During our last visit to Carnero Lake (kritterspaw.com/2020/08/16/carnero-lake/), we encountered some playful chipmunks.
I watched them for hours as they got used to me being there, as I inched closer and closer to them.
Once they got comfortable with me being there, I watched them run around and play, chase each other around the rocks and through the forest.
It’s amazing what you can get if you sit still long enough and exercise a little patience.
I think there’s a lesson there.
People often ask me, “what kind of camera do you have?” Or my favorite statement, “you must have a good camera!”
It reminds me of a story I heard some time ago, about the photographer who goes to a gourmet chef’s house for dinner.
The well known published photographer shows up at the woman’s house for dinner. The home owner & chef goes on about how beautiful his photographs are and as she invites him in she adds, ” I love you photographs. You must have a great camera.”
After a lovely evening and an amazing gourmet meal, as the photographer is leaving, he tells the woman how wonderful the meal was, and in parting “you must have a great oven!”
The right camera gear is essential, skill… is priceless.
This time a year, when you walk through the forest, the squirrel will ‘hawk’ at you… squawking incessantly. You are in their territory after all. This is their busy time. They are scurrying around ‘squirreling’ away nuts for the winter, filling crevices and holes throughout the forest – stuffed full of pinecones.
It seems every one in the forest is fattening up for the winter, readying themselves for those long cold winter months where food is scarce for these forest animals.
Including these hawks who were looking for those squirrels!
Everybody’s gotta eat!
We’re going through a bit of a drought on big animals. We’ve been to the rim a number of times, leaving early in the morning to catch good action. But they must be hiding someplace else. I hear bugling in our own neighborhood… but no elk to be photographed.
With no elk in sight, it’s time to turn the camera down. When given chipmunks, shoot chipmunks. I’ve had bad luck shooting chipmunks in the past. The smaller the animal the more fearsome it is. Since it’s prey, it doesn’t hang around long. They are very skittish. But I was determined to get a shot, so I set up my camera and waited.
I got a couple bunnies that weren’t too concerned about me, happily munching away on the plentiful grass the rain has brought.
Finally I got a couple chipmunks together in a little love bite, at least that’s what I’ll call it.
kritterspix 