Heading Out Again!

"Choke Hold"                                      ©SandyZelasko, InvestInNature.org 

Four leks, multiple species and early mornings in my future. Not looking forward to getting out of a warm bed at 3 AM but that is what it takes to beat the birds to the lek.

The image above was taken early morning when the action was picking up. Two male greater prairie chickens in battle over a female who is out of frame. Notice the top bird has a strangle hold around the neck of the lower bird, who is almost off the ground. Action, behavior and story wrapped up in one image. Shot with a Canon R3, RF 600mm f/4 L IS USM Lens at f/5.6, 1/4000, ISO 1250. No birds were harmed during the encounter.

I'll be at the same lek this April leading two photo workshops where we will gather to discuss tips and rules about shooting at a lek (if you don't know what a lek is check out this link: https://chicksonagrousetrip.blogspot.com/2022/04/what-is-lek-anyway.html then we will spend multiple mornings and evenings capturing bird portraits, interactions and details such as feather patterns. Mornings provide us front/side lit opportunities while the evenings we photograph backlit and rim lighting on our subjects.

Stay tuned, keep watching and make sure to subscribe for new stories from our up and coming adventures. This year Christine and I will be studying the Bi-State greater sage grouse, a species found in Northern California along the California Nevada border. 

Until then ...
You can inquire about 2027 grouse workshops at https://www.investinnature.org/.
Thanks for reading and feel free to share! Sandy  

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