Photochrome Camera Club

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The Palo Alto Baylands Wildlife Preserve is a great place to visit just about any time, but low tide really is a bonanza for wildlife photographers. Stilts, avocets, and other shore birds abound, and depending on the time of year, barn swallows and ground squirrels are there, Soon it’ll be nesting time for the Snowy Egrets and Black Crown Night Herons in the palm trees. When the time’s just right, the nesting birds can be photographed easily with a 200mm lens without disturbing them.

On April 24, 2008 there was some egret and night heron activity in the trees. Nearby, the avocets were in breeding plumage.

One way to get there: Take 101 to the Embarcadero turnoff in Palo Alto, go East on Embarcadero to the T intersection; turn left to the Duck Pond. The palm trees to the East of the pond are home to the nesting egrets. Bonus: lots of ducks (some itinerates) in the Duck Pond.

Here’s a photo opportunity for Bay Area photographers. Perhaps we’ll see some of the results of this occasion at a future Photochrome meeting.

Total Eclipse of the Moon
February 20, 2008
By Bing Quock, California Academy of Sciences

Weather-permitting, a lunar eclipse will be seen on the evening of Wednesday, February 20th. A lunar eclipse is what happens when the full moon slowly creeps through Earth’s deep-red shadow and turns a glowing copper-to-brick-red color. Whether the eclipse is total or partial depends on whether the Moon passes through the exact center of the shadow. This time, the eclipse is total, and, in fact, it’s the last total lunar eclipse visible until December 2010.

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This is a good time to get nice detailed pictures of Black Crowned Night Herons as they perch in the tree at the north end of the lagoon. The tree, leafless in December, has been their home for years. They look like candles as they sit upright on the bare branches. Later in the year, they will be camouflaged by thick greenery. Reflections from the lagoon can add to the fun. But late afternoon brings shadows to the tree. Majestic swans are a bonus. There is usually good parking on Baker Street. Here’s a map