As I mentioned recently, squirrels are by far the most common visitors to my camera traps. Here are a few action shots, one from back in April and one from a few weeks ago.
Top Shot: Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 500, f/14 at 1/160th of a second.
Bottom Shot: Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 20mm) ISO 500, f/14 at 1/200th of a second, Cognisys camera box, trail monitor, and remote flashes.
Usually when an elk wanders into frame it’s a good thing. In this case, not so much. I was in Zion National Park and caught this gray fox early in the morning, posing on several fallen trees before heading out to hunt for voles. As for the elk, she stuck around for a few shots where she was the center of attention. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 3200, f/4 at 1/160th of a second.
The nose-horned chameleon is very small (they average 1 to 2.5 inches in length). Not a lot is known about this species. I came across this one on a night hike in Ranomafana National Park in central Madagascar. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 105mm with Canon 500D close up filter) ISO 400, f/20 at 1/60th of a second, two Nikon SB-600 flash units.
A northern cardinal dropped in for a visit today. The birds are always a nice surprise when they show up at the camera trap. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 500, f/14 at 1/160th of a second, Cognisys camera box, trail monitor and remote flashes.
I see a family of raccoons just about every night in my backyard, giving me time to try different lighting at my camera trap. The strongest light in this image is coming from behind the log, but I also have two other reduced-power flashes hanging from tree branches to the right and in front of the raccoon. Now I just need to get her posing with her two young. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 500, f/14 at 1/160th of a second, Cognisys camera box, trail monitor and flash units.
I’ve said it before but it bears repeating — you have to see an albatross to appreciate an albatross. They’re that big. This black-browed albatross was doing her best to see herself in the front element of my wide-angle lens. Photographed on Saunders Island in the Falklands.Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 400, f/7.1 at 1/250th of a second.
Can never have too many dancing bear posts. This time polar bears wasting time while they wait for the Hudson Bay to freeze over so they can go hunt seals. Photographed at Seal River in Manitoba, Canada. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/640th of a second.
Far from ideal lighting conditions on this one, but it’s a jaguar and I’ll take what I can get. I photographed this in the Pantanal of Brazil eleven years ago from the safety of a boat. I only saw three or four jaguars on that week-long visit. I’ve heard from others that things have changed drastically due to an explosion of tourism in the area and sightings are a lot more common these days. The theory being that the jags have become habituated to all the activity, which is always a double-edged sward. That said, I’d love to make my way back at some point and try again. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (with 1.4 teleconverter for 550mm) ISO 800, f/7.1 at 1/1600th of a second.
The brown mouse lemur is one of the smallest primates in the world, although it isn’t the smallest lemur. That honor goes to the pygmy mouse lemur. But this guy is pretty small, as you can see from the piece of fruit there that was about the size of a lemon. I have no idea what that fruit is, but the lemur sure seemed to know what it was all about. Photographed on the island of Nosy Mangabe, which is off the east cast of the island nation of Madagascar. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second, two Nikon SB-600 flash units.
Several years back on Merritt Island in Florida, I met a few armadillos. This guy had no problem with my close approach and kept on doing his thing while I snapped away with my wide angle lens. Nikon D700 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 22mm) ISO 800, f/3.2 at 1/320th of a second.