Category Archives: birds

Least Sandpiper and Marbled Godwit, an exercise in video

Posted on January 21, 2013 by Galen Leeds Photography

When I’m out photographing wildlife, especially if I come across a species that I already have really good images of, I will sometimes switch my camera over to video mode. Stills are fantastic and can be so evocative of emotion, … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, documentary, How To, How To, kayak photography, nature photography, photography, shorebirds, SLR, video | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A morning’s kayak

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Galen Leeds Photography

It’s been a long day, but well worth it. I haven’t been making it out on the water enough lately, and so today, even though there was a lot to do later in the day, I made special plans for … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, kayak photography, marine life, nature photography, Photo Essay, photography, shorebirds, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Birds in Flight: Part II

Posted on October 24, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

A special thanks to Donna from Garden Walk, Garden Talk for taking me to task on never having continued my Birds in Flight series, since it is a topic that I really enjoy. Flight is such an integral part of … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, How To, kayak photography, nature photography, photography, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Fall migration

Posted on October 19, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

I look outside, and I see new faces. I paddle the waters of Tomales Bay, and I begin to see species that weren’t here a few weeks ago. When I kayak at night, I begin to hear the whistle of … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, kayak photography, nature photography, Photo Essay, photography, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

Chickadee in a spider’s web

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

One day while kayaking with a friend, I saw something I never imagined to see. A Chestnut-backed Chickadee with its wind stuck in a spider’s web. There were actually many of these thick spiderwebs around, and several chickadees, but only … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, kayak photography, nature photography, Photo Essay, photography | Tagged , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Photographing the common in preparation for the uncommon

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

One of the greatest aids to becoming a good photographer is to create images of what you find around you. Photograph what interests you, what you can find easily in your day to day life. We are used to seeing … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, How To, nature photography, New Zealand, Photo Essay, photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

White-crowned Sparrow: a short video

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

A bit of editing to do yet, before I can post the video of the Long-tailed Weasel, so I thought I would share a short video I was able to shoot while watching the weasels, of a male White-crowned Sparrow. … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, SLR, video | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Anatomy of a photo #3: Great Egret hunting in the fog

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

This image was made while kayaking early one morning on Drake’s Estero. When I saw this egret on the local oyster farm’s racks, I knew right away that I wanted a vertical orientation to the picture. The structure of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomy of a photo, birds, kayak photography, nature photography, photography | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Anatomy of a photo #38: Hawktopus

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

It was the middle of winter, less than two weeks past solstice, and there were rumors of whales in Tomales Bay. It was hard for me to put my kayak in the water before 4:30pm that week, but one day … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomy of a photo, hawks, marine life, nature photography, photography, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Anatomy of a photo # 14: Three Willets in pickleweed

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

As I look through my photographs of animal images, I notice more and more that there are two main lighting conditions that most of my favorite portraits were taken in- early/late low angle sun, or else while the subject was … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomy of a photo, birds, kayak photography, nature photography, photography, shorebirds | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Anatomy of a photo #41: The Willet walking away

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Galen Leeds Photography

I took this picture towards the end of a very long day of driving and hiking around Point Reyes National Seashore. I had woken up that morning to hear on the radio that the air quality was exceptionally clear, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Anatomy of a photo, nature photography, photography, shorebirds, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

White-tailed Kites: An essay in photos

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Galen Leeds Photography

New Here on the West Coast of the United States we only have one type of Kite that we see with any regularity- the White-tailed Kite. A small raptor with a hint of elegance about its fluid, sweeping wing beats, … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, nature photography, Photo Essay, raptors, wildlife photography | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments