Journal
Shorter writing that doesn’t have an album attached. If an album’s caption would run over a paragraph, I move it here. Some entries are about photography, some are just about weather.
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Storm before a storm
A forty-minute window of extraordinary light.
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Field notebook, three years in
What I actually write down and what I've stopped bothering with.
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Culling like you mean it
Delete the bad ones. Then delete more.
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Low tide at Padre Island
A logistics note on getting to the flats before the sun climbs.
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My shot-keep ratio this year
Back of the envelope math on what actually survives culling.
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A missed shot I keep thinking about
An otter, a root wad, and a battery I hadn't changed.
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Winter finch irruption
Evening Grosbeaks are back, briefly.
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On counting
Why I started keeping species tallies and what it changed.
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Light drizzle, good light
Overcast rain makes colors behave.
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Rain cover, revisited
Two years with a plastic bag and a rubber band.
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Pelicans in migration
Counting kettles over a ridge.
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Mistaking a Cooper's for a Sharp-shinned
Again. I do this every year.
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On apologizing to a bird
A grackle I flushed and what I thought about after.
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Pelagic day, heavy seas
An account of a trip where the birds were many but the photos few.
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Raptor migration count, one morning
A spreadsheet from a ridge at Hawk Mountain.
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Notes on carrying less
Trimming the kit down to what I actually use.
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Why I still use a monopod
After years of handholding, this came back.
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A bench in a flyway
The best spot for a morning is often the one with a bench.
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Lens fungus
A cautionary tale about leaving glass in a humid closet.
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On getting a good photo of a bad bird
Some species refuse to pose.
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On leaving the camera at home
A walk without any gear, and why I might do it more often.
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The noisy hide problem
People are louder than they think.
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Heat shimmer at 500mm
A technical note on atmospheric distortion and what actually helps.
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Backpacking vs. car birding
A brief defense of the hot windshield.
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Birding by ear during mosquito season
Why listening is more productive than looking in July.