John Guilford's Photo Gallery: People and critters

Pictures of people, birds, and animals

All rights reserved. These images are not to be used or copied without my prior written permission.

Unless otherwise noted, through 2011 all pictures taken by me with a Nikon D70 camera.
Depending on the focal length, the lens is most likely either the Nikkor 18-70mm AF-S or the Sigma 70-300mm DG APO.
Starting in 2012, I switched to the Nikon D7000 with either the Nikon 18-105VR lens or the Nikon 70-300 VR lens.
In early 2013 I added the Nikon Micro 85mm lens.

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Backyard Hummingbird
Date: 09-May-2012 Time: 2:31:53 PM Exp: 1/200s @ f/9.0 ISO: 200 Lens: 300.00mm Meter: Aperture Priority		This has been a good year for hummingbirds at our house with four plus birds buzzing (humming?) around our feeders. They are brave little birds and didn't mind my sitting 5 feet away on the deck photographing them. This guy was in the full sun, and the dark tree trunk in the background was in the shade, so the background appears black. I like the detail in the feathers that you can see in this image as well as his stunning coloration.

Snowy Owl with Heron
It is rare for normally Arctic snowy owls to visit Washington state. This year an irruption of owls have been visiting. While photographing the owls along the north shore of Boundary Bay in British Columbia, a heron walked by behind the owl. This photo is a collage of three separate pictures (there weren't really three herons, it is the same one three times).		Date: 11-Feb-2012 Time: 1:35 PM Exp: 1/640s @ f/9 ISO: 200 Lens: 300mm

Colorado Hummingbird
Date: 29-Jul-2010 Time: 2:46:53 PM Exp: 1/250s @ f/7.1 ISO: 400 Lens: 220.00mm Meter: Manual Flash: Flash fired; Auto mode		A hummingbird in Grand Lake, Colorado. This shot used a combination of existing light and an electronic flash to capture the detail of the bird as well as give some indication of motion. You can see a little drop on the bottom of its beak from the drink it just took in the feeder. Even with the feeder to attract them, they were still hard to capture in flight.

Alpine Slide
Winter Park, Colorado is home to the longest alpine slide in the state, dropping 610 vertical feet over 3000 feet of length. An alpine slide is a track down the side of ski mountain similar to a concrete bobsled run. You take a chair lift up to the top and ride down in a little sled. The sled normally slides on teflon runners, though you can push the control stick forward to drop wheels to speed up. Conversely, if you pull back on the stick rubber blocks drop to slow you down. This is a view from the start, heading into the first turn. Both my wife and I found the ride exhilarating and had to go down several times.		Date: 28-Jul-2010 Time: 3:37:18 PM Exp: 1/125s @ f/7.1 ISO: 400 Lens: 70.00mm Meter: Aperture Priority

Rufous Hummingbird
Date: 16-Apr-2009 Time: 2:07:13 PM Exp: 1/500s @ f/13.0 ISO: 400 Lens: 195.00mm Meter: Manual Flash: Flash fired; Auto mode		Hummingbirds are delightful creatures to watch and listen to, but they can be difficult to photograph due to their speed. I shot this Rufous hummingbird at Yellowpoint Lodge on Vancouver Island. I needed to use my SB800 electronic flash to prevent his wings from blurring too much. I spent about 45 minutes waiting for birds to come near the feeder. Since I didn't know where one would hover, I had to hand hold the camera and try to focus and shoot quickly when a bird came by. This shot came out the sharpest of my attempts and had the feature of showing off some of the iridescence of his throat feathers.

Multiple Personality Self Portrait
While vacationing at Yellowpoint Lodge we stayed in one of the Cliff Cabins above the water. There were so many things to do! I had a hard time deciding. Clearly I was just having some fun here. The picture is the composite of seven different photos. I set the camera on a tripod and used manual exposure and focus so that those parameters wouldn't change between images. I then used a IR remote to trigger the camera after a few second self-timer delay. I had a little trouble due to the light varying a bit between pictures, but for the most part the light didn't change all much. I think I ended up wearing almost all the different clothing I had brought with me on the trip.		Date: 16-Apr-2008 Time: 11:20:01 AM Exp: 1/250s @ f/6.3 ISO: 200 Lens: 31.00mm Meter: Manual Flash: Flash fired; Auto mode

Skagit Eagle Taking Wing
Date: 21-Jan-2008 Time: 1:45:39 PM Exp: 1/200s @ f/10.0 ISO: 400 Lens: 270.00mm Meter: Manual		In the winter, eagles come down from Alaska to feed along river banks in the Northwest. A good place to see them is along the Skagit River in northwest Washington. On a rare cloudless day, I drove up there to do some eagle watching. I set up my camera and tripod while this bird was perched on the branch. I'd taken several shots and was waiting to see if he'd do anything. I didn't even have my eye to the viewfinder when he turned, spread his wings and took off. I quickly fired off three shots, and it wasn't until I reviewed the images later that I saw that I had gotten lucky with this one.

E.B. At Wawawai
On the banks of the Snake River Canyon about 15 miles southwest of Pullman, WA one finds the Wawawai County Park. In the heat of August it makes a cool place to retreat to. While visiting our daughter, E.B., in Pullman, we spent the afternoon at the park, and this picture was one of the results.		Date: 04-Aug-2007 Time: 2:24:54 PM Exp: 1/200s @ f/7.1 ISO: 200 Lens: 70.00mm Meter: Aperture Priority Flash: Flash fired; Auto mode

E.B. and the Lorikeet
Date: 24-May-2007 Time: 11:41:32 AM Exp: 1/80s @ f/10.0 ISO: 200 Lens: 70.00mm Meter: Aperture Priority Flash: Flash fired; Auto mode		Lion Country Safari is a game park in Loxahatchee, Florida. In addition to the drive-through part of the park, there is an enclosed cage full of Lorikeets. We could enter the aviary and meet the birds. We could also (for a token fee) buy some nectar in a little cup for them to eat. One particular lorikeet took a liking to my daughter E.B.. The bird particularly liked her earring. I just love the look on her face.

Monkey
While on safari in the Tarangire National Park in Tanzania I saw this little monkey, half hidden, peering out from the crook of a tree. I just like the look in his eye and his tail hanging out which makes me wonder what he's thinking?		Date: 24-Oct-2006 Time: 3:54:56 PM Exp: 1/320s @ f/6.3 ISO: 400 Lens: 135.00mm Meter: Aperture Priority