BEAVER MOON

Moonrise over the Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

Today the full moon was at its closest point to the earth this year in its orbit, making it look up to 14% larger and also brighter than a typical full moon. In November it’s called the Beaver Supermoon.

The interesting part for the photographer was the fact that moonrise and sunset were pretty close together. At the location where I made this photo moonrise was at 4:38PM and sunset was at 4:50PM. It takes about 12-13 minutes before the moon appears over the bluffs on the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi River, with other words it was almost identical with sunset time. Why was that important to me? It leaves some light on the landscape, at least a little glow. I exposed for the moon in order to keep the details alive and not to blow out the highlights. The woods on the other side of the river appear at first darker, but there is enough dynamic range in the RAW file to bring back the light in the trees as the human eye sees it. In this situation there is no need to make a composite out of two shots, one for the moon and another one for the rest, it all is the result of one click.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, RRS BH-55 ball head,    @ 200mm, 1/20s, f/8, ISO100

AUTUMN LIGHT IN B&W, MORE IMPACT

Autumn light at the Popple River, Forest County, Wisconsin

I shot at this location for the first time in January 2014 and since I have done it several times over the years. It is in the middle of nowhere, deep in the woods of northern Wisconsin, where a small bridge crosses the Popple River. I have paddled it this summer for the first time and wrote about here in the blog, and it was an incredible experience. In 2014 the ice on the river was covered with a real thick layer of snow and any time I have been there a different photo was made from the bridge.

Last weekend the sun shined some warm late afternoon light into the bend of the river, but with most leaves already gone, and a bald and boring blue sky, the color version of the picture didn’t really speak to me. With the reflections of illuminated trees on the water I knew a black and white version would be a possibility and that’s what in my opinion made for a fall photo with more impact at the end.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 70 mm, 1/400 s, f/8, ISO 400, image slightly cropped

EARLY MORNING MOMENT

A short view through the window this morning made me run for the camera. The settings for this shot are simple, f/22 for the sunburst and 7000 Kelvin for the white balance. There wasn’t enough time to set the tripod up for a long exposure of 0.4 seconds and so I just put the camera body on the railing of the balcony. A little breeze made the leaves moving slightly but I don’t think it hurts the mood of this moment during the early morning.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 37 mm, 0.4 s, f/22, ISO 640

EARLY MORNING PORTRAIT

White-tailed Deer, Little Maquoketa Valley, eastern Iowa

I have not seen any buck of a White-tailed Deer here in our woods this fall season so far, but does and fawns that were born earlier in spring love the safety of our neighborhood and stay in the area all year long.

During the early morning a single doe walked carefully through the woods behind the house today. Nothing unusual, but with the rising sun in the background I felt there was a chance to make a click.

Nikon Z6 III, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z TC-1.4x,    @ 840mm, 1/125s, f/9, ISO 3200, image slightly cropped

BIRDING IN THE NORTHWOODS OF WISCONSIN

Bastile Lake, Forest County, Wisconsin

I spent an extended weekend at a friend’s cabin up in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. Much of the area belongs to the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest or is private land and is the home of White-tailed Deer, Black Bears, wolves, and other critters. Although I saw a young bear in August this year, my aim was to find a small bird again, some Snow Buntings migrating south. However, luck was not on my side, a flock of these fast moving birds came in sight a couple times, but never close enough for a photo. The picture below was shot already in 2023.

Snow Buntings, near Newald, Wisconsin, October 28, 2023

A few American Tree Sparrows were more cooperative and posed nicely while foraging for seeds in the vegetation beside a gravel road.

American Tree Sparrow,

Nikon Z6 III, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Benro MSDPL46C SupaDupa Monopod, Monopod Gimbal Head

TWO WAYS

Fall colors in Backbone State Park, eastern Iowa

Although it was at the same location, in Iowa’s Backbone State Park, and the shots were made only a few minutes apart, each scene required a different way to tell a story. The road through the woods crosses Fenchel Creek several times, a tributary to the Maquoketa River and very popular for trout fishing. With the jam of leaves in the foreground and the beautiful colors of the maple in the back, I had to stop and capture the arrangements of nature.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 70 mm, 1/4s, f/16, ISO 200, Polarized filter, GITZO tripod GT2931 Basalt, KIRK BH-3 ball head,

Former trout hatchery, Backbone State Park

Ten minutes earlier I stopped at a former trout hatchery that was operated until 1987. It was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1920s. The most visible remains of the hatchery are the circular ponds and this geometrical pattern triggered my desire to present the photo in black and white. No, I didn’t kill much of the fall colors, green dominates the scene, not just by the grass around the ponds, but the pines in the background hide most of the maples in the back. Well, the sky was just gray and I know a better picture can be made. A good reason to go back to the state park sometime soon…

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 27 mm, 1/8s, f/16, ISO 200, Polarized filter, GITZO tripod GT2931 Basalt, KIRK BH-3 ball head,

TAKE IT NOW

Sunset over the Little Maquoketa Valley, eastern Iowa

This photo was made three days ago here in our woods and I’m pretty sure today it wouldn’t have turned out the same way. We had two very windy days and a lot of leaves came down and opened up the canopy quite a bit more. There is a lesson I learned some time ago and it was confirmed again with this shot, take the image now, when the light seems to be right, don’t wait for another chance with maybe even better light, it wouldn’t be the same, no matter what you do.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S, GITZO tripod GT2931 Basalt, KIRK BH-3 ball head,

    @ 44 mm, 1/20 s, f/22, ISO 2000

IN RUGGED TERRAIN

Upper part of the Pine Creek Unit in the Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge.

It was a perfect fall day with sunshine and warm temperatures yesterday and as mentioned in my last blog post the leaves suddenly got the colors of autumn. I went out west to revisit a couple areas with unique features that make the Driftless Area standing out from most parts of the Midwest. First I hiked into the Pine Creek Unit of the Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge near Colesburg, Iowa. I had scouted this location already in early June and wrote about it here in the blog. It was recommended as a good birding location and here is a link to my earlier post: https://exnerimages.net/blog/2025/6/1/scouted-a-new-location

White-crowned Sparrow

Most birds have migrated south already but I found a few White-crowned Sparrows feeding on berries and seeds in the brushes at the edge of the woods. Nothing says more about the season than having the bird perched next to some ripe berries in a bush almost bare of its leaves.

Rugged slope in the Pine Creek Valley

This time I wanted to get a little deeper into the area. The slope down to the pine creek valley is very rugged and there are no trails at all. Be forewarned, thick and thorny underbrush make it a challenge to hike with photo equipment! However, with the turning leaves and a little bit of sunshine you will see some beauty, hardly found in any other part of Iowa.

FINALLY SOME COLORS

A week ago I was asking myself, will we get any fall colors before most leaves are on the ground? It was still quite warm this week and many leaves just dried up and tumbled down. Well, all what it took was a few colder nights and a little bit of rain and everything changed quickly.

A short walk into the woods behind the house early this morning was worth the effort. The sun wasn’t out, but that turned out to be a good thing and allowed to capture the mood of this early morning with some fog between the trees. The polarizer was attached to the lens to take away any glare from the leaves and using the tripod allowed to shoot with ISO 100 for a minimum of noise introduction.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 37 mm, 1.3 s, f/14, ISO 100, Polarizing filter, GITZO tripod GT2931 Basalt, KIRK BH-3 ball head,

GONE SOUTH SINCE TWO WEEKS

You can tell where this bird got its name from

These two photos were made a month before I saw the last Ruby-throated Hummingbird during this year’s season at the feeders that hang at our porch or from a shepherd’s hook in the front yard. The final buzz from the wings of a migrating hummer was detected the last day in September this year. Nevertheless, we still left the feeders out until now. No reason to throw the sugar water that is used for hummingbird food away since many wasps used them still for feeding. Our pollinators are as important as the birds!

We only have this one species of hummingbirds here in Iowa and every nature lover who lives here will be happy to see them again at the end of April or during the first days of May next year.

I shot these images from a tripod and with just a hint of flash to reveal the bird’s colors during the late afternoon, and with limited natural light here in the woods.

Male juvenile hummingbird displays strength against the rivals near a feeding source

NATURE CLICKS #614 - YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS

Yellow-rumped Warbler, Frenchtown County Park, Guttenberg, Iowa

A bunch of Yellow-rumped Warblers spent the Sunday afternoon feeding from berries (Bittersweet?) and cleaning their feathers at the banks of the Mississippi River in Frenchtown Park near Guttenberg, Iowa. The one in the first photo must have taken a bath in the river. His feathers were wet and the bird cleaned and dried them in the sun.

I was out practicing with a new piece of equipment I got as a gift last month, a monopod with a small gimbal head. I want to use it mainly for small bird photography in locations that are difficult to access with a heavier tripod. I will report about it in a later post sometime.

The small ramp at Frenchtown County Park is hardly used for boat access anymore. I have seen Yellow-rumped Warblers there before but was surprised how many were present this time.

SENSE OF FALL

Savannah Sparrow, Green Island, eastern Iowa

A big house project came to an end on Friday and I finally found the time to go out with the camera again and shoot some pictures. The photo above was made about 40 minutes before sunset at the edge of a field that was already harvested. The warm rim light on the dried up flower pods intrigued me and all the elements, including some spider web threads, give the photo of this sparrow a sense of fall.

Male Red-winged Blackbird, Green Island Wetlands

Thousands of Red-winged Blackbirds congregate in the wetlands along the Mississippi River at the moment and feed or rest during their migration to warmer areas in the south. If the winter is mild, as we had it during the last couple years, some of them will even stay here or at least return very early. I have photos in my picture library that were made in February.

END OF SUMMER THOUGHTS

Monarch, Mud Lake, Mississippi Valley, Iowa

Summer comes to an end slowly but surely and beside falling leaves from the trees many other indicators can tell the story about a changing season. Temperatures are still quite a bit above average but the number of flowers and butterflies is getting lower every day. I talked to some other nature friends recently and most said they have seen more Monarch butterflies this year then during the last couple years. However, the number of Monarchs have been in decline during recent decades and every trend in reverse is a sign of hope that this species may survive. I take every opportunity to make a click with the camera when I see a Monarch, hoping that this will never end.

Monarch, Mines of Spain, Mississippi Valley, Iowa

BIRDS IN FLIGHT

Great Blue Heron, Green Island Wetlands, Mississippi Valley, Iowa

It was pretty quiet in the wetlands today, at least up to the moment when I was ready to leave in the late afternoon. Suddenly several hundred Canada Geese came across the Green Island wetlands in the Mississippi Valley and moved towards the low sitting sun in the west. They flew either in pairs or strings up to 25 birds for the next half hour. Communication with each other is obviously very important and the air was filled with their loud calls. I guess nobody gets excited here in the Midwest about Canada Geese, since they are present pretty much all year long, but many also migrate from up north, where food and open water are not available during the winter.

I saw this as a good opportunity to practice shooting birds in flight and walked with the camera and long lens onto a field to have a good view in all directions. I don’t know who was more surprised, the Great Blue Heron or I. The heron at least saw or heard me first and was already in the air when I discovered the bird. Sudden opportunities like this come and go very fast and it is exactly for these special moments why I practice handholding the long lens in order to come home with a sharp photo. The photos of the geese I made afterwards? Well, nothing but pure fun shooting pictures on a warm late summer day!

All images: Nikon Z6 III, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z Teleconverter TC-1.4x

NATURE CLICKS #613 - RAPTOR WATCH 2025 - BROAD-WINGED HAWKS

Broad-winged Hawk, immature

Together with other members of the Dubuque Audubon Society I participated in the annual ”Raptor Watch” event in the Mines of Spain near Dubuque, Iowa today. I’m sorry for not posting anything lately, but other things in life required attention instead of wildlife photography last week.

Kettle of Broad-winged Hawks at the Mines of Spain, Dubuque, Iowa

It was great to be out again and have a camera strapped over my shoulder. In September large numbers of Broad-winged Hawks migrate to the northern part of South America and can bee seen in big flocks circling in kettles high up in the sky during migration. There are places in the Midwest where they have been seen by the thousands, but everybody on the small observation platform in the Mines of Spain was very happy to see several swirling kettles of 60-100 Broad-winged Hawks today.

My thanks goes to Tony Moline, a very knowledgable field guide as always, and all the other Audubon members that made this birding event a pleasant and great learning experience!

Broad-winged Hawk, adult bird