Found a few fledgling cedar waxwings the other evening, total of 5 in this late season brood. Even at this young age, these cedar waxwings have plenty of colour, just look at that bright yellow tail. These fledglings come late in the year and will no doubt have a hard time migrating this fall. The photo below is handheld, and nicely backlit using the...

Nature & wildlife photography means even bugs get photographed, this time a ladybug is captured in-flight, flying over a lemon! This ladybug was an extremely small one, about 1/2 the size of what must be an adult, if thats possible? I have a bunch of interesting photos of this little guy, but liked this one the best. An in-flight ladybug flying...

Photographed in June of this year, a baby red fox, or kit is seen here peeking out of his/her underground den. These little red foxes are (in my book anyway) one of the cutest animals alive, possibly too cute, if thats possible…. Last year there was 7 babies, not sure how many kits where born this year. Photographed just east of the city of Calgary.. A...

I love these fast flying colorful little birds, the tree swallow that compete for nesting locations with the mountain blue birds are so much fun to photograph, like trying to shoot bats in flight. These small iridescent birds are best photographed on overcast days as they are so iridescent they are tough to expose for. The tree swallow beak, bored with...

June 30th I photographed this great grey owl in flight in southern Alberta Canada as it flew out of the darkness of the forest into a small beam of light. I usually see them in the winter, I had no idea that these birds of prey stayed in this area year round to raise there young. Out of the dark woods into the light, a great grey owl night flight in...

A quick outing from tonight, great skies, amazing clouds, 1000’s of mosquitos, all biting me. This old abandoned farmhouse just east of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.. Click to expand photo. Old abandoned Alberta farm photo by Rob McKay

More hawk photos from the field, some fast flying birds of prey captured in flight at just the righ moment and in just the right light conditions, rain clouds in the background. All photographed using the Nikon D300 with grip, nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR lens hand held at ISO 400. Click to expand images….. fast flying - hawks in motion wind ripping...

A tip from a friend on the location of a mating pair of northern harriers (A.K.A. Marsh Hawks) led to these photos.  I have been by the location a few times since, and only once have seen them. Either the young harriers have fledged, or the coyotes got to them. Northern harriers are ground nesters so raising young is a tough job, especially here in...

This is a large series of photos showing the immature yellow-headed blackbirds photographed in-flight eating what looks like emerging mosquitoes, or maybe some type of mayfly emerger? Whatever it is, these young birds had the know how to pick them off the waters surface! They would zoom in and scoop these insects off the surface of the pond by the mouthful. This...

The great gray owls seem to be everywhere this year, we can hear and sometimes see the fledgling great gray owls deep in the woods. Photographing them is tough in these low light conditions (no light), as the evening went on I had to keep pushing my ISO up and up, until the final photo was shot at 3200 ISO. See more great gray ow photos here! The first...

Found a few fledgling cedar waxwings the other evening, total of 5 in this late season brood. Even at this young age, these cedar waxwings have plenty of colour, just look at that bright yellow tail. These fledglings come late in the year and will no doubt have a hard time migrating this fall. The photo below is handheld, and nicely backlit using the 300mm f/2.8 VR lens..

I love these fast flying colorful little birds, the tree swallow that compete for nesting locations with the mountain blue birds are so much fun to photograph, like trying to shoot bats in flight. These small iridescent birds are best photographed on overcast days as they are so iridescent they are tough to expose for. The tree swallow beak, bored with me this colourful bird gives me a yawn... The iridescent tree swallow flying Tree swallow eating insects, including damselflies as photographed here The blue tree swallow in-flght Tree swallow close-up...

June 30th I photographed this great grey owl in flight in southern Alberta Canada as it flew out of the darkness of the forest into a small beam of light. I usually see them in the winter, I had no idea that these birds of prey stayed in this area year round to raise there young. Out of the dark woods into the light, a great grey owl night flight in southern Alberta Canada Hovering Great Grey Owl Inflight in southern Alberta Canada

More hawk photos from the field, some fast flying birds of prey captured in flight at just the righ moment and in just the right light conditions, rain clouds in the background. All photographed using the Nikon D300 with grip, nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR lens hand held at ISO 400. Click to expand images….. fast flying - hawks in motion wind ripping through his wings Swainson's hawks talons - Inflight action

A tip from a friend on the location of a mating pair of northern harriers (A.K.A. Marsh Hawks) led to these photos.  I have been by the location a few times since, and only once have seen them. Either the young harriers have fledged, or the coyotes got to them. Northern harriers are ground nesters so raising young is a tough job, especially here in southern Alberta where predators seem to be everywhere, in the air and on the ground.  Click the images to expand….. Head on flight photo of an adult male northern harrier In flight northern harrier,...

This is a large series of photos showing the immature yellow-headed blackbirds photographed in-flight eating what looks like emerging mosquitoes, or maybe some type of mayfly emerger? Whatever it is, these young birds had the know how to pick them off the waters surface! They would zoom in and scoop these insects off the surface of the pond by the mouthful. This black bird is just about to make the catch! immature yellow-headed black bird inflight-feeding on insects Close-up, a yellow-headed black bird with dinner in his yap Yellow-headed black...

The great gray owls seem to be everywhere this year, we can hear and sometimes see the fledgling great gray owls deep in the woods. Photographing them is tough in these low light conditions (no light), as the evening went on I had to keep pushing my ISO up and up, until the final photo was shot at 3200 ISO. See more great gray ow photos here! The first three gray owls below are photographed at 400 ISO and slow shutter speeds from 1/160th to to 1/500th of a second. All photos are handheld using the nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR. One large great gray owl...

The blue colour is almost unbelievable, shinny electric blue of the male mountain bluebird is something to see first hand! These iridescent birds are amazing to watch this time of year as they hunt for insects along a fence line. This adult male mountain bluebird in full breeding colors has caught what looks like a grub/larva or some sort of caterpillar and will no doubt be feeding it to his young once its softened up a bit See the female mountain bluebird here.. Click here for more mountain bluebird photos… Colorful Male Mountain Blue Birds...

Not as brightly colored as the male mountain blue bird, the female blue bird usually gets less attention from photographers, but not me! I love the subtle colors of the female birds, less iridescent than the male birds also means that they are also a bit easier to photograph. female mountain bluebirds, on a barbed wire fence Less shine on the female = less blown highlights in the photo…. female mountain bluebird photographed in a tree, close-up! A colorful female mountain bluebirds poses for a portrait shot female bluebird giving me the...

The Swainson’s Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) is about the size of the red-tailed hawk and this wild male bird photographed here is a light morph or light phase. In September, these birds of prey migrate all the way down to Argentina, after wintering in Argentina they head back to southern Albert in the spring, as this is the breeding range of the The Swainson’s Hawk. Photo of male swainson's hawk inflight These photos show the light phase adult male swainsosn’s hawks colour and feather detial. Back feather detail of an adult male...

June 30th I photographed this great grey owl in flight in southern Alberta Canada as it flew out of the darkness of the forest into a small beam of light. I usually see them in the winter, I had no idea that these birds of prey stayed in this area year round to raise there young. Out of the dark woods into the light, a great grey owl night flight in southern Alberta Canada Hovering Great Grey Owl Inflight in southern Alberta Canada

More hawk photos from the field, some fast flying birds of prey captured in flight at just the righ moment and in just the right light conditions, rain clouds in the background. All photographed using the Nikon D300 with grip, nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR lens hand held at ISO 400. Click to expand images….. fast flying - hawks in motion wind ripping through his wings Swainson's hawks talons - Inflight action

A tip from a friend on the location of a mating pair of northern harriers (A.K.A. Marsh Hawks) led to these photos.  I have been by the location a few times since, and only once have seen them. Either the young harriers have fledged, or the coyotes got to them. Northern harriers are ground nesters so raising young is a tough job, especially here in southern Alberta where predators seem to be everywhere, in the air and on the ground.  Click the images to expand….. Head on flight photo of an adult male northern harrier In flight northern harrier,...

The great gray owls seem to be everywhere this year, we can hear and sometimes see the fledgling great gray owls deep in the woods. Photographing them is tough in these low light conditions (no light), as the evening went on I had to keep pushing my ISO up and up, until the final photo was shot at 3200 ISO. See more great gray ow photos here! The first three gray owls below are photographed at 400 ISO and slow shutter speeds from 1/160th to to 1/500th of a second. All photos are handheld using the nikkor 300mm f/2.8 VR. One large great gray owl...

The Swainson’s Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) is about the size of the red-tailed hawk and this wild male bird photographed here is a light morph or light phase. In September, these birds of prey migrate all the way down to Argentina, after wintering in Argentina they head back to southern Albert in the spring, as this is the breeding range of the The Swainson’s Hawk. Photo of male swainson's hawk inflight These photos show the light phase adult male swainsosn’s hawks colour and feather detial. Back feather detail of an adult male...

Recent in-flight photos of one of my favorite owls, the great gray owl, photographed north west of Calgary, Alberta, Canada! These birds of prey are amazing looking owls, and can be seen year year round as they are residence in this location. The evening I photographed this great gay, we found a total of six. great gray owls, living in Alberta, Canada All are available in hi-res prints, canvas, matt or high gloss. Photos of a wild great grey owl inflight Showing the wing detail of a great gray owl in-flight

When I first saw the Swainsons hawk, these amazing birds of prey two years ago I was amazed at the colors of the adult male birds. Being originally from the east, the Toronto area I had never seen a Swainson’s hawk before so for me, a raptor fanatic photog, I was in heaven and had to get a photographs of them, lots and lots of photos! Here are a few photos from a week or so ago of an adult male swainson’s hawk in flight on his home range over the southern Alberta prairie looking for prairie dogs. swainsons hawk wings open flying over...

I photographed this wild great horned owl was photographed in flight just southwest of Calgary, Alberta, Canada using the Nikon 300mm f/2.8 VR lens and the Nikkor 1.4 TC (tele-converter). great-horned-owl-flight-alberta inflight great horned owl, Alberta Canada It was a great day, myself and fellow photographer and friend Mark Williams headed out early (5:30 am!) to photograph the…..

A few photos of two different northern hawk owls photographed in flight, from this winter, 2010 Alberta, Canada. Wanted to post these photos earlier, but totally forgot to! Anyway, lots more photos of these amazing hawk owls to come, but for now here are a few more from this winter. A northern hawk owl inflight, winter 2010, Alberta, Canada Winter hawk owl flying in low over the snow for a kill

Great horned owl fledglings at this time of year, wow, this is very early to see these little owls out and about, flying already too! While most great horned owls are still sitting on eggs, this family has three fully fledged youngsters. On the  left is a photo of the adult great horned owl in flight taken today in crappy light conditions. Below one of the fledglings owls. great horned owl inflight great horned owl fledgling Crow harassing adult great horned owl

Nature & wildlife photography means even bugs get photographed, this time a ladybug is captured in-flight, flying over a lemon! This ladybug was an extremely small one, about 1/2 the size of what must be an adult, if thats possible? I have a bunch of interesting photos of this little guy, but liked this one the best. An in-flight ladybug flying over a lemon, macro photography fun!

Photographed in June of this year, a baby red fox, or kit is seen here peeking out of his/her underground den. These little red foxes are (in my book anyway) one of the cutest animals alive, possibly too cute, if thats possible…. Last year there was 7 babies, not sure how many kits where born this year. Photographed just east of the city of Calgary.. A baby red fox kit photo from spring right beside his den

From a quick evening outing, about 30 min. into my walk I came across this shedding female coyote crossing a pond. She looks a bit chubby, maybe coyote pups are on the way this spring? A Calgary coyote stalking over the rocks photo

A large female gray wolf, also known as timber wolves.  I was lucky to get a chance to photograph this girl about a week go.. On the trail, a backlit gray wolf photo The stare of a gray timber wolf

Into our fourth week of great weather here in Calgary, these warn temps have made for an early spring here and the ground squirrels have awaken from their winter hibernation. Predators gather and arrive from southern parts of the world to feed on these small ground squirrels, including this male coyote. Crappy light, and what light I had was backlight. This photo shows a male coyote jumping/leaping for his next meal! Shot with the 300mm 2.8 VR and Nikon 1.4 TC at 1/500th, 400 ISO, handheld and VR set to stun Hunting Jumping Male Coyote

Over the last few days I have been getting out to shoot some macro, soon the bugs will be gone, or frozen solid anyway! The photo of a dragonfly on the left is from tonight, the dragonfly below was from yesterday. No tripods for these two macr photos as both are handheld.

I love macro photography and use extension tubes almost exclusively. I have dedicated macro lenses, but I like the distance I gain from the subject using a 300mm f/4 nikkor lens and extension tubes. The bug photo on the left is an example. I also use the 80-200mm f/2,8 and 35-70mm f/2.8 for closer macro work. its nice to be a few feet away from the subject, undisturbed bugs are a lot easier to photograph than trying to press a lens up against them! macro photography extension tube bugs ladybug & flower using 35-70mm f/2.8 lens and extension...

From a quick outing tonight, some good light and a summer buck deer with velvet antlers at sunset. Other beasts seen include a male oriole feeding two female fledglings, kingbirds, a mule deer mom looking after her two fawns, an american goldfinch and a kestrel hoisting a young starling off… A summer buck with velvet antlers

A tip from a fellow photog about a nearby fox den sent me flying down the road, and hopefully a chance to photograph these baby red foxes. Not one, but 7 red fox kits live here, wow! Mom and dad fox must be busy keeping these little ones fed.. Baby red fox kit Red Fox Puppy Looking out of his den A pair of red foxes near there den opening I saw three of the little kit red foxes this time, but here there are more, possible even seven of the little pups.

No, that beast on the left looking over the branches and clinging to the bark of the tree is not a samsquanch, a.k.a. bigfoot or sasquatch, it is a tree eating porcupine, in this case a very cute baby porcupine with a serious hairdo! I also ran into mom (ouch), or it could have been dad porcupine eating some buds off a tree close by. All these photos are from an quick evening outing on May the 2nd, wow do I have to catch up and start updating more often (wood duck series coming soon!). Adult male coopers flying by, fast!

A quick outing from tonight, great skies, amazing clouds, 1000’s of mosquitos, all biting me. This old abandoned farmhouse just east of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.. Click to expand photo. Old abandoned Alberta farm photo by Rob McKay

Adding a new category to my blog, old interiors & exteriors, ruins, rundown places that are dirty, rusty but interesting leaning architecture to photograph. This is the first set of images for the category and I hope you like these high contrast images. On the left is an old abandoned farm house found in the Alberta prairies, looking in through the door you will notice a few bed springs rolling around the floor and lots of pealing paint and what looks like wall paper? old farm house interior

Headed south east of Calgary this foggy wintery morning into the prairies to see the town of Mossleigh Alberta and some old buildings in and around the area. The fog was very thick so my landscape photos are limited to a few old abandoned farm buildings and one of the 3 Mossleigh silos (below) was photographed. Click to enlarge photos. Abandoned prairie homestead Mossleigh Alberta Silo Thanks to photographer Ken Bell for directions, we found lots of great things to see and do, thanks again Ken!

Some recent photos of rural Alberta taken east of Calgary in the badlands around Dorothy and Rowley Alberta Canada. Lots to explore and see here in Alberta and I am just touching the surface. The badlands, old ghost towns, prairies, mountains and foothills are all awe inspiring! These are just a few recent photos of rural Alberta over the past few weeks, more to come as I have taken over five thousand photos since arriving in this beautiful province of Alberta. Rowely Alberta Dorothy Alberta Canola fields east of Calgary Grain elevators Rowley...

These Alberta Badlands photographs are taken just outside the town of Drumheller and are from an earlier excursion to the ghost town of Dorothy located in Alberta’s Badlands.  A desolate landscape, the Alberta Badlands are a photographers dream come true! From the old coal mines and rugged lonely hills, the Badlands are as impressive as the Rocky Mountains and a must see location if you are ever in the area. These photos are from an earlier trip to the Alberta Badlands town of Dorothy posted here. The drive into the Badlands is amazing,...

Last weekend I visited the Alberta Badlands, toured through Drumheller, an old coal mine and ended up in Dorothy, EST 1895. The Badlands of Alberta are impressive and in my opinion, a MUST see location. The landscape is surreal, rugged and desolate. A few photos from the ghost town of Dorothy Alberta. Old Chrch in Dorothy Alberta Dorothy Grain Elevator