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December 2012 - Gaurav Mittal Photography

15

Dec

Karma – The Parakeet Auklet

As the year comes to a close I’m sitting here and reflecting on those moments that defined my progress as a Avian photographer, I had the privilege to visit places that I have always dreamed about and meet some very talented photographers. I have also met some incredibly dedicated pro’s without whom my own dreams would, well probably be just dreams. Alan Murphy and Greg Downing are two such pro’s who made this trip a memorable one.

While you may have seen this post on my Facebook page or Google + page, I’m re-posting this as an edit with an uncompressed image. I will be posting images with techniques and pointers in the coming weeks, however this post reflects emotional insight into the desire, effort and the eventual outcome involved in creating an image and how persistence will give you the desired results. Well, here is how it happened!

I’m a firm believer that things happen for a reason. It’s 9:00am and I’m packing my luggage, we have a flight to catch back to Anchorage. I’m seriously bummed out about my failure to capture a satisfying image of the Auklets in flight on this trip to St. Paul, Alaska. To make matters worse, the weather is miserable, cold, misty and rainy. Read more…

15

Dec

On Sacred Grounds

It is only fitting that my first blog post be about the place that gave me a sense of purpose in life, a reason to go on and discover my passion for birds and photographing them. I have just completed my first year as bird photographer and returned back to celebrate it at a place I consider my holy grail of bird photography, Bosque Del Apache National Refuge near Socorro New Mexico is that place which has so much to offer

The wetlands of Bosque attract wintering birds like the Sandhill Cranes, Snow Geese and various species of ducks, which are the primary attraction here. Up to a 100,000 birds fill the refuges wetland and agricultural fields. The refuge has two main loops, the North Loop and the South Loop, which are easily accessible by vehicle. The North loop is extremely popular with visitors and photographers alike for it’s spectacular sunrise and snow geese blast offs along the flight deck. As you move along, there are observation decks for viewing the masses of snow geese, ross’s geese, sandhill cranes and the spectacular landscapes.

It is a dream for any bird photographer to be able to visit this beautiful refuge and take advantage of the unending image making opportunities available. It is also my hope that the images I made here convey my feelings about this refuge that I have come to love and cherish as sacred. Read more…