Florida

Goodbye 2014

2014 is nearly in the books and I, for one, say good riddance. It was a year largely full of other commitments and little photography. I photographed sunrise on New Years Day and promptly broke the zoom ring on one of my lenses. Five months later, I dunked all of my gear in a river. Thankfully, most of the gear survived after a week of drying in a bag of rice but I did end up replacing one zoom lens with a new (used) copy and repairing my New Years Day lens a second time. My photography largely consisted of a week long trip to South Florida’s Gulf Coast during July 4th and a few day trips on either side of that. Despite the challenges of the past year, I have selected ten photos to highlight my year:

1.) The Storm – Sanibel Island, Florida
The Storm - Sanibel Island, Florida
Storm clouds are probably somewhat fitting given my year. Taken during my week long stay on Sanibel Island, Florida, these storm clouds developed during sunrise towards the end of my trip. Gotta love the short walk from the rented guesthouse to the beach!

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

2.) The Hills Are Alive – Leavenworth, Washington State
The Hills Are Alive - Leavenworth, Washington State
One of my regular outings during spring is a trip over the mountains to the Leavenworth area to photograph the balsamroot flower displays. This year, I timed the trip perfectly to explore a new location. An entire hillside of blooming flowers all to myself!

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

3.) Worth the Wait – Glacier Peak Wilderness
Worth the Wait - Glacier Peak Wilderness

My most recent outing which holds some special significance to me. This photo marks my return to Green Mountain in the Glacier Peak Wilderness. This location has largely been inaccessible for the last decade due to flood damage to the primary access road. Green Mountain was one of the first locations that I was taken to by friends once I moved up to Washington State. Once the road was finally repaired, I had to visit this place once again. Just visiting once again would have been enough but the sunset on this day turned out to be pretty spectacular.

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

4.) Sanibel Storm – Sanibel Island, Florida
Sanibel Storm - Sanibel Island, Florida

During my visit to Florida, I got to experience several nights of “heat lightning.” The heat and humidity of the daylight hours turns into lightning offshore during the overnight hours. It was quite mesmerizing standing on the beach watching the constant lightning strikes. Thankfully, I was never in any danger while outside photographing it. I’ve only tried photographing lightning once before so I got plenty of practice!

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

5.) Gotcha – J. N. ‘Ding’ Darling National Wildlife Refuge
Gotcha - J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge

I’m not much of a wildlife photographer but love to photograph it given the opportunity. During my trip to Florida, the J. N. ‘Ding’ Darling National Wildlife Refuge was just five minutes away from where we were staying. I only was able to make two trips to the refuge but enjoyed the time.

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

6.) Stranglehold – Big Cypress National Preserve
Stranglehold - Big Cypress National Preserve

For our trip to Florida, We actually flew in and out of Fort Lauderdale and doubled back via car to Sanibel Island. Rather than take the quicker I-75, we opted for US-41 which took us through Big Cypress National Preserve. This Strangler Fig caught my eye during our quick stop at Kirby Storter Roadside Park.

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

7.) Aurora Not-at-all-us – Mount Baker
Aurora Not-at-all-us - Mount Baker

At the end of this past summer, a promising aurora alert was issued after a solar flare and, for once, it coincided with clear skies. I staked it out for two nights but alas, the auroras never came. I was left with a few nice nighttime photos of Mount Baker and a couple newly scouted locations.

8.) Origins – Sanibel Island, Florida
Origins - Sanibel Island, Florida

This photo was taken in the pre-dawn minutes the same morning as photo #1. The heat lightning from the previous night was finally dying down but not before a few more strikes during the advancing light of the new day.

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

9.) Supermoon Reflection – Heather Meadows
Supermoon Reflection - Heather Meadows

I swore I would never photograph Mount Shuksan from Picture Lake. The scene is SO tired and has been photographed to death. As it turned out, I stopped by the lake on a whim suggestion by my friend after we had photographed the super moon’s rise at sunset. No one was present and the mist rising off the lake provided the qualities I was seeking to set my photo apart from the thousands (if not millions) of other Picture Lake photos.

10.) Lava Lamp – Baring Mountain
Lava Lamp - Baring Mountain

This photo is just one photo from a series taken during a spectacular sunrise this fall. It was actually the culmination of repeated sunrise attempts at this particular location. The vindication was especially satisfying!

More photos from this trip can be found in my blog post here.

So there are my ten photos. I also continued my tradition throughout the year of shooting time lapses with my GoPro camera. Here’s a recap video I put together from my Florida trip:

Florida Gulf Coast – July 2014 from Steve Cole on Vimeo.

Florida Skies

Dramatic clouds after sunrise, Sanibel Island, Florida
Sunset from Turner Beach, Sanibel Island, Florida
To close out my small series of blog posts about my trip to Florida, I’ve saved what might be the best for last- those Florida skies. I don’t want to say that I took it as a given that there would be some great sunsets and sunrises during our stay but- I kinda did. We’d be staying on Sanibel Island’s Gulf side which faces west so it’s like shooting fish in a barrel, right? Err- sort of.

What I ended up learning during my week there was that sunrises and sunsets had different challenges. Sanibel Island (and Captiva Island which is connected by a small bridge) is shaped like a banana. Our lodging for the week was the Island Inn (which I cannot recommend highly enough) and it faces almost due south. This small point was driven home during our first afternoon when the setting sun went down directly over the beach on our right side. Sanibel Island is a popular tourist destination so I wanted to minimize my chances of people appearing in my compositions and this meant I would have to figure out some alternate locations for sunsets.
Sunset from Captiva Beach, Sanibel Island, Florida
Clouds, Stars, Lightning, and the Milky Way, Sanibel Island, Florida
Sunrise over San Carlos Bay from Lighthouse Beach Park, Sanibel Island, Florida
Sunsets
The biggest challenge with shooting sunsets from Sanibel Island is going to be that, for the majority of the beaches, the sun sets directly above the shore break. On a tourist heavy location like Sanibel, this means that you’re going to have people in your compositions. In order to have photos with the sun setting over the Gulf, you’ll need to head north to Sanibel Island where the beaches have more of a western aspect. On one particular afternoon, there weren’t any good clouds to the west but there was a huge thunderhead towards the south out over the Gulf. If you find yourself in similar conditions, consider heading to the south end of Sanibel Island to the Lighthouse Beach Park. I was able to photograph the thunderhead with side lighting from sunset and this worked out quite well. There’s potentially another option but I don’t have experience with it. I’ve seen some nice “sunset” photos taken within Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. The problem is that the refuge closes a half hour before sunset so I don’t know feasible this is.

Sunrises
This is more problematic than sunsets. Unless you’re staying someplace on the bay side of the island, public access to the bay side is pretty limited. Ding Darling would be nice for sunrise but it doesn’t open until after actual sunrise. The sure shot is to photograph the western beaches and just enjoy the backlight that any offshore clouds would embrace. The previously mentioned Lighthouse Beach Park provided the best bay side waterfront access I could muster during my week there. There is some driftwood present that can provide foreground interest along with some living trees/shrubs. The view back across San Carlos Bay is pretty open with only a faint display of development (2 or 3 high rises). The biggest downside to this location were the people collecting seashells. Despite the early hour there was a steady stream of people and they didn’t really care about photographers set up & taking photographs.
Sunset from Bowman's Beach, Sanibel Island, Florida
Setting sun from Bowman's Beach, Sanibel Island, Florida
Thunderhead over the Gulf of Mexico, Bowman's Beach, Sanibel Island, Florida
All that being said, here’s my quick rundown on the various locations I utilized:

  • Lighthouse Beach Park-
  • Pros: Good for sunrise; good for certain sunsets (storm clouds over Gulf); plenty of parking; not as crowded
  • Cons: Sea shell hunters numerous and oblivious/uncaring about photographers
  • Bowman’s Beach Park-
  • Pros: Lots of Parking; 4 miles of beach so lots of opportunities; Easy to loose the majority of people with a short hike up the beach; located at start of island’s aspect change to due west
  • Cons: Still faces a little too much towards the southwest; tire tracks in beach sand (from sea turtle monitoring 4WD vehicles)
  • Turner Beach-
  • Pros: Westernmost- facing aspect for Sanibel Island proper; short hike north to lose the sunset crowds
  • Cons: Limited parking on either side of bridge; lots of people immediately on either side of Blind Pass
  • Captiva Beach (Captiva Island)
  • Pros: Westernmost facing aspect that you can get on Sanibel/Captiva Island
  • Cons: Lots of people near parking lot so short hike south needed to find a thinner spot along the beach; potential for people walking through your frame; parking limited

Sunrise over San Carlos Bay from Lighthouse Beach Park, Sanibel Island, Florida
Thunderhead over the Gulf of Mexico at sunset, Lighthouse Beach Park, Sanibel Island, Florida
Thunderhead over the Gulf of Mexico at sunset, Lighthouse Beach Park, Sanibel Island, Florida
If all of that isn’t enough to keep you busy, there is also the opportunity for some storm photography! The high humidity of Florida generates afternoon thunderstorms and something called heat lightning. Several evenings, after 10pm, I noticed regular flashes of lightning out over the Gulf. I spent about an hour each of these evenings photographing the stars, lighting, and the Gulf. I was skeptical that I would be able to see the Milky Way given all the development up and down the Gulf Coast but I was successful! Except for the bites from sand fleas, I could have sat there for hours watching the lightning and listening to the waves lapping the shore.

As I learned, the trick was to get into rhythm with the lightning. Once you’re in sync with the lightning’s timing, you’ll start getting a lot of photos with lighting. Once you’re set up, wait for the first lightning strike. After it flashes, wait another 2-3 seconds and then click the shutter for a long exposure. This should get you in sync with the lightning. You always won’t be so lucky, though. During my sunset shoot at Lighthouse Beach Park, the thunderhead over the Gulf also had lightning striking the water for over a half hour. Despite my best attempts, neither my SLR or my GoPro shooting a time lapse could successfully capture any of the strikes. That was very, very frustrating!
Heat lightning over the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island, Florida
Heat lightning at dawn over the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island, Florida
Dramatic morning clouds over the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island, Florida
Heat lightning at dusk over the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island, Florida
Heat lightning over the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island, Florida
That pretty much wraps up my trip to Florida. I didn’t know what to expect and, although I certainly felt flustered and overwhelmed at times, the trip and opportunities far exceeded any expectations I had. Finally, I’ll leave you with this compilation of the various time lapses I shot during my various sunrise & sunset sessions. Enjoy!

Florida Gulf Coast – July 2014 from Steve Cole on Vimeo.

Florida’s Natural World

Pond Cypress forest scene at Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Collier County, Florida
It’s hard to deny the importance of Florida’s landscape on a global scale. Thirty percent of all bird species found in North America have been sighted passing through the greater Sanibel Island area. The same conditions that attract all those birds also attracts another species- humans. Typically, when nature and humans compete for the same land, humans typically win. Sanibel Island, however, bucks that trend and did so long before conservation came to mainstream America. If you’re not familiar with the development history of Sanibel / Captiva Islands, it is well summarized in the nature guidebook Living Sanibel. The Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, located in nearby Collier County, is about 29 miles to the southeast of Sanibel Island and is HUGE- nearly 13,000 acres in size. Nearly half of that acreage had been already preserved by 1955, and the rest followed in the subsequent years.

Unlike the Ding Darling Refuge on Sanibel Island, the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is privately owned and managed by the National Audubon Society. From the visitor’s center, just over 2 miles of elevated boardwalk trail traverse through five different “ecosystems”: pine flatwoods, wet prairie, Pond cypress, Bald cypress, and the central marsh. Our visit in July was outside of any “peak” visitation by migrating birds but don’t let something like that from deterring you from visiting. We were not able to visit the sanctuary first thing in the morning so we saw less wildlife than we might have otherwise. The afternoon thunderstorms were beginning to establish and the combination of the sounds of distant thunder and insects in the wet prairie were very peaceful and mesmerizing.
Swamp Lily (Crinum americanum) at Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Collier County, Florida
Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei) at Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Collier County, Florida
Barred Owl (Strix varia) at Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Collier County, Florida
The swampy landscape and “tropical” nature of the plants were very foreign to my familiar surroundings back in the Pacific Northwest. The land is very intricate & complex and that makes it quite difficult to pre-visualize compositions. Now add 85% humidity, 90° F temperatures, and mosquitoes and you have a struggle on your hands. I gambled on just using a monopod and, in a situation like the swamp where I wanted to also incorporate some landscape photography, I didn’t do so well. A traditional tripod support would have improved the quality of some of my opportunities. The beauty of the surroundings was obvious and I appreciated it; I just had trouble capturing it. I think the key to recognize it, admit it, and move on. I can always make a return visit so it’s not worth ruining one’s enjoyment in the moment.

The “noise” which made it hard for me to make sense of everything also enabled me to walk right past a Barred Owl just mere feet away from the boardwalk! Thankfully, the people I was with made sure I was aware of it on the return trip back to the visitors center. The owl seemed fine with the attention and didn’t show any signs of uncomfort at my presence. I still gave it space and used the length of my 500mm lens to bridge the gap. I was able to photograph the owl for several minutes before I needed to catch up with my group. During our brief stay, we barely scratched the surface of what Corkscrew has to offer; I hoped to make a second visit during our stay (the entrance fees are good for 2 consecutive days) but that did not work out. I will have to make another visit in the future.
Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) & crab, J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Back on Sanibel Island, the heart of the island’s natural world is the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. While it’s not as big as Corkscrew, it’s still over 6,400 acres in size (2,800 of which are federally designated wilderness). The majority of this land is on Sanibel’s bay side and it’s focal point is the 4 mile long one-way road which traverses through some of those lands. The road makes its way through the mangrove forest which is broken up by several large expanses shallow water that the road bisects. I made two visits to the refuge on the same day- once at late morning and then later in the day around 4pm.

The noon visit was very quiet, except for the noseeums (or sand fleas) which attacked me voraciously. A local photographer whom I had met earlier at sunrise warned me about them but they focused their attack on whatever skin that was left exposed. This was not fun! I would echo the photographer’s recommendation of long sleeves & long pants but would add some DEET or other bug spray to help ward off these relentless foes. I was advised to either visit the refuge before 10am or after 4pm and that seemed to ring true. At midday, the refuge was pretty quiet and most wildlife is off somewhere else. Despite this fact, I still managed to quickly see an alligator, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, and a little later, a Snowy Egret up close.
Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens) pursuing a Longnose Gar (Lepisosteus osseus), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) and prey, J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
A bit dejected, I returned to where we were staying for the week to relax and wait for the late afternoon. Sure enough, my return visit in the late afternoon was a different story. Maybe it was the DEET but the noseeums weren’t eating me alive which allowed me to relax a bit more and focus on photography. The water levels were lower and the birds were more active and closer in than before. I was able to enjoy the hunting ritual of the Reddish Egret as well as Yellow-crowned Night-Heron & Little Blue Heron. I eventually developed a shadow- another wildlife photographer with a 3 foot long prime lens of undetermined length. I’d stop- he’d stop. I’d pass him, he’d pass me and so on and so on.

If I saw him stopped, it was a pretty good sign that something was nearby. Towards the end of the wildlife drive, I came upon his parked car and the photographer was behind the opened hatch of his SUV and he was pointing his mighty lens up the road. I creeped a little forward in my car and finally saw what he was photographing- a river otter. The otter was on the road, drinking from a rain puddle. I immediately parked and tried to get out & access my camera from the trunk from my rental car as quickly (and silently) as possible. About the moment I turned the lens towards the otter ahead of us, another car pulled up behind me. It paused for a few seconds, and then proceeded to drive past us towards the otter. As you can guess, this spooked the otter which ran off into the brush. A huge missed opportunity!

I only got a brief glimpse at what this area has to offer. I can only imagine what the area is like during the height of spring migrations. A trip earlier in the year would yield far great opportunities and that’s something I would like pursue in the future.
Juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) and reflection, J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja), J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) and reflection, J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida
Juvenile Heron and crab, J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida

To the Gulf!

Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), Everglades National Park, Florida
Florida- a place I had never been before and someplace I only knew from stereotypes and jokes- retirees, oranges, heat, humidity, big bugs, presidential election snafus. Earlier this July, I had my first opportunity to visit the Sunshine State. My girlfriend’s family was having a family reunion of sorts during the July 4th week and they picked Sanibel Island for the location. The island is located off the coast of Fort Myers on Florida’s Gulf Coast and is connected to the mainland via bridge. The island has a bit of an interesting history and is fairly progressive in terms of recognizing the value of balancing development and natural spaces. The history is nicely recapped in the guidebook Living Sanibel (Amazon link), which I would highly recommend if you’re considering a trip to the area.

As I tend to do before any trip, I spent some time before the trip researching and trying to figure out where and what to photograph. Our flight to Florida was through Fort Lauderdale on the Atlantic side so a we would be traveling through the Everglades on our way to Sanibel. Once in the Sanibel area, a trip to the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge was a given. In addition to Ding, the Audubon Society has preserved a huge Cypress swamp called the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary which is located back on the mainland in nearby Collier County. Outside of that, sunrises and sunsets would be a given!
Juvenile Green Heron (Butorides virescens), Everglades National Park, Florida
Water reflections, Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Stiff-leaved Wild Pine (Tillandsia fasciculata), Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Obviously, wildlife photography would be a major part of my photographic journeys but that posed a bit of a gear dilemma for me since I would be flying to Florida. I would be bringing my “Bigma” lens but that is too heavy to use well with a normal tripod. I have a very sturdy Induro tripod with matching gimbal head but that would present a packing challenge for my luggage. After thinking about it, I decided to gamble on another solution- a monopod. I picked up a Manfrotto 681B with a matching Manfrotto 234RC tilting head a week before our trip. Unlike the Induro option, I didn’t have to disassemble anything to fit it into my luggage. I had never used a monopod before so I was nervous and hoped it would work out.

Fast forward a couple days and I found myself trying to get out of the general Miami-Dade area (I managed to leave my Garmin Nav at home. Doh!) Rather than take I-75 for the quick trip through Alligator Alley, we opted for the more southern and scenic US Route 41 (also known as the Tamiami Trail). That route offers a number of airboat tours and we decided to stop at one called Gator Park. The tours are about 20-30 minutes long and reservations didn’t seem needed. Our airboat operator was easy going and was knowledgeable. It was a good value and I was able to get a great, close photo of a juvenile green heron. FYI- be prepared to get a little wet (so have a water resistant cover handy for your camera) because the 360 degree spins during the “high speed” part of your tour will throw up some water!
Scene along the New River, Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Boardwalk scene at Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Strangler Fig (Ficus aurea) and Cypress, Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Continuing our push west, I had hoped to take the Loop Road located in Big Cypress National Preserve but the Loop Road is a nearly 30 mile drive on a slow speed dirt road. It would have to wait for another day. A nearby attraction that was a quick visit was the Kirby Storter Roadside Park. It’s cross between a rest stop and interpretive trail. The latter takes the form of a half mile elevated boardwalk that ends in a mature Cypress forest (This page provides a nice description of the trail). I found it to be quite nice, save for the humidity and mosquitoes. Probably owing to the fact that it does look just like a rest stop, we had the whole boardwalk all to ourselves during our visit. We didn’t see much in the way of wildlife but I realize that this may be due to the time of year of our visit (the wet season).

Afternoon showers threatened during our brief stay at Kirby Storer but stayed away. After a long travel day (including a red eye flight), we finally headed west to our eventual destination for the week: Sanibel Island. This is just the start to all the photos from my trip so look for even more in a couple future blog posts!
Boardwalk Scene at Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Boardwalk Scene at Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida
Open Prairie at Kirby Storter Roadside Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida

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