If one grew up in a family and was not an only child, there were those days when siblings were expected to share. And sometimes I am guessing the same is true in the animal kingdom, even in Siouxland. This past February on a cold day I hiked into an area along the Big Sioux River near Stone State Park. Eagles were congregating there and hanging out until it was time to move along.
And on one particular day, it seemed two related juvenile bald eagles liked sitting on the same branch and in the same place.
Human siblings will exhibit the same behavior, each wanting to occupy space that another might already occupy, or want depending on the circumstances. I find the behavior fascinating while also chilly waiting to see how everything played out. And remember thinking one of them flew to another branch probably only to continue the battle of wills another time and another day.
Often when I am photographing birds and other critters in Siouxland, I strive to get tight shots when permissible. For one thing, with small birds, they tend to get lost in the foliage of nearby bushes or tree limbs. And when taking their images I think about the movie quote from the Billy Wilder film “Sunset Boulevard” that has most likely bantered about for ages since its original usage.
As noted on the website “shmoop” dot com:
” This misquoted line is spoken by Norma Desmond, played by Gloria Swanson, in the film Sunset Boulevard, directed by Billy Wilder (1950).
At the end of Sunset Boulevard, delusional crackpot (i.e., actress) Norma Desmond stalks toward a camera, thinking it’s a movie camera, saying, “All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.” In reality, it’s a news camera and everyone is there because she’s about to be arrested for murder. What a misunderstanding.
Many people misquote the line as “I’m ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille.” It’s a minor mistake that doesn’t change the meaning of the quote. But hey, that’s what we do. We take a close-up look at quotes and find all the flaws. Check yourself before you misquote yourself. “
But in a way, it is true. There are good angles from which to take a person’s or object’s photograph or portrait, and then there is probably a better angle.
Sometimes when trying to photograph wildlife at various parks and preserves in Siouxland I swear they really work at trying to avoid me and my endeavors. A red-headed woodpecker a year or so ago would always land near me and make its call. And just as I raised my lens it would fly off, only to land nearby and start the process over again. I guess on some mornings I was cheap entertainment.
Watching wildlife feed and stalk its food sources is fascinating. And although some of these birds are the same species I have photographed many times before, they still give me a challenge in capturing their movements. Autofocus is great, but sometimes that muscle memory and manual focus is a needed skill. But with age and glasses, technology is still welcomed. And I am happy to utilize focus peaking when manually focusing. Most mirrorless camera bodies now incorporate that feature, which is great for crowded subject fields as well as shooting in low light situations.
It’s always fun photographing in Siouxland to watch the “light play” that can occur depending on the time of year, day and whether or not Mother Nature grants a reprieve so the sun shines, and it’s also a clear day.
With the recent wacky weather seen this spring, the Siouxland weather also changes capriciously. And I was glad it was no hallucinations one day when I saw some Canada geese and other waterfowl swimming among diamonds on a pond that I check out from time to time. Rich in the moment of light, if not in wealth, the day just shone a bit brighter.
Only after photographing animals outdoors in nature do I sometimes realize symmetry of some of the photographs. In some cases nature happens in twos. I am assuming the pairing of birds is one or the other mate staying nearby while they are out feeding either looking for something or at a backyard feeder.
Currently reading a book titled “Slow Birding”, one of the book’s chapters deals with House Wrens and whether or not mates are faithful and how this affects reproduction and the gene pool of the species. And it is amazing to see at what length researchers go to achieve a result without a pre-determined outcome on their part.
And it makes sense that humans reflect nature and visa versa from some sort of instinctive intuition for self-preservation, although I often have my doubts about humans because of the terrible things some individuals do to others. But that is a choice, a poor choice by most standards, but a choice nonetheless.
So time spent observing and appreciating nature is more enjoyable that reading about the cruelty the human race just can’t seem to get beyond.
Sometimes it is possible to find species sharing a little space without much fuss. At least in the animal kingdom. Over winter I went to Stone State Park and spent some time along the Big Sioux River which runs just on the outskirts of the park. And it was amazing to find various creatures within “spitting” distance of one another, minding their own business and focused on whatever task was at hand.
Back in March winter was still clinging onto the Siouxland area as it was in much of other parts of the continental U.S. Actually, winter is still clinging with recent sleeting and snow flurries occurring in April. Driving out to a spot to check on some waterfowl I came across some snow geese that also seemed surprised by the weather. They had moved from wherever they had been and again hunkered down as snow and sleet began blowing about.
Watching the waterfowl as I photographed them, some of the birds seemed surprised with the sleet and flurries as much as the humans were as well. Hoping to “return home” in a decent amount of time the birds would have to do a layover until weather improved. Just hopefully they wouldn’t be any cranky passengers flying with them that would attack the “pilots” (lead birds) or later decide to open passenger doors mid-flight.
This year’s winter and spring is unusual. I am hoping it stays unusual and doesn’t become a trend.
When I began in earnest in photographing birds and other critters a few years ago in Siouxland, I began to slow down and observe the little creatures as I walked about nature preserves like Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve and the antics they displayed at various times. Sometimes it’s in watching them that these characteristics become apparent and entertaining to a certain extent.
A white-breasted nuthatch danced around a couple feeders, checking out its surroundings before giving into the temptation of a meal. Making certain its foray would end well and not imperil it as hunger made it move closer to a food source. I thought it was quite a “floor show” as the small bird danced about, attaching itself to the feeders, retrieving a morsel, flying away, devouring that morsel, then returning for another. All the while contemplating its advances to the food. Maybe humanities ancestors did the same when hunting for food in the beginnings of time, as opposed now to visiting a restaurant and getting in line at a buffet. Then returning again and again until sated.
Sometimes it isn’t until after the fact when I have been out traversing Siouxland that I run across various images that may or may not have anything in common. By themselves they may be simple, nondescript kinds of photographs. And some folk may think that anyway even as a collective. But collectively images should have something in common.
It’s possible that even a tenuous element(s) can create a common factor. I find color is one such element. And it mostly depends on how one sees color and if color then becomes the main subject matter, relegating that actual subject of the photograph as a secondary subject. Beauty and art is in the eye of the beholder. Andy Warhol proved that time and again.
I always enjoy meeting “folk” when I am out and about I Siouxland checking out places or taking a hike or walk somewhere. But the same can not always be considered mutual depending on who it is I encounter.
On a recent walk on the Union Trail Bridge in Correctionville a family of deer were munching their way along the trail when they saw me. They paused, and as I began photographing them they decided to look for another “dining” area. Evidently eight or nine is company, but ten is not. Sometimes sharing is not all that it’s supposed to be.
I live in the Siouxland area that encompasses a wide swatch of land in northwest Iowa, northeastern Nebraska and southeastern South Dakota. The people that inhabit this area are generous folk and your basic honest, Midwestern people you like to have as neighbors. I explore the area and share observations, mostly photographic, sometimes through video, and and short text. All images and video are copyrighted material of the author.
Jerry Mennenga, Sioux City, Iowa
jerrylmennenga@yahoo.com
lostinsiouxland 