I recently had to have some work done on my telephone line and internet. Yes, I live in primitive conditions, where cable does not exist and electronic information arrives via a DSL connection. I am practically a cave dweller when compared to the lifestyle and conveniences enjoyed by the average urbanite. The odd thing is that I find the rewards greatly outweigh the shortcomings... but more on that later, perhaps.

Anyway, the guy from SaskTel, Rob, lives a couple of towns to the west. And it turned out that he's a photography enthusiast, so we had lots to talk about while he solved my problem. And he told me about a couple of lakes, closer to his home than mine but still within easy day tripping range for me, that he said were great bird photography locations.

People who trust me enough to share locations are among my favourite people in the world, so thank you Rob for your generosity and trust. I've been out there twice - June was a busy month with several projects in spin - and both visits were rewarding.

At Island Lake there were American White Pelicans, seen here taking flight via a running start across the water; next to them, alert but not inclined to panic, is a Red-necked Grebe; in the background, Canada Geese feed in the grassy bank. And that was just the start.

Photographed at Island Lake, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2021 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   American White Pelican Pelecanus erythrorhynchus wildlife bird water taking flight running takeoff wings wingspan splash Red-necked Grebe Podiceps grisegena lake pano panorama nature wild prairie beauty beautiful Wow! Island Lake Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page

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I need to get some colour into the mix, so I dived into the archives last night and came up with this. The American White Pelican is unmistakable, with its huge bill that it uses as a dipping net. They are usually found in flocks, and this individual was no exception. I had a large group of about 75 pelicans in close, and after a while they got used to me: they were busy being pelicans, with no time to waste on irrelevant matters. There must have been schools of small fish in the water, because I saw them dipping and swallowing.

With great light and co-operative wildlife in close, I could not have been happier (busy being a photographer, with no time to waste). I shot so much that the editing process was overwhelming; three years later, I am still uncovering good shots from the pile of ordinary ones. I have innumerable group shots, but took care to also get photos of a single pelican, as depth of field is very shallow with a long lens, and for the most part they wouldn't line up on the same focal plane for me. Too busy being pelicans.

Photographed at Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Area, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2018 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

Tags:   American White Pelican Pelicanus erythrorhynchos wildlife bird waterbird large heavy breeding adult bill swimming swim water inland lake beautiful wild prairie Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Area NWA Saskatchewan Canada copyrighted James R. Page

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