I watched two very skilled, and brave young men kayak down "The Deeps" waterfall this afternoon. The power of this waterfall during the winter snow melt runoff is amazing. If you would like to watch similar kayaking up in the northland, please keep an eye on the Lester River Kayak Facebook Page. Tentatively, subject to river flow and ice conditions, the race is scheduled for next Easter weekend.

If the two men who were in the kayaks send me an email, I will be happy to arrange free delivery of the high resolution copies of these pictures. I've also included a photo of The Deeps which I took yesterday. This photo will give you a better appreciation of the waterfall they kayaked down.

• Video link from last year, 2013: Descending "The Deeps" by Kayak
• My latest photography project: 365 Days of Birds

Kayaker #1

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Kayaker #2

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The Deeps (photo taken one day prior)

Back in January I started a 365 day / year long photography project (365 Days of Birds). The goal with this effort, as well as any learning opportunity is to obviously improve one's skills. The idea of taking a photograph every day for a year forces oneself to think long and hard about the end result, creating a photograph that people want to view.

Even before this project, I was working hard towards becoming a better photographer. Here are some tips I've learned from my recent efforts both with respect to bird photography, and often photography in general:

1. Tell a story with your photograph
2. With animals and birds, the "eyes" make all the difference. Your subject should appear to be looking directly out of the photograph at you, or if the view is directed elsewhere … a story should be told with that point of view.
3. Even when you think birds and animals are motionless, they are moving albeit perhaps very slowly. When you are zooming in your subject, which is almost always in nature photography, the result of any motion is greatly magnified in your photo.
4. My rule of thumb for bird photography exposures is:
• 1/800 of a second maximum exposure for larger slow moving birds
• 1/1000 of a second maximum exposure for smaller fast moving birds
5. The golden hour is truly golden for bring out details in nature photography (the hour directly after sunrise, and directly before sunset). In addition, birds tend to feed right after sunrise. The same may not be true by sunset as birds will have fed enough already for the day.
6. Aperture priority is a waste of time … use if for landscape photos w/o motion
7. If you find an interesting bird or animal … wait! Patience is a virtue. While feeding it is amazing how territorial squabbles will arise with other animals and birds you don't even see are near by. Thus keep your eyes and ears open. Sudden conflict may appear which will create great photo opportunities.

Here are a few examples which demonstrate my methods. I hope you like these photos. If so, please link to my 365 Days of Birds Project or my Flickr Feed to seem more examples of my work. I license my work under Creative Commons w/o charge given appropriate attributions and link backs.

1: Crow in Sight! 2: Attack! (click either image to view at full size)
 

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3: A New Cop in Town! 4: Where?
 

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5: It's Cold Outside! 6: Leif Ericson, the Explorer
 

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• Photos 1 & 2: Heathrow Florida – A red-shouldered hawk spies and attacks a crow
• Photo 3: A great gray owl shortly after sunset north of Duluth, Minnesota
• Photo 4: A sandhill crane baby investigates the photographer
• Photo 5: A cold early January morning at Canal Park in Duluth, Minnesota.
• Photo 6: Leif Ericson looks out over a frozen landscape in Duluth, Minnesota

What defines beauty in this world? I hope it is not dead habitat. Please take a look at these photographs which were taken within fifteen minutes of each other shortly after sunrise on a Winter morning in Heathrow, Florida. While one set of homeowners have beautifully manicured lawns, their view is sterile and dead. The other folks have a varied view which is alive with birds and other wildlife.

I personally think that the rushes and waterplants are much more pretty that "just" green grass. Interestingly enough these two ponds are within a few hundred yards of each other in the same neighborhood. Please give some thought as to why you might like a perfectly manicured lawn. Not only are you creating a "dead zone", your view out of the window will always be more boring.

The last photograph in this series is my own "lawn" in northern Minnesota. You will see I practice what I preach! My yard starts with the tall grasses seen in the final. Assuming you've read this far, browse on over to my 365 Day Photography Project. My theme is birds; I am required to find and photograph at least one bird per day. In the Summer that is not a challenge, but in the dead of Winter in northern Minnesota one sometimes has to work at finding a feathered friend.

Dead Habitat

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Live Habitat 1

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Live Habitat 2

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My Northern Minnesota Home Habitat

How many of you rush from one location to another? Stop and consider that sometimes the actual process of travelling can be as enjoyable as your final destination. Recently my wife and I needed to travel to Snow Mountain Ranch in the Colorado Rockies from northern Minnesota where we would be working as volunteers. The most obvious route according to Google Maps in terms of both the shortest distance and time spent on the road would be as follows:

• Drive I-35 south to Des Moines
• Drive i-40 west to Denver
• Drive up into the Rockies

While this route might seem optimal at first glance, consider these facts:

• Taking secondary roads via South Dakota, Nebraska and Wyoming is only 47 miles longer
• These secondary roads often have speed limits of 65 mph (not bad!).
• The traffic is almost non existent, and no semi trucks! (ever been on I-80?)

Thus, a route which seemed longer, does not take a significant amount more time, and the scenery and viewing opportunities via the highway is infinitely more interesting. Here are a few photos from our recent trip. None of these items would we have seen via the interstate highway system.

Finally, each small town will have a personality all its own. Molly and I had a great Valentine's Day Dinner at the Club 29 Steakhouse in Kaduka, South Dakota. The atmosphere was nothing like northern Minnesota, and we loved that fact! All the ranches and their families were out enjoying a night on the town. Cowboy / 10 gallon hats were NOT in short supply!

Therefore, when you take your next big trip, avoid the super highways and see America. You will love the experience. (click upon any image to view a full size / resolution)

Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota (corn construction!)

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Badlands in South Dakota

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Bald Eagle as seen from our car, near the Badlands
(watch video of this eagle feeding) (365DaysOfBirds.Com)

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Our actual route in blue, and Google Map's suggestion!

Well, not me, but my photos of the Lake Superior Apostle Islands sea caves! I've included one of my photos below (click to view at full size), or link to these national news articles:

• Weather Channel Article 
  (or)
• Fox News Article
  (or)
• See all my Ice Cave Photos via Flickr

• Post updated on February 12th to include Fox News article
• View all my photos via Flickr

The NorthStarNerd (Rich Hoeg) welcomes inquiries about my photography. Usage fees are often waived if I like your project or proposed usage. For instance, right now I am working with a New York City based author who will insert some photos a book of poetry planned for publication in the near future. She will not be charged, but my work is given full attribution including a brief bio and link back.