Best of May 2025

The month of May was wonderful in the City of Calgary and surrounding area. We had hot HOT weather and lots of opportunities to be outside. On the May long weekend, I spent time in Banff, Alberta at Tunnel Mountain. That weekend provides a couple of my favourite pictures for the month. The first is of Rundle Mountain that was taken from Vermillion Lakes.

 

The second pictue was taken on my phone after walking away from the spot. I wanted to share right away instead of waiting until I got home. This picture was excellent to share and also made my favourite list.

The following picture of granaries on the Alberta prairies also gets a special mention. A good picture should tell a story, trigger an emotion or bring questions to mind. I think this picture makes me very curious and asks me to create a story. It might be better during harvest or during the growing season. Imagine what this would be like if they plant Canola. I hope I make it back.

This picture from Linden, Alberta is important to me because Maria and I spent our last three summers together camping in Linden. When she was able, she loved walking the path around the ponds and always had a sense of achievement when she made it up the hill.  Toward the end of May I spread some of her ashes around the campground and at the top of this hill. Such a wonderful view to trigger such wonderful memories.

There are two bird pictures from this month that make the favourite list. Both of a Yellow Warbler at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. Such a pretty bird. 

All pictures photo-edited with On1 Photoraw 2025

Best of April 2025

The good weather was with us for much of April. Early in April I went on a drive with another birder from Nature Calgary. This barn was beside the road Northeast of High River, Alberta. The telephoto really compresses the image so that the Rocky Mountains look right next to the barn.

This farm was also along that drive.

April was also the start of bicycle season for me, and this picture was from one of my first rides.

The Wood Ducks have returned to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. I used a letterbox format for this picture as well to show off the duck.

Middle of the month I was lucky enough to co-lead a field trip for Nature Calgary and East Village on Saint Patrick's Island in downtown Calgary. This was the first Pileated Woodpecker that the President of Nature Calgary and I have seen on the island.

On the same field trip, we noticed for the first time this year that the Osprey have returned to the island. They have successfully raised chicks for the last few years and they are nesting again this year  -- right on the Bloom art display.

With about a week remaining in the month I rode up to Queen's Park Cemetery and on the way home stopped at the south end of Rotary Park. This Elm was looking its finest.

The restored Centre Street Lion is near the same location.

Near the Bridgeland Market I passed this old Pontiac and took a monochrome picture of the front.

At the end of the month I participated in a Field Trip at North Glenmore Park and took this picture of a Black-capped Chickadee. I think this is my favourite picture of the month.

One of the last pictures I took for the month was of the NW Reader Rock Gardens tree. No blossoms yet, so monochrome.

All pictures photo-edited with On1 Photoraw 2025

 

Best of February 2025

I hesitate to call this a 'best of' because I didn't take many pictures in February  --  it was just too cold to get out much with a camera.  My hands get very cold holding a full metal camera body. The last week did warm up, however, and I did take some pictures and get in a few walks.  My favourite picture of the month is a scenic shot taken from the top of Tom Campbell's Hill in East Calgary. This was taken and 5:59am and the lights make the cityscape look like a jewel. 

As the weather warmed up the Bow River started to break up in spots and I like this monochrome picture of the river and East Village.

On my morning walks I usually cross the Bow River in two different spots and the Elbow River once. This picture of the Inglewood Drive in is close to the Calgary Zoo bridge in East Calgary. I love that Dole Whip was a big enough deal - in the day - to have front and centre advertising on the roof of the diner.

The month wasn't completely devoid of animals. This White Tail Deer was photographed at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

It seems wrong to have a blog post without a picture of a bird, and the best bird of the month was another Red-breasted Nuthatch at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. Such a photogenic bird, especially when they perch long enough to get a photograph.

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Best of January 2025

Calgary's winter has continued to be pretty mild. The sunsets also are coming early in the evening, so I have been able to photograph lots of sunsets.  My favourite bird picture of the month is this Red-breasted Nuthatch. I took this picture during one of my shifts at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. It's amazing that such small birds can survive our cold weather, but many stay with us the entire winter. 

My favourite scenic of the month is this sunset. This picture was taken from the top of Tom Campbell Hill in the Bridgeland area. The sun is setting behind the two towers and I love the glow of the sky and the silhouette of the mountains in the background. 

My computer has folders for Birds, Scenics, and Other. This Coyote picture was a favourite for the month. It is close to being "the picture", but the coyote's tail is matted and reduces the impact of the picture -- a bit. The coyote was seen on the Bow River in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. 

The following four pictures are my almost favourites in each of the categories. First are two bird pictures. The first is a Great Horned Owl and the second is a mated pair of Hairy Woodpeckers. The woodpeckers are performing their mating dance when the picture was taken. Both bird pictures were taken at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

This sunset from the hill north of Bridgeland is one of my favourite scenic pictures from January.

These White tailed Deer deserve a place in my favourite pictures for the month.

All pictures photo-edited with On1 Photoraw 2025.

Best of Summer 2024

Over the summer I took a bit of a break from social media. I also wanted to leave the last post of Maria's paintings first online for a while. As the summer is ending, this post will include the best of my summer pictures. This Great Blue Heron is one of my favourites. This was taken at Frank Lake and the bird was backlit. I thought that I would just go with it and create a silhouette of the GBH in post-edit.

This Cedar Waxing was photographed at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary and I love how the blurring of the background separates the waxwing and helps it to stand out. There was a lot of waiting until the waxwing moved around the tree and finally posed in the right spot. They are such a beautiful bird. 

This Cliff Swallow was photographed at Ralph Klein Park in SE Calgary. Despite being in the shade under the visitors' centre, the detail and colours really stand out. 

My favourite scenics of the summer include this picture of Saint Patrick's Island in downtown Calgary. I was co-leading a birding group for Nature Calgary and stopped to take this picture with my phone.

On one of my shifts as a volunteer steward at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, this Calgary Fire Department rescue boat was heading upstream. 

We have lived in Rundle since 1995 and I have taken many pictures of sunrises. This picture was taken during one of my morning walks. It is always good to have a camera with you.

While driving to a wedding and reception in Cranston this summer, I dropped off some donations at the Women in Need Society and swung by the ridge on 26th Street South East. The ride has some great views of the city skyline.

In my file system, I categorize pictures by subject. In a miscellaneous grouping, is this picture of a Boreal Chorus Frog taken this summer at Frank Lake.

Finishing off my summer favourites is this picture taken in Edson while attending a wedding. This horse is a year old and was born during the forest fires in Edson. She is aptly named Ember.

Those are some of my favourite summer photographs.

 

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May Bird Count, May 25, 26, 2024

On Saturday and Sunday I participated in the May Bird Count. On Saturday I walked the Kinniburgh Pond and surrounding neighbourhood near Chestermere and on Sunday I drove the Priddis area and stopped once in a while to look for birds. My favourite pictures of the day were of some Sandhill Cranes (Antigone canadensis).

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 800, f/13, 1/640.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 640, f/13, 1/640. 

The prettiest birds of the day were a Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides) and its partner.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 5000, f/13, 1/640.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 200mm, ISO 2500, f/10, 1/640.

Adding to my life-list of birds was an Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes vespertinus) and a Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus). 

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 710mm, ISO 2500, f/13, 1/500.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 473mm, ISO 25600, f/12, 1/640.

It certainly was a great day for seeing birds, but it was also a great drive in the countryside.

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All pictures photo-edited with On1 Photo Raw 2024 

Shorebirds, May 14, 2024

On Tuesday and expert birder from Nature Calgary joined me and we drove the gravel backroads north and east of Chestermere looking for shorebirds. We finished off at Weed Lake in Langdon, Alberta. The water was very flat, and the clouds reflecting off the water looked like a soft cotton pillow.

 Olympus OMD E-M5 Markii, 14-42mm, 42mm, ISO 200, f/11, 1/640.

There was a lot of water next to the back roads, and we found some Wilson's Phalaropes (Phalaropus tricolor) among the cattails.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 415mm, ISO 1600, f/12, 1/800.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 490mm, ISO 1600, f/12, 1/800.

We didn't see a large number of shorebirds but we did see a good variety.  This is a picture of a Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus scolopaceus) and its cousin, and Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla).

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 1600, f/13, 1/800.

The middle bird in this photo is a Short-billed dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus).

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 437mm, ISO 1000, f/12, 1/800.

This Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria) seems like a good place to end the shore bird pictures.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 1250, f/13, 1/800.

As we drove along we also came upon this Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) on a power pole.

Olympus OM-1, 100-400mm plus MC20, 800mm, ISO 1000, f/13, 1/800.

All pictures photo-edited with On1 Photo Raw 2024