Spring is in the air

[brewmaster15]

Spring is in the air....hmmm..water I guess


Still on the tail end of Winter here in CT. Had a few warmer days and the spring peepers are out in full force. I have always wanted some good photos of them but they are a real pain. First they are dark bodied to make the most of the suns energy while swimming in Icy cold water. I say icy cold because these guys come out as soon as the ice starts to melt. There are literally parts of the pond still frozen. More ice on the way as we are getting snow tomorrow and a temp drop to below freezing. The other reason they are pains is the glare,. Theres no leaves out... so sunlight on the water is a glare machine. I chose late afternoon and that helped. Add to that they are smooth skinned. The water just coats them like oil, making if difficult to focus. I compromised and focus on the eyes most. Next is their size.. They are only a few inches long. I could shoot from the shore , but as they are out a bit the angle would be boring... Sigh.. standing in frigid pond water for an hour was not fun, but the frogs cooperated nicely and were pretty oblivious to me once I stopped wadding. I do need to go back as theres some additional shots I want to do again...have some ideas.

All shots taken with a tamron 70-200 2.8 lens. it was the perfect working distance for this adventure.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/764/32497701554_439a04aec8_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/RvHdtd)IMGP7428_02 (https://flic.kr/p/RvHdtd) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3867/33212636501_ac3091266b_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SATrHP)IMGP7122_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SATrHP) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3699/32526365373_5aa1a5ef17_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/Ryf8dZ)IMGP7209_01 (https://flic.kr/p/Ryf8dZ) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/572/32957899570_f276df241f_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdnRiL)IMGP7259_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SdnRiL) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/591/32957905770_053b251310_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdnT9E)IMGP7283_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SdnT9E) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/694/32957908390_a40de019c7_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdnTVQ)IMGP7302_06 (https://flic.kr/p/SdnTVQ) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2906/32957913580_205b363d2f_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdnVtj)IMGP7321_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SdnVtj) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr

[brewmaster15]

a few more


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3861/33299774826_934c8aa401_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SJA3UJ)IMGP7347_02 (https://flic.kr/p/SJA3UJ) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2925/33299777436_b53b7fd1b9_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SJA4FJ)IMGP7409_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SJA4FJ) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3846/32526392493_b5b4af50c3_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/Ryfghz)IMGP7422_04 (https://flic.kr/p/Ryfghz) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2865/32526394553_5af27e5500_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/RyfgU6)IMGP7428_02 (https://flic.kr/p/RyfgU6) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3738/33299857906_c15689c484_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SJAtB9)_a (https://flic.kr/p/SJAtB9) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3868/32958006110_91d15155ac_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdooYE)IMGP7193-a (https://flic.kr/p/SdooYE) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/692/32958116060_91a26218e2_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SdoXEm)IMGP7250_02 (https://flic.kr/p/SdoXEm) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3922/33299982376_849f6ea2f1_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SJB7Bb)IMGP7254_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SJB7Bb) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr

[Second Hand Pat]

First image second post, love the detail of the couple underwater but all nice spots Al. These work great with B&W. Hope you kept your feet warm Al. :)
Pat

ps: I noted that with otters it is hard to focus on the wet, dark coat also.

[brewmaster15]

Its going to be interesting to see how these guys and their eggs fair with the cold snap coming the next few days. The eggs are generally laid in shallow water.. Too deep and they die from lack of oxygen. Alot of these eggs are right at the surface of the pond. Incidentally.. These guys are really early this year. That could be a big problem for the population. Luckily they are very numerous here in CT.

al


gives you an idea of the eggs on the surface... Thats what the Frogs are sitting on!

107940

[jmf3460]

looks like someone has had a good day. :)

[RogueDiscus]

What kind are they, Al? I grew up chasing leopard frogs in Wisconsin. We don't see them here in Oregon and have a problem with invasive bullfrogs.

[Poppa Ryno]

Great shot captures.

[brewmaster15]

Thanks Ryan!


Steve, these are wood frogs..Lithobates sylvaticus

http://www.nwf.org/Wildlife/Wildlife-Library/Amphibians-Reptiles-and-Fish/Wood-Frog.aspx

[brady]

We don't have them yet, although the ice is off the pond, but that will change
in the next few days.We got some cold weather coming. I expect the peepers to be in full force around 4/1 and it is a deafening but good sound.
Incidentally, we have had an otter on the pond for the last 5 days and I doubt there is any fish left,
Had himself a good feast.
Jay

[brewmaster15]

I did manage to go back this afternoon between 3 and 4 again. Froze my feet again.. but I really wanted to catch a few more good shots. Most of the time you see the wood frogs breeding , one male clasped on the back of one female. Sometimes though they breed in mass. They literally make a ball that rolls around the water. I saw that yesterday but could not catch it clearly. I hoped that I would see it again today... I did. I'm not happy with photography but it documents it, so for that I am happy. I'll try again. I won't bore you all with many shots but here a few to show them in action. They get quite animated. Makes for a really hard photo.

al


https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/775/33221316201_1298e634fd_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SBDVTP)IMGP7463 (https://flic.kr/p/SBDVTP) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


look closely you & can see that a few more are completely submerged..

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/730/33221315081_124b952355_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SBDVyv)IMGP7608 (https://flic.kr/p/SBDVyv) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


and heres a bit of action!
https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/700/33308406836_9d058dd46b_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SKmhUu)IMGP7548 (https://flic.kr/p/SKmhUu) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr

[Discus-n00b]

At first I couldn't really get behind the B&W for these, but then I googled Wood Frog after you said what type they are and I see it more clearly now due to their fairly drab color. If they were a bright green bullfrog i'd be disappointed to see it in B&W, but the wood frogs in B&W has grown on me. Seeing the surface tension is pretty cool. Interesting subject. I don't think I've ever photographed frogs in the water before, only more tree frog types on rocks, leaves, trees, etc. The water probably poses a lot of challenge. Do you have or use a polarizer Al? I could see it being useful here.

[brewmaster15]

Thanks Matt,
I don't have a polarizer for that lens yet...but I did go back with my 300mm and tried some shots with one...it helped a little with the glare but in this case I didnt like the results.

It may sound strange but as I looked at all the pics I took and played with post processing I realized that there are two types of photography with nature photography. Theres the type that we take a picture and edit it to be more aesthically pleasing to our eyes and photographic guidelines. Then there is the image that captures what you really saw. Records what was really there. Thats the type of photography I initially began the hobby with. The goal was to record and document.

With wood frogs you really don't see them unless you are standing over them. You see their eyes and an outline. The pond water really does coat them like oil. My color photos represent what I saw as I saw it..glare and all. My black and white were a compromise to make them more aesthically pleasing and use some photographic guidelines. I also felt okay with them because I have used black and white in the past...It does work well for some subjects.

I like both pics for different reasons.. One because it captured what I saw, the other because it captures what I Imagined. I do really like the black and whites from the frog series the most.. They stand out. Especially the eyes but I really like the way the glare is rendered in black an white.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/740/33280503482_07dba1b570_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SGThdb)IMGP6022 (https://flic.kr/p/SGThdb) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3816/32593122904_7421867e70_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/RE9gUU)IMGP6022_01 (https://flic.kr/p/RE9gUU) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr



https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2843/33395553916_e45f98c7f1_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ST3WGm)IMGP6065 (https://flic.kr/p/ST3WGm) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr



https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/642/33280524722_453e764567_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SGTowo)IMGP6065_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SGTowo) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr



https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/773/33307962731_75d4475621_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SKj1Tv)IMGP7313 (https://flic.kr/p/SKj1Tv) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr


https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2824/33052984660_77895573da_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SmMbMS)IMGP7313_01 (https://flic.kr/p/SmMbMS) by Al Sabetta (https://www.flickr.com/photos/130140749@N05/), on Flickr

[SMB2]

Nature at it's best. Big question is if the eggs survive the Blizzard of '17.
I wonder if a circular polarizer would change these to take away a bit of the reflection/glare?