City Escapes Nature Photography Newsletter - Feb 2013

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

February, 2013

 

 

 

 

Mark Your Calendars and Come See Us in March!

 

City Escapes Nature Photography will be exhibiting at Custer’s Spring Arts & Crafts Shows in Spokane and Pasco next month.  From metalworks to gourmet food stuffs to candle making, these shows have something for everyone – now including some really cool critter photography!  Be sure to set aside some time to come say hello -- and bring a friend!

 

Spokane                                              Pasco

March 8-9-10, 2013                               March 22-23-24, 2013       

Spokane Fair & Expo Center                              TRAC Center

(404 N. Havana)                                              (6600 Burden Blvd.)

Hours:                                                  Hours:

     Fri: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.                                  Fri: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

     Sat: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.                                 Sat: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

     Sun: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.                                 Sun: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

 

 

 

Prime vs. Zoom Lenses

 

Similar to professionals in many other fields, photographers are prone to arguing passionately amongst themselves about various aspects of their trade.  Film purists argue that digital will never be able to capture the depth and quality of their medium, while digital users argue that film has long since been surpassed.  Canon users and Nikon users are sworn arch enemies.  And don’t even get them started on whether Photoshop is a godsend or just makes photographers lazy.

 

This division of opinions reaches all the way to the most basic of photographic materials, including lens types.  Forget brand competition; the debate reaches into much more fundamental aspects, including (but certainly not limited to) whether prime (fixed focal length) lenses or zoom lenses are better.  The most truthful answer is, as it usually is, “it depends.”  (Don’t you just hate ambiguity?)

 

First off, I should make it clear that to get accurate results, you should compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges.  In other words, ensure that any set of lenses you are looking at are within the same class (i.e., professional, hobbyist, etc.)  Otherwise, you might just confuse yourself more.  Broadly speaking, anything professional-grade will beat anything hobby-grade – and will come with a commensurate “professional” price tag.  But even among a single class, there is a great deal of variation between the different types of zoom and prime lenses.  To make a truly informed choice about which will suit your needs the best, you must pay attention to the specifics of the actual lenses you are considering.  Having said that, here are some general rules about primes and zooms to get you started on your search. 

 

Primes tend to be smaller and lighter than comparable zooms.  Because they only need to deal with a single focal length, there is less glass and less material in the actual body of the lens.  If weight is an issue, which it is on almost any long location shoot, the lighter weight might be a real advantage, especially if you tend to shoot at a single focal length.  On the other hand, if you need multiple focal lengths, you would need to carry multiple prime lenses to accommodate them all.  This would likely mean a greater total weight, and almost assuredly more bulk, than a single zoom that incorporates the range of focal lengths needed.

 

Prime lenses tend to be faster than zooms, both in terms of aperture and focusing.  Their simpler construction allows many primes to open up to 1.8 and 1.4, while most zooms cannot get anywhere near that wide open, bottoming out in the 3.5 range (or higher).  However, with the 1.8 and 1.4 apertures comes an absolutely razor-thin focal plane, making them a somewhat specialized range to work with; not useful to all photographers, despite the low aperture’s increased light sensitivity.  Primes tend to focus faster than zooms as well, due to a more limited range. 

 

As a HUGE generalization, among a class, primes tend to be cheaper than zooms.  They are simpler in design, have fewer moving parts, and have less complicated components.  Fewer materials are required for their construction.  As with the weight issue, however, whether primes remain cheaper in the aggregate depends entirely upon how many –- and which -- focal lengths you need.  While it is possible to buy three good primes for less money than a good zoom in comparable focal lengths, it is also possible to spend a significantly greater amount of money on those three primes.  So, as usual, it depends.

 

It is “common wisdom” that primes are sharper than zoom lenses.  While that “common wisdom” was accurate ten years ago, zoom technology has advanced so far in recent years that a number of zooms have equaled and even surpassed primes in sharpness.  This is one area in which the particular lenses in question are of fundamental importance, as it is no longer possible to say with any certainty that one style is better than the other.

The single biggest advantage of zoom lenses, of course, is their ability to take the place of several different prime lenses.  As mentioned earlier, this could come into play in weight and bulk issues, as well as price concerns.  But it has its greatest effect during the act of making a photograph.  The photographer is able to change focal lengths quickly, easily, and silently.  As a nature photographer, this trait comes in very handy: animals appear quickly at unexpected distances, they don’t hold those adorable poses for long, and they certainly aren’t going to hang around waiting for me to change to the appropriate prime lens.  (They’re very similar to small children in that regard – another subject that can make good use of zooms.)  Also, because I am not changing lenses as frequently, there is less opportunity for that bane of all photographers – dust – to get to the camera’s sensor.  Unless of course I have one of those zoom lenses that actually moves air in and out, and thus itself becomes a source of dust.  Sigh.  Like I said, it all depends.

While there are definitely purists on either side of the prime / zoom lens debate, most photographers that I know use a combination of the two to cover their range of photographic needs.  Finding the best combination for you will require paying close attention to your shooting style, and let’s face it, your budget.  Compromises will likely need to be made, and you might even find that making those compromises enriches your technique. 

 

Here’s to always improving!

 

 

 

February’s Monthly Specials

 

Get 10% off of unframed, 8x12 prints of “Winter Wind -- Bison” and / or unframed, 8x18 prints of “Castle of Blue Fog -- Iceberg” when you order from our specials page. As with all of our unframed prints, these prints are eligible for our No Hassle Returns. 

 

 

 

February’s Fun Facts

So you think congress is a bunch of baboons?  Well, you’re right!  Demonstrating that our species went a little name-crazy at one point, here are a few of the more interesting names for groups of individuals of the same species:

 

Apes → shrewdness	Boars → singular		Foxes → skulk, leash
Badgers → cete	Kittens → kindle		Doves → piteousness
Bears → sleuth	Cheetahs → coalition		Emus → mob
Hummingbirds → charm	Jellyfish → smack		Mole → labor
Rhinoceroses → crash	Tigers → ambush, streak		Trout → hoover
Turkeys → rafter	Woodpeckers → descent		Turtles → bale
Peafowl → ostentation, muster		Raven → unkindness, congress
Cockroaches → intrusion (fitting, isn’t it?)

 

       

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

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CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC

www.cityescapesphotography.com

509-396-5154

 

City Escapes Nature Photography Newsletter - January 2013

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

January, 2013

 

 

 

Full-Frame vs. Cropped Digital Camera Sensors

 

Digital camera sensor sizes can be confusing.  Like many things technical, they are often given names consisting of a combination of letters and numbers that tell the uninitiated absolutely nothing.  Many of us wonder why we should even care; after all, the only easily discernible difference -- for those who aren’t fluent in geekspeak, anyway -- is the price tag.  There are significant differences between the characteristics of various sensor sizes, though, and even if you aren’t looking to buy a new camera soon, understanding those differences may help you get the most out of the camera you currently have.

 

Most sensor size names are based upon their relation to the size of a 35mm film negative.  Thus, a full-frame sensor is roughly the same size as a 35mm film negative, while almost everything else is smaller.  (Medium- and large-format digital sensors do exist, but they are such a completely different animal, and so prohibitively expensive, that we will not discuss them here.)  Just as the size of cameras themselves vary widely from camera phones through point-and-shoots up to professional-grade behemoths, so do the sensor sizes.  Each has particular traits that make it more or less useful for any given situation and photographer. 

 

Given that full-frame sensors are only available for DSLRs, we will focus here only on that line of cameras.  Therein lie two main choices: full-frame sensors and crop-frame sensors.  Here are some of the differences.

 

* Zoom factor: a full-frame sensor will give you the same field of view as a 35mm film camera, given an equivalent lens.  In other words, looking through a full-frame camera with a 100mm lens attached, you will see the same field of view as looking through a 35mm film camera with a 100mm lens attached.  The smaller crop-frame sensors, however, will “zoom in” on your subject.  Thus, looking at that same subject through a camera with a crop factor of 1.5 is like looking at it through a 150mm lens on a 35mm film camera.  Whatever is in the center of your frame will fill up more of the frame, and whatever is on the edges will be cropped out.  This is great for subjects where getting closer is desirable, such as wildlife or sports photography, but not necessarily helpful for subjects where a wider expanse is wanted, such as landscape photography.

 

* Depth of Field: Because full-frame sensors “see” more, in order to fill the frame to the same degree as a crop-frame sensor with any given subject, either a longer focal length must be used, or the photographer must get closer to the subject.  This makes the depth of field shallower, as both techniques help to isolate the subject from its background.  If you’ve ever been frustrated by your point-and-shoot camera’s inability to blur backgrounds, this is why: you can neither get close enough to your subject (and still maintain focus), nor do you have a long enough focal length at your disposal.  On the other hand, large-format cameras can have trouble achieving a deep enough depth of field for landscapes.  Apertures must be closed down anywhere from a stop to a stop and a half to get an equivalent depth of field to a crop-frame sensor.  

 

* Noise: In general, the bigger the sensor, the larger the photosites (the actual instruments that record light at a specific point on the sensor).  This means that even though a full-frame sensor and a crop-frame sensor may each create 12 mp images, images from the full-frame sensor will be cleaner, with less noise, and with a greater dynamic range (more shades from light to dark are successfully captured).  This is especially evident in low-light photography, where full-frame sensors can significantly increase the maximum usable ISO. 

 

* Detail: Those larger photosites allow for much greater detail in the image, as well.  To maintain detail in a deep depth of field image, however, requires longer exposure times or increased ISO settings.  Due to the full-frame sensor’s lower noise content, this may not present any real problem, requiring only a few tweaks to settings and, of course, a tripod.

 

* Lenses: One thing to note is that the lenses for the two different types of sensors are quite different.  Full-frame lenses can be used to full effect with either type of sensor, while crop-frame lenses are limited in their abilities on a full-frame camera.  Namely, the camera will automatically crop the area to be used on the full-frame sensor to equal the size of the crop-frame sensor, effectively negating many of the benefits of the full-frame sensor.  You will still get the advantages of the larger photosites, but the number of those photosites utilized will be drastically reduced. Also, lenses for full-frame cameras tend to be much larger, heavier, and significantly more expensive than their crop-frame counterparts. Using full-frame lenses on crop-frame cameras can have a peculiar advantage, though.  Most lenses produce images that are sharpest at the center and that blur toward the edges.  Since crop-frame sensors will not register the edges of the full-frame lens, the blurriest parts of the image are automatically removed. 

 

 

Hopefully this information will help you understand how to use your current camera to a fuller capacity.  And if you’re in the market to upgrade, you now have a little more information to ponder.

 

Good luck, and good shooting!

 

 

January’s Monthly Specials

Get 10% off of unframed, 8x12 prints of “Calling Darwin – Galapagos Mockingbird” and / or “Nature’s Paintbrushes” when you order from our specials page. As with all of our unframed prints, these prints are eligible for our No Hassle Returns. 

 

 

January’s Fun Facts

 

January’s birthstone is the garnet.  We are familiar with the deep burgundy color that makes garnets so extraordinary, but did you know that this gemstone occurs in a wide range of colors?  Natural garnets come in all colors – even colorless --except shades of blue, and larger garnets can be multi-colored.  Some garnets that are particularly hard do not find their way to a jeweler’s, where we are accustomed to finding them, but rather to an industrialist’s: they are made into sandpaper, appropriately called garnet paper.

 

       

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

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CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC

www.cityescapesphotography.com

774-277-9682

City Escapes Photography Newsletter - December 2012

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

December, 2012

 

 

 

Family Get-together Photography: Getting the Most Out of Your Shots (and When to Put the Camera Away)

 

December is a time of celebration for many of us, a time when we get together with friends and family to feast on traditional foods, exchange gifts, honor our beliefs and our families, drink eggnog and champagne (hopefully not together), and ring in the new year.  (In my family, in addition to Christmas and New Year’s Eve we also have at least four birthdays – we celebrate all month long!)  December is also a great time to put those photography skills you have been honing to good use. 

 

The vast majority of photography is meant, first and foremost, to either capture or evoke emotion.  Whether it be the delight in a child’s face as he or she unwraps that mysterious box from under the tree, the primal fear and awe caused by a massive tornado twisting dark and menacing in the sky, or the tranquility and peace of a serene landscape, images are intended to transport the viewer into an emotion.  That is why posed shots so often seem lacking – there is rarely any genuine emotion revealed in them, except perhaps discomfort.  The images are flat and uninteresting.  This holiday season, for the most impact, try to capture the candid moments.  Plan for that point in time when the gift gets unwrapped.  Keep an eye on the dog to capture the instant the cookies get snuck off the counter.  Shoot from the hip if you have to, so that people aren’t self-conscious about being photographed.  And above all, don’t be obtrusive about it.

 

Sure, get those posed shots of the entire family together, too.  But as you are doing so, interject something that will bring out candid emotions in your subjects: tell a funny joke, relate a moving story, make a goofy face.  Put them at ease.  If there is someone in the group who simply does not want to smile, don’t try to force them.  The more singled out and chastised they feel, the worse your images will be – and the colder the air between you.

 

Be aware, also, that many people are uncomfortable being photographed.  We live in a very judgmental society, where people are evaluated and criticized by their looks much more frequently than they should be.  This creates feelings of insecurity among many, especially women.  People begin to believe that they should not have their photo taken unless they are perfect and stunningly beautiful, for it will create a record of their “shortcomings”.  Even if those who surround them think the world of them -- and they know it -- this insecurity can triumph.  Some folks also will not truly relax until the cameras get put away.  There are different reasons for this.  Some don’t want to risk letting their hair down when images of their actions might be captured for future reference, while others simply remain too self-conscious to relax.  As the photographer, you must be aware of these potential situations and learn to read the mood of your subjects.  Don’t push beyond an acceptable limit; respecting your subjects – be they animal or human – is one of the fundamental rules of photography.  You may even want to create “no-camera zones” (which include cell phone cameras) at certain times, such as when playing games that require participants to do something goofy.  Some people who may already be hesitant to make themselves look silly will flat out refuse to participate if there is a risk that photos will be taken and shared with others who are not present.  Always remember that the ability to record and share images has far outpaced most people’s level of comfort with having things recorded and shared.  Respect your subjects, and the holiday get-togethers will continue to be photographer-friendly.

 

 

 

December’s Fun Facts

 

December seems to be the only time we ever hear about mistletoe.  How much do you actually know about this fun holiday decoration?

 

·         Mistletoe is a parasitic plant, requiring a host tree or shrub.  Heavy infestation can kill the host plant.

·         Many common species of mistletoe are poisonous.

·         Mistletoe is spread mainly by birds.  Birds eat the seeds, some of which survive until they are passed through the birds’ digestive system.  Parts of the birds’ dung will land on tree branches, where the surviving seeds will attach themselves and germinate.  This process is how the plant got its name.  The old English version is “mistiltan”: “mistel” means dung, while “tan” means twig.

·         The plants grow into basket-like masses in the branches of their hosts.  These masses provide ready-made nests for many species of birds, including the northern spotted owl and painted honeyeaters.

·         The origins of the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe are unknown, but it dates to at least 16^th century England.

 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

from all of us to all of you.  May you have a

 

WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!

 

       

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

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CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC

www.cityescapesphotography.com

509-396-5154

 

City Escapes Photography Newsletter - Nov 2012

 

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

November, 2012

 

 

 

 

 

Understanding Your Camera’s ISO Settings

 

Maybe you’ve seen it in your digital camera’s menu, and have no idea what it is.  Or perhaps you shot film once upon a time, but never really paid that much attention to which film you bought.  Either way, gaining an understanding of ISO can greatly improve the quality of the images you capture.

 

ISO (short for the International Organization of Standardization) in photography refers to a film’s or digital sensor’s sensitivity to light.  The higher the sensitivity (ISO number), the less light required to properly expose the image.  This is particularly important in darker settings (think indoors as opposed to bright sunlight), or in situations where you need a fast shutter speed to freeze motion (think trying to freeze the basketball as it hurtles toward the hoop at the big game). The greater the light sensitivity, the less time your shutter needs to remain open, which can also mean the difference between hand-holding your camera and needing a tripod.  If higher ISO settings have so many benefits, you might ask, why on earth would we ever use a lower one?

 

The answer to that question lies in the one big drawback of high ISOs: grain (film) and noise (digital).  Lower ISO settings will give your images a smoother look, while higher ISO settings will have noticeable spots all over the image.  With some images, especially black and white images, this may be a desired effect, but for the majority of photographs it is distracting (digital noise is especially unpleasant).  The second major drawback of high ISO settings is a decrease in color saturation.

 

So, keeping these benefits and drawbacks in mind, which ISO setting should you use in which situation?  For bright outdoor settings or for flash photography, start at ISO 100.  If your aperture and shutter speeds are correct and the image is too bright, turn the ISO down to 50 and try again; if it is too dark, crank it up to 200.  One of the truly beautiful things about shooting with a digital camera is the ability to change the ISO setting after any and every image.  With film cameras, the entire roll of film has the same ISO setting, so if you need to change ISO, you have to change the roll (not counting pushing and pulling, which we won’t get into here).  This was one of the reasons, along with having different focal length lenses readily available, that professional sports and wedding photographers in the age of film often had two or more cameras slung around their necks.  Some camera models’ lowest numbered setting is 200, so that would be your base setting for bright situations.

 

For indoor shots, try starting at 200 if the area is well-lit; begin at 400 if it is normally-lit.  Going as high as 800 or even 1600 in dark settings, such as churches, galleries, and the like, is not uncommon, and also works particularly well for getting great mood shots of birthday candles being blown out or of holiday lights.  Expect to get considerable noise in any images taken above ISO 800, though the amount varies considerably by camera make and model.  Some professional cameras can capture images at ISO 3200 and above with almost no noise, while other digital models have considerable noise at ISO 800.  Play with your camera to discern where its acceptable-noise-threshold is.  The newer the camera, the higher you are likely to be able to go before you encounter noise.  Like all things digital, improvements in noise reduction are developing at a mind-blowing pace.

 

Learning to use your ISO settings will greatly enhance your ability to capture the images you want to capture – even if you keep your aperture and shutter speeds on auto.  Like almost everything else in photography, once you understand the basics of how it works, you can then break the rules to create a wide range of effects.  One word of advice, though: when you are done shooting, be sure to return the camera to whatever ISO setting you decide to have as your “normal” setting (usually ISO 100 or 200).  There is nothing quite like firing off those perfect images the next time around, only to discover that you left your camera set at ISO 3200 -- and your images look nothing like what you expected!  (I will neither confirm nor deny that this warning stems from personal experience.  Ahem.)

 

 

November’s Monthly Specials

 

It’s that time of year -- get 15% off of our boxed Christmas cards when you order from our specials page.  Each box contains 10 cards; 2 each of 5 different designs.  There are no limits on quantities, so stock up now!

 

Bonus special: Get a free 5-pack of Christmas cards when you spend $100 or more through December 15!

 

 

November’s Fun Facts

 

November’s full moon, falling this year on the 28^th, is known in some Native American tribes as the Beaver Moon.  Beavers, which do not hibernate, are especially active this time of year building and repairing their lodges and dams in preparation for winter.  Since they are also nocturnal, most of this activity occurs at night, by moonlight.

 

       

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

Become a fan on Facebook at

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CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC

www.cityescapesphotography.com

509-396-5154

 

City Escapes Nature Photography Newsletter - Oct 2012

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

October, 2012

 

 

 

 

We’re Getting Batty for Halloween!

 

October is when the air turns crisp, leaves begin to turn gorgeous shades of red, orange and yellow that make fireworks jealous, and of course the creepy-crawlies come out for Halloween.  One of our favorites of these ghoulish beings gets a bad rap – they are not at all creepy, or crawly for that matter.  They are nonetheless one of the most ubiquitous symbols of Halloween: bats.

 

Why are bats cool?  For starters, consider that bats are the only mammals that can fly.  (Flying squirrels don’t actually fly – they glide.  Have you ever seen one go up?)  Some species are pretty good at running, too, reaching speeds of up to 4.9 miles per hour on the ground.  And of the 1,105 bat species in the world, only one uses humans for food, and not very often at that.  Two of the three species of vampire bats feed almost exclusively on birds, while to the third, the “evil” common vampire bat, humans are way down on its preferred meal list: it significantly prefers livestock to people.  Vampire bats are also the only known bat family whose members will adopt orphaned pups, and females will often feed a new mother for up to two weeks after she gives birth (blood casserole, anyone?).  Vampire bats are proving useful in medicine, as well: their saliva has been shown to help increase blood flow in stroke patients much more quickly and effectively than traditional remedies.  Given that stroke is the leading cause of long-term disability in the United States, we should welcome these little creatures with open arms.

 

If these are the worst of the bats, how can we not like the entire order?

 

Bats make up about a quarter of all mammalian species, and some of the differences between the species are significant.  The Malayan flying fox, for example, is the largest bat species, having a six-foot wingspan, while the smallest species, the Kitty’s hog-nosed bat, has a six-inch wingspan.  Some bats fly at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour, while others fly at elevations up to 3000 feet.  Some bats eat only fruit, while others eat impressive numbers of insects (a single bat will eat between 2000 and 6000 insects each night), and still others eat a wide variety of foods, from nectar to fish to frogs -- even birds.  Most of the bats in North America are insectivorous, and they provide humans with a huge service: they eat many millions of agricultural pests and other insects such as flies and gnats nightly.  Got a true blood-sucking pest, i.e. mosquitoes?  Bring on the bats!  Nectar-drinking bats are important to agriculture in another way: they are fantastic pollinators.  Farmers of crops such as bananas, cashews, mangos, and agave rely on bats for a successful crop.

 

There are still many myths that cling to bats.  Contrary to “common knowledge,” bats are not blind, and in fact many bat species have excellent eyesight and do not rely on echolocation to find food or their way around.  Another widespread myth is that bats are frequent carriers of rabies.  In truth, less than 0.5% of all bats are infected with rabies.  To put that number in perspective, over the past 50 years in the United States fewer than 40 people have died from rabies contracted from a wild bat, whereas lightning has killed an average of 58 people each year.

 

So if we all embrace bats wholeheartedly, will their future be assured?  Unfortunately, no.  In large parts of their ranges in eastern North America, bats are dying by the millions due to an introduced fungal infection known as white-nose syndrome.  The fungus, Geomyces destructans, which is steadily spreading westward, gets its common name from the white fuzz that grows on infected bats’ faces, especially around their muzzles.  The highly contagious fungus, which kills 90% of infected bats, interrupts the bats’ hibernation by damaging their wings, causing them to awaken.  This is a major problem for bats, as they must use their stored fat deposits much more quickly while awake.  They end up either starving to death or freezing while searching for food in the winter.  There is currently no cure, though wildlife biologists are working feverishly on several fronts to combat the disease.  One of the more innovative projects involves attempting to keep the fungus in check through, well, cave hygiene. 

 

The Nature Conservancy – the very organization we donate one percent of our income to every January – has created a man-made bat cave (no butler required) outside of Clarksville, Tennessee.  The cave, a 78-foot long, 11-foot high box made of concrete culverts, is built into a hillside, and comes complete with netting and wall-crevices for roosting, a ventilation chimney, a rainwater pipe that provides drinking water and humidity maintenance, and, of course, high-tech surveillance equipment.  It is estimated that this one cave could easily hold 160,000 bats, with some estimates going as high as 250,000 bats – almost all of the bats in the nearby natural cave system.  The bats have a dedicated entrance, as do people, though the two species will not likely overlap much.  Once the bats have moved out of the cave to their summer roosts, the people will move in, disinfectants in hand, and the cave will be cleaned, eradicating all traces of the white-nose fungus.  If it works, this treatment will be repeated annually, allowing the bats time to adapt to the especially virile fungus naturally.  Though challenging to design, the cave was easy to construct: it was completed in a single week in late August, at a cost of approximately $300,000, with an easy-to-duplicate plan.  The Nature Conservancy views the cave as a prototype, and hopes that other conservation organizations will be able to make use of their design, if it is successful. 

 

We are wishing the Nature Conservancy, and the bats, the best of luck.  May they have a peaceful, uninterrupted slumber this winter.

 

 

How Can You Help the Bats?

 

For starters, put up a bat house or two around your house.  They are easy to build, or if you’re not into carpentry, inexpensive to buy.  Not only will you be helping out the bats, you will be helping yourself: bats are some of the best natural insect control around.  Who needs an annoying bug zapper when you have a few night friends around?

 

If you are a spelunker, be fastidious about cleaning and disinfecting your gear – clothes, shoes, ropes, headlamps, everything.  Do not go from one cave or mine into another without this thorough disinfection.  (White-nose syndrome is thought to have been brought to North America from its native Europe by humans, and its spread once here has been facilitated by cave-hopping.)  Observe all cave closures and restrictions; they may not only be for your safety, but possibly also for the safety of the creatures that inhabit them.  Avoid caves or mines with large established populations of hibernating bats.  As intensely cool as the bats are, if the fungus reaches a critical mass in the cave, 90% of that bat population could be wiped out in a single winter.

 

And of course, tell all your friends about how cool bats are.  The more educated people are about these amazing creatures, the less fearful they will be, and that will be good for both bats and people.

 

 

October’s Monthly Specials

 

Get 10% off of unframed, 8x12 prints of “A Nation’s Pride -- Wounded” and / or “Stone Lantern & Maples” when you order from our specials page. As with all of our unframed prints, these prints are eligible for our No Hassle Returns. 

 

 

October’s Fun Facts

 

The Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin, Texas, is home to the largest urban population of bats: up to 1.5 million bats at its annual peak.  There are so many that it can take up to 45 minutes for all of them to emerge from the bridge to begin their nightly hunt.  Beginning in April, hundreds of thousands of Mexican free-tailed bats arrive to give birth, and they stay through October.  Bat-watching has become a popular tourist activity in the city.  Bat-watchers are warned, however, that “depending on how close you are, an umbrella is a good idea.” 

 

       

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

Become a fan on Facebook at

http://www.facebook.com/NaturePhotographs

 

CITY ESCAPES Nature Photography, LLC

www.cityescapesphotography.com

509-396-5154