One lucky maple tree....

 

Lucky for me anyway. The tree was located in a industrial area and right near the front of a building, but by laying on the ground and being vigilant about the backgrounds I was able to make it work.

 

I really like the patterns and shapes and colors of these photos.

 

 

 

 

 

I used a couple of different lenses and felt good about the images I made so I put my gear away and headed back to the cemetery.

 

 

 

When I got there I was just looking for color and light. I found it with this maple tree.

 

 

 

I love the shapes and structure of its branches along with the light through its canopy.

 

 

 

I spent some time reading names and dates on various headstones and sat with my back against a maple tree as the sun dropped below the horizon. It was a peaceful, beautiful night.











Some more fall color. . . .

I was pretty pleased with the results I got shooting leaves and trees this fall so here are a few more photos.

Maple leaves just starting to change colors.

 

 

An oak leaf with striking edges and colors.

 



More oak leaves in super light. 



A tamarack tree catching some light just before sunset.

 

 



Oak leaves in a northern Wisconsin forest.

 

 

A sugar maple leaf hanging in there, Madison Wisconsin.

 

 

Another oak leaf in the process of change.

 

 

Maples and a blue sky on a Madison afternoon.

 

 

Tamaracks and spruce trees reflected in a small northern Wisconsin lake.

 

 

Last light on a maple leaf in Madison.

 



More vibrant red oak leaves. 

 

Yellow maple leaves and a blue afternoon sky.

 

 

Maple leaves going from yellow to orange. 

 





I hope it's not over yet. I'll be out for more as soon as I get a little sunlight. It's been rainy and overcast for quite awhile here.

A little fall color...

I was up in the Clam Lake area looking for elk about a week ago. I didn't find too many elk, but I did find a little fall color.

 

Like these oak leaves in good evening light against a blue sky. 

 

And these beautiful maple leaves.

 

 

Here's a little more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even a wood thrush showed up to hunt small insects amid the fall color. 



 

 

I went back and lucked out with a beautiful sunrise, 

 

 

and sunset. All in all I found quite a bit of fall on what seems to be not the best year for fall color in northern Wisconsin.



 



 

Fall elk in Wisconsin



A medium sized bull elk pauses before crossing the road.



I didn't expect to get the chance to photograph Wisconsin elk this fall, so I was happily surprised to find myself in Clam Lake for part of three days last week.

 

The fall color was already past peak as seen in these morning reflections. 


  





   


   






   





A spike bull browses at the edge of the forest.







 
   


 
  








A family of wild turkeys heads for the woods after feeding near the roadside.



A bull elk walks across highway 77 on an October morning.





 

Golden oak leaves are back lit in a forest opening.





An immature red-tailed hawk watches for a possible meal from its perch.

  

The weather was warm and clear. It got as hot as 85 degrees one of the days I was there. I saw only eleven elk, five bulls and six cows and calves. I also saw several bald eagles, a few red-tailed hawks, and a coyote.

Photographing elk in Wisconsin is nothing like it is out west. There are only about 180 animals in the state and they behave very differently than their western counterparts. The Wisconsin elk seem content to hide out in the sheltering forests of the Clam Lake area. They have all of the food and water they need right there in the woods and don't seem to seek out meadows or other openings to gather harems in the fall.

In Wisconsin it seems to be a matter of catching the elk grazing along the roadside or in the act of crossing the road in order to get decent photos of them. Even so, with some patience, persistence, and a little luck Wisconsin elk can be fun.

A colorful perch

Driving in northern Wisconsin on a beautiful September day I saw this hawk alight on a branch. In the past I haven't had the best luck photographing hawks from the road in Wisconsin. Most of the time they fly off before I get any good photos, but I keep trying. So I turned around, got the camera ready, pulled to the side of the road, turned the car off, and took this photo.

This particular juvenile red-tailed hawk didn't seem to mind me at all. It attentively watched the ground below its perch as I photographed it from my car. It was so comfortable that I was able to change to a larger lens and make the photos above and below.

I really like the look of the changing maple leaves behind the hawk. If I learned anything here it's no matter how many times I have tried something and failed, it's important to keep trying. On any given day for no reason at all things may work out.