that was the right day to test how far I can…
May I introduce you to one of the my beloved bird friends. This is Robin or Rotkehlchen, as they are called here in Germany. They are very common and are all but shy. Quite the opposite: they are very curious and are not afraid of getting close to you. Whenever I come across one of them, if feels like it is rather watching me instead of me watching it. This little fellow didn’t even move when I approached him with my bike and stayed when I hit the my squeaking brakes and stopped a few meters away from it. He…
Following Tin Man Lee for quite some time, it was only about two days ago – while bringing the kids to bed – that I read his great guide about taking sharp picture. Immediately I felt the itch to grab my cam and go out hunting again. The next morning after kids where out of house, I dusted off my cam bag and – oh wonder – one batterie was still holding some current. It was about than that I realized it is a good idea to take the batterie out, as the cam drains them, even when not turned…
The rooftop sides of our house are pure glass with wooden frame structure. I remember, as a kid, when birds would try to fly in not noticing the glass and ending with a loud thump on our balcony. Depending on the speed and the angle they hit the glass front they ended up in a wide range from broken neck and dead to just dazed. My parents had those stickers of large birds of prey silhouettes on every big window and they helped a lot. About 10 years ago they were coming off and I replaced them with Space Invaders…
I don’t have words for this kind of incidents: death belongs to live and without it there would be nothing. You know that a lifespan has and end – sometimes very abrupt sometimes you see it coming. In case of Dexter there were signs. During the last half year he went from old but active to very old and somehow sluggish, though he took his duties in ernest: barking at the postmen, looking after the kids… he was brave and never complained. The cancer won over and raptured his liver, so it was time to see the doctor for the…
Werben is called the city of storks and this is not without a reason. While stroks appear more and more around here in Offenbach, they are still not a common view. Werben, with its vast, lush Elbauen right in front of its gate is a feast for storks and so they come to raise their breed; every year and they go back to their old nests sometimes not without the trouble of fighting off some new occupier. There are more than a dozen nests on roofs and poles around Werben.
From the dike outside Werben you can have a good view across the Elbauen. This ist true for both: humans and animals, hence they are quite used to people passing by and don’t care that much if there are still about 100m inbetween. I spotted this roebuck ind the distance right when i climed the dike. Sneeking up to it took me 30 minutes. Luckily an big old oak tree gave me some cover and so I got close enough for pictures. As most of its kind, the roebuck spent most time with its head down eating, so I chose…
Werben is the smallest Hansestadt of all. This really helps the fact that it does not have any big port and the population is slowly decreasing as there is not much infrastructure around. On natures side this is a big advantage. We strolled through the Elbauen (meadows) to the so called “beach”, let loose, let the kids play and just relaxed and enjoyed. Wind was picking up and the big clouds rolled it. Needless to say we got really wet, but the picture were all worth it.
Together with my sister, we visited the Wildpark Schwarze Berge and they do have flight show, sporting a range of birds, from owls to birds of prey. This is Molly an almost adolescent eagle, a really impressive animal. Light was gone due to some upcoming clouds but Molly was on the slower side of things and gliding majestically over our heads.
We spent ten days at Hilgernriedersiel and our appartment was located right behind the second dike with a roof window that gave view towards the meadows. Everyday I saw a couple of Kestrels hunting in the fields and I tried a few times to get close enough to get a decent shot. Than, after a lot of misses and fences that I was not alowed pass one Kestrel sat down right at a pole, a couple of meters away from us while we were going home. I tried to calm the kids and told them to stay silent, duck down,…
I promissed Marie to take her to the beach later in the evening, alone, without Joshua, so that we both can enjoy the nature and so we went for a longer walk at Hilgenriedersiel. We were lucky as it was one of the most beautiful sun downs that holliday. Far away at the horizon you can see Nordernay and its lighhouse. The atmosphere was pure magic and I shot a ton of pictures….
Lately there seem to be many cosmic things going on. Wasn’t it at the beginning of last year, that we had the blood moon in the sky? The special thing about last time was, that the moon was on its nearest proximity to earth. Anyway, this time around the spectacular happened around my usual getup time. Although being really cold outside, I stuffed my gear on the rear balcony and could get some more or less decent shots. I am really out of practice, when it comes to photography. Need to do it more. Who else?
One week off, with friends and kids in Schwarzwald. This did not sound like I would have time nor the chance to shoot wild animals at all but these images tell a different story. Fortunately this squirrel was as curious as our kids are and so I had some time to frame the shot. It was used to people and came quite close. The next day, we returned in order to meet it again and we were not disappointed. Besides, squirrels don’t like eating apple that much. 😉 One week off, with friends and kids in Schwarzwald. This did not…
The second time this year that we attended a Landal Park in the Netherlands. This time it is Esonstad, which is right beside the national park Lauwersmeer – a huge inland lake that once was derived from the north sea. We had been here before, almost ten years ago, in winter and I could only imagine what its fauna and flora will look in early summer. The resort is not only a place for families with kids – it is also a habitat for a big range of birds living in all the “Krachten” (water channels that run through the…
On our way back from a daytrip to the next Island, Schiermonnikoog, which has one of the biggest sandy beaches of whole Europe, the weather changed. The wind picked up and some dark, heavy rainclouds appeared. A few minutes later the sun ripped thorugh that big rainbringers and sent down some heavenly light that left us in awe.
Right at our arival at Landalpark Port Greve, I could hear the scream of a gold pheasant. One of those really colourful birds used to live at my workplace and after I started to fead him, he came back day after day for a couple of month – so I could tell it was one of those. What I didn’t know is that around the park seemed to live more than one couple. We spotted them everyday and could hear them from far away. The one on the picture used to live around our house and in its garden and…
Taking pictures of my kids and old computers has become the major part of my photography and to tell the truth: all pictures are taken with the iPhone camera. The quickness of pulling it out of my pocket and having it ready within seconds is key to freeze the right moments with your kids – shooting with one hand only, while holding back my daughter from hazzardous traffic with the other is another big point why my trusty D90 is covered with dust. Marie discovered a lizzard today and it vanished into a gap, between two stones. The gap was…
Two years ago I had to move my office, out of the main building to the remote house a little set back on the companies property. The house was pretty run down and I was told to have office of my own. At first I was really shocked and kind of felt left alone, but it did not take long to get accustomed. The really good thing at my new spot is the window grants a view directly into the little woods. This area has been left alone for quite some time and so the nature and its inhabitants spread out. Daily visits…
After two years of absence we finally managed to return to an old habit to spent New Year’s Eve in the Netherlands, together with friends. Today went for a nice little walk along the beach and were observed by this little seal. Guess he just wanted to wish you all a happy and delightful new year – so do I. Happy new year!
There has not been much time for nature throughout the last three years. My focus mainly shifted towards the digital retro park project and the goal of creating something great that will last and bring lots of fun to the people. Right now I am into the process of shooting good pictures of some treasures of my hardware collection. The mighty C64 was my first computer and still the one that hits the sweetspot for me. There are tons of not so common computers and consoles in my collection, but this one is the best. This is just to show…
A moon eclipse and a blood red moon are not quite common and so I set my alarm clock and tried to capture it, without much luck. I was to lazy to go downstairs, dress up, risking waking up Marie and my wife, so I went out on the balcony in shorts and T-Shirt, which was a little cold at 4°C. But it wasn’t only me that was shaking… the moon, while being red, not being quite as bright as usual, made me dial down the F-stops and crank up the ISO. The result is far from being crisp, but…
Catching lightning strikes is a game of chance, when you do not have a facny hardware at hand, that triggers your shot. I actually build a photoduino for those kind of stuff, but somehow lost it somewhere, without even the chance to test it. This thunderstorm was heavy and had lots of lightning. As usual, when you got people around you, while setting up your gear, you get the feeling that you missed the best ones… “Did you see this one! Boaahh!”, while you still fiddle with the settings. Nailed this one, though.
Every 5 years, I meet up with some friends from highschool and usually we rent a old shed in Isny/Allgäu to spent a long weekend together. This year we were too slow and undecisive and the Hammerschmiede (that’ s the name of the old house) was already occupied. We ended up with a new stay nearby which was, in contrast to the old one, atop of a vast meadow, with tons of birds around and plain view. This night I sneaked away from the daily booze and chat and setup my camera. No real startrails, but nice, non the less….
St.Ives is very touristic and around the harbour you find a lot of food shops, cafes and bars, where you can sit and eat or take away your favs. Also you will find many seagulls that team up in gangs. One or two start pulling the attention towards them and a third fleis by and steals your meal. We withnessed it a couple of times, while sitting in a restaurant…. under the sunroof, off course.
Today our second week of our Cronwall trip started. We had to move from Newquy to Phillack, where we rented a littel chalet in a park. There are no busses that go up here and so we had to walk the 1.4 miles from Hayle to here. Once again a rough ride along sections of the south-west coast path with all our luggage, push chair and backpacks. The first casualty was my new Dakine rollcase, that got shredded on the rough underground… big torture for Marie. More than three hours on the bus and then in the push chair, all…
We went for a walk… for a long walk actually. Our goal was to hike from Newquay to the Bedruthan Steps. According to some obscure webiste it should have been about only 5.5 miles. First mistake was the tiny difference between miles and kilometers, and the second that we did not looked for another website. Half way towards Mawgan Porth the rain came after us, and got us. Bakholiday was the third mistake, as the busses home won’t go on that day, but that’s another story.
Meet my new friend! This really big grey heron can be seen in the Vogelpark in Niendorf. He has one crippled claw and his nostrils was jammed with dirt. Obviously his ability to fly away had been disabled by cutting his feathers on the left wing. Sitting in a rather dull spot at the farest end of the park he reminded me of an old captain, stranded, with no water and chance to ever get away. He seemed to have some story to tell and was absolutely not shy, which is usually the case with herons. Whenever they see you…
I really feel kind of lucky to have natrure around me, and even parks that are nearby and are build very well. Together with Claus and Michael I went to the “Alte Fasanerie”, an ancient park near Hanau. It was a bright day and all the animals seem to enjoy it even more than we did. Here’s a youg moose posing in the bright midday sun.