Sheila Braden Memorial Photography COntest Results 2022

PARAMOUNT PROJECT

MOUNTAIN LIONS

NATIVE PLANT NURSERY

SAMO FUND NEWS

MONARCHS AND MILKWEED

First PLace

Road to Satwiwa Culture Center with Fog and Birds

Steve Hallmark

A favorite vantage point of Boney Mountain, framed perfectly by the eucalyptus trees as one approaches the Satwiwa basin. In late afternoon, the marine layer rolls in bringing with it low clouds and fog into the valley creating a very tranquil mood.

This photo was taken with a Nikon Z7II with a Nikon 28-300mm zoom lens at 36mm. Exposure settings are f/4 at 1/2000 sec. ISO 800.

Second Place

Painted Lady on Purple Flower

Steve Hallmark

This Painted Lady butterfly was photographed on the Sandstone Peak trail while nourishing itself on a Purple Dick wildflower. The orange background comes from a field of California poppies behind it.

This photo was taken with a Nikon Z7 with a Nikon 28-300mm zoom lens at 300mm. Exposure settings are f/8 at 1/1000 sec. ISO 400.

Third Place

Juvenile Little Blue Heron

Jeffrey Davidson

The Juvenile Little Blue Heron looks very much like a Snowy Egret except that Juvenile Little Blur Heron has grey legs and bill. It appeared to be looking for fish. I observed for approximately 45 minutes taking multiple exposures. It never took flight during that time frame.

I like the diagonal line of the bird looking into the water appearing ready to dive in or strike.

Photo taken at the Malibu Lagoon with Nikon D5 Camera and Nikon 200-500MM 5.6 zoom with TC-III 1.4 Teleconverter. Photographed at 700mm; effective aperture with converter f10, ISO 640.

Honorable mentions

Coopers Hawk over Boney Mountain

By Steve Hallmark
This past July, I had the privilege to observe this Coopers hawk from its nest to its first fully fledged flights, photographing his journey along the way.
In this image, the subject is higher in the sky than it seems. In order to get a sense of the place, I blended two images to include the mountains in the background, changing the perspective to make it appear that it was flying directly in front of the observer.
This photo was taken with a Nikon Z7II with a Nikon 200-500mm zoom lens, at 500mm. Exposure settings are f/8 at 1/1500 sec. ISO 450. text goes here
Black-crowned Night-Heron

By Kerry Perkins
One of our most common wetland and shore birds is the Black-Crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax).
A unique aspect of the life history of this bird is that the juvenile (as shown) looks completely different from the adult, which is a slate grey and buff color.
These birds will eat just about anything and will accept other species into their nest to brood. This juvenile was spotted preening on a low branch over the pond at King Gillette Ranch.
Canon R5 RF100-500 mm + 1.4x at 700mm ISO 800 f/10 at 1/1600 sec, handheld
Red-Shouldered Hawk

By Paul Abravaya
While walking the Nature Trail that winds through the riparian forest above the creek at the Thousand Oaks Botanic Garden, I saw the Hawk. From a distance I thought it was an Owl sitting on a branch of an oak tree, it was early in the morning and the trees provided shade that made visibility difficult. I approached slowly and recognized that it was indeed a Red-shouldered Hawk, and not an owl as I had first thought.
I was able to get directly across from the hawk and raised my camera. As I did so, the hawk looked directly into my eyes, and I took the picture of this beautiful bird.
Equipment: Camera Canon R5, Lens Canon 100-500 lens Taken at 500mm, 1/250 sec, F7.1, iso 12,800 July 24, 2022, 7:18am