Off Season

[jimitoucan]

Okay, Fall colors are over, mostly, and Winter hasn't hit, yet.

Everything is looking gray, including my attitude.

 

 

So what's your favorite place to shoot in the off season? Why?

 

I might have a few days after TG to play, Northern California. Coast is okay, but I was thinking of something new. Any ideas?

 

Have a great holiday, and don't forget...shots happen!

 

Jim

[tonybynum]

jim, here's some ideas:

 

waterfowl, northern cali and southern oregon are starting to see numbers. . . mule deer, whitetail, bighorn sheep, all are rutting right now, this is the peak of the season. You've got some great images on your site, i'm surprised you're trying to figure out what to shoot, if youre in northern cali, the sky is the limit for wildlife. . .

[sandysocks]

I love the coast, but rock doesn't change with the season and the light just gets better as we move toward the winter solstice. For example, Bryce, Zion, Yosemite.

[Carl Stone]

The central valley may very well be fogged in after TG, it's a hit or miss situation. The fog can last for days on end, there are no rules here.

My advice would be to remain flexible, and see what the weather allows during your visit.

 

Monterey is a colorful place to shoot, and I would give that a serious look, weather permitting. Crowds should be down everywhere due to

the colder weather, so that is a plus in some ways. Napa Valley also offers some great photo opportunities, but again, all depends on the

weather.

[alex_lofquist]

Macros, indoors.

[Two23]

"Off Season?" What in tarnation are you talking about? We've already had one blizzard and the lakes are freezing over. THE season is beginning NOW! Winter is absolutely, positively the best time of year for photography. We have awesome blizzards, lakes frozen two feet thick, low & moody skies, blinding sunny f22 days, frozen waterfalls, crisp clear 30 below zero air with NO haze. And then in February we start get days and days of ice fog, turning the world into a fairland? OH MAN, I LIVE FOR FEBRUARY! The best days of the year are directly ahead. Off season? That's June when the bugs are out.

 

 

Kent in SD<div></div>

[jdrose]

The animals seem to be more active in the gray weather.

 

I've been heading down to the Potomac to take pictures of the waterfowl. The lighting is a real challenge but the lack of contrast is certainly nice. Something I am not used to.

 

I was crossing the bridge into Maryland outside of Hagerstown and saw a deer swimming in the Potomac. I sure hope to see that when I have a camera handy. On gray winter days look for form, tone, strong subjects and intimate details. Load up on some black & white film. Go with it.

 

I took this at the Sleep Creek WMA.<div></div>

[jimitoucan]

Thanks all.

Tony, just an exercise to find out if I'm missing something. I'm always looking for new ideas. Waterfowl is on the top of my list,

Sandhill Cranes are arriving and I'm thinking of Consumes, Modesto, and Isenberg. Thanks for the kind words.

 

Kent, we still have 60 degree weather in the Sierras. No snow, ice or fog. Just warm days, no leaves (except for the evergreens).

I love the winter, too, in Costa Rica;-) (is that a dead fox? Still Life is one of my favorite subjects)

 

Carl, I love to shoot in the fog. Very moody.

 

Thanks again.

[thomas semesky]

When it comes to nature photography I've always appreciated the location of where I live. Here in Northwest Indiana

we have the Indiana Dunes. When there is nothing to be found in the woods you can always hike over to the dunes

area and find something to shoot year round. Blowing sand, storms coming in off of Lake Michigan, waves crashing

on the beach, spectacular views etc.

 

Also anyone living near one of the Great Lakes knows about the lake effect snow. Just two days ago, we were

mostly sunny here in Lake County, Indiana while our neighboring counties to the east (Porter and LaPorte) got

anywhere from 8 to 10 inches of snow. Southwest Michigan also got hit hard.

 

While the newscasts were reporting on all the snow to the east, nearby Chicago was bathed in sun all day. By-the-

way, people in Chicago were treated to site of the "Michigan Mountains", so called because the lake effect storms

over Michigan/Lake Michigan do look like a mountain range. It is quite spectacular when viewing them from sunny

Chicago, giving people on the Illinois side an opportunity to shoot some nature during this time of the year!

 

Tom

[bob_bill]

Jim, we have had patchy fog the last few days in the central valley/sac and it has been in the 70's but should be coming into fog season soon. We are getting some good clouds instead of the plain blue we have for 6 months. Try Night shooting in the fog with strobes and gels . Mood, color at my finger tips, light in my control. Sweet. Time exposures of landscapes, oh yeah. The grass is always greener, I have been considering driving there to shoot Pyramid lake after I finish some business there. Sandhills are pretty thick in the Consumnes but bring some long glass. Kent, nice "shot." Almost enough to make me replace the double AA's in the elastic holders in my vest with 12 guage that used to reside there. Isnt it like a photographer to love that dramatic weather! Jim, Good evening tide at Pt Reyes thanksgiving night. Then consider continuing with some time night seascapes after dark. The guy on the beach with the lights and umbrellas if wind is low, that would be me.

[Carl Stone]

Fog is fine unless it's a pea souper, then it's not so fine. Having spent most of my life living in the central valley, Stockton, I don't miss

driving in it. That includes getting to and from a photo location. That's what I was talking about in my previous post, not the patchy stuff.