Late Fall Color -- Why Not Try Black and White?

Steel Creek like you never see it. There are plenty of different ways to interpret the place. I found myself draw to this odd tree -- very geometric and eccentric.  This is late fall color when tree trunks emerge to provide form and interest. 

I think this compo is better as a BW.  I could spend an afternoon interpreting this in black and white with different filters and presents.  This conversion is pretty straight ahead.  Maybe more contrast would be better with a mild red filter. I use Silver Efecs 2.0 from NIK for conversions. Easy to work with, and you can focus on the end product. (And no, I don't hype anything I don't use and like.)

Not Your Standard Steel Creek Compo

Maybe a Touch More Contrast

Tips for Elk River Shots & Crossings

Setting up for river shots is pretty simple, but one must be mindful that it is roughly like swinging for home runs -- you will strike out a lot, BUT when you connect with a river shot, you are hooked for life.

The photographer below was heading to one such sitting spot. He was hoping to get elk drinking at the river on the opposite bank. The formula for this is simple. Locate the field where the elk are, get behind them (or beside them) and wait. The will come to the river to drink, and they might cross too if it is possible (or not).

Going for an Elk River Shot

Fall color reflections can easily be brought into these photos. The key here is to locate a great river reflection and locate the elk trail that crosses it. Elk trails are easy to find. Good landscape compos are pretty easy to make. Bring the two together, add elk, and you have it.

Elk River Shots With Fall Reflections Can Be Dramatic

The crossing shot below puts an even finer point on the composition. This elk is cross lit by sunrise light cutting right down the trail toward him. This shot kind of looks impossible, but really it is about time of day, pre-visualization, and moving elk. If there are reflecting pools they add a lot.  

TIP: One thing that makes these photos much easier is that the herd bull is nearly always last when herd moves.  This give you plenty of time to think through your composition, exposure and timing.  You set these up with the cows that precede the bull. In this way, this is nothing like a snap shot, it can be very well planned. In the shot below, at least 20 cows that preceded this bull. They made it easy to get this shot and help me plan the final compo.

Think About Painting with Cutting Light -- Get Creative

11/1/13 Great Weekend Outlook for Elk, Color & Old Grist Mill Tours

The weather is perfect this weekend for elk viewing. If the elk cooperate you can expect extended viewing. Yesterday's 2 herds visible, and a 3rd behind a tree line was the best setup for a while. Elk seem to be moving out of the woodlands to the fields again, perhaps in part due to some leaf drop.

This could be the best weekend for fall color of the year. There will be very good light and color is at its peak now. In the Buffalo River region fall color can vary a lot depending on location. There are still some areas where the peak is still a few days off because of slightly different local climate.  Hollers are different than mountain tops, even the east-west vs. north-south orientation of hollers seems to impact color dates.  The bottom line is that we will have good color for at least a week in many different locations.

There will be one more tour of the Old Grist Mill in Boxley Valley this weekend. This has drawn large crowds this year and it is definitely worth seeing.  Hours are from 10 AM to 1 PM Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

NPS Ranger Linda Bishop Interprets the Old Boxley Valley Mill

November 2013 Outlook

The weather forecast in early November is a return to seasonably cool days and pretty cold nights. Steaming breath bugles like the one below are possible in this weather.  As I write this we are at peak fall color so visiting photographers will have plenty of subjects to shoot. 

We are still in the 2013 elk rut slowly heading down the slope to the holidays. There will still be bulging for some time and bull fights are possible until mid-month, though they become less likely as the month progresses. 

I have said this many times. A huge percentage of my best bull elk shots are from now until March. There will be bulls "running" herds until the end of December. 

As the rut winds down, all-cow and all-bull herds are formed.  These herds mix with the herds that are still in the rut pattern, but finally there are only gender based herds. 

"Steam This" -- One of my Favorite Pictures

The all-bull herds are generally organized by the size of the bulls.  There are 3 sizes as a rule, the biggest bulls, the second tier bulls, and the little bulls. There is a little mixing but this breakdown holds. They still spar from time to time and these are good pictures.  Don't dismiss this opportunity.

Medium Sized Bull Herd January 2012

Below is a picture I got of the Boxley Stud on November 13 last year.  One fine bull. I did not get a decent picture of him last year until late season.

The Boxley Stud November 2012 by Moore Creek

We are now entering prime time for elk photography. Some imagine that the best is behind, but the best is ahead. If you like big bulls this is the best time of the year to get the wall hangers.

Fall Color Update 10/30/13

Fall color is at peak or slightly post peak in most popular venues.  There is still plenty of green.  If you are a fall color landscape fan, it is time to get here. This weekend might be the end of the peak color if that is your priority.  Speaking only personally I like fall color best pre-peak and post-peak when I can see more texture and variety in the color.

Fall Color Upstream off Ponca Bridge 10/30/13

Fall Color Report 10/27/13

Current fall color at the Ponca Mill Pond just west of Lost Valley Canoe.  This was a dark, overcast morning. Often that jacks up saturation and all kinds of color casts. As you can see, at least for these trees, peak fall color is still a few days off, but not many.

Fall Color on a Cloudy Morning in Ponca

Fall Color Update Picture

The current status of fall color is just about impossible to describe. This is Steel Creek. Looks like peak color is still ahead perhaps a week. Late this week we will have much cooler weather. Perhaps peak color will be sooner.

Fall Color at Steel Creek 9/22/13

Fall Color Update 10/12/13 -- Landscape Tips

Fall color is picking up speed now and should be very good for next weekend's Color Fest at the Ponca Elk Education Center.  See my earlier entry on the Color Fest.

We are entering the early fall color period when there is plenty of green mixed in with fall foliage.  I love this stage of fall color because it offers so many creative choices.  The picture below is one of my favorite early fall color landscapes.  I think the date on it was October 10 a couple of years back.  I think the variety of colors really adds a lot and draws you in.  That is the essence of early fall color landscapes.  This is where we are at right now and it is changing every day.

Early Fall Color Landscape -- Buffalo River at Ponca Access

Fall color will be very good now for at least a month.

This year think about playing with light in unconventional ways.  This was taken late in the day as the sun was setting.  I think it adds something to see long tonal scales in the bluffs that are often rendered flat.  The dark tones on the left and right create a natural frame that leads your eye around the photo.  Shadows also create a vanishing point on the lower right.  To me, this landscape is emotional.

When doing your compos, think of how a painter would approach this subject. You can bet it would be much more than "point and shoot".

Kenny's Barn

Fall landscapes are not just about color, but also about fog.  This is Kenny's Barn at the south end of  Boxley Valley in the Smith Creek field.  These photos are very long tonal range photos, and ideal for HDR strategies. I did this one straight up in RAW, but I will revisit it in fall color, now just a couple of weeks off and coming fast.

Kenny's Barn

2013 Color Fest & Fall Color Update

Fall color is finally starting.  Some species of trees turn first.  Dogwood trees are now showing some red, but they are far from peak. Yesterday driving around we saw some hickories that were turning.

If you are a fall color fan it is time to plan your visit. I would say the timing for peak color this year will be mid-October or so. Color change is never uniform. Fall color will vary according to location around here so we have a fairly long color season.

I like both early fall color in mid-transition green to full color, and late fall color when some leaves fall and tree trunks become visible adding "lines" to the colorful leaves.  My favorite shots are river landscapes with reflecting pools and rock.  Landscape photography is the perfect complement to elk photography when you visit.

Buffalo National River Landscape Near Ponca

You will want to visit the 2013 Color Fest in Ponca on October 18-19 put on by the Ponca Elk Education Center.  This is a great event with an art fair and demonstrations.  Peak fall color should coincide with the 2013 event. See the brochure below, click it to enlarge.

Scientists Predict Good 2013 Fall Color

Scientists are predicting fall color will be exceptional this year.

Ideal fall color conditions are setup by 2 conditions:

1. Good rains when the trees leaf out. This year we have very heavy foliage compared to most years.



Hailstone Reflections 2012

2. Warm dry weather in September and October that allows the trees to create sugars that are responsible for great color. 

So far we are on track for a great color season.  If my memory serves me well, the last great color season here was in Fall 2006, 3 cameras ago.

These predictions are based on many years of research according to Kathy Matthews, associate professor of botany with Western Carolina University who studies the topic:

“The perfect conditions for brilliant foliage are bright sunny days in September before the temperatures start to fall, so the trees can produce a lot of sugars,” according to Matthews. “Those sugars in the leaves are what will produce the red pigments in the fall.” (quoted from http://www.wunderground.com/news/fall-foliage-forecast-20130827)

It is too early to say for sure, but the last few weeks have been dry and warm and the early fall is not predicted to be very wet. My guess is that we might have another 2006.

When you visit to photograph the elk rut, be prepared to take a side trip to grab fall color landscapes. Ideal conditions don't come along often. So far this is sizing up to be an exceptional year for fall color in the Buffalo National River region.

Buffalo River Sunrise

You only have to see the Buffalo National River and you will never be the same. This is just downstream from a favorite game trail for elk crossings. At sunrise fall color is magical. 

10/16/12 Elk Herd Locations

Elk viewing remains very good. This morning their were 2 herds in the Ponca fields. They are very viewable. This is a multi day pattern now and pretty reliable.

For some reason elk have been at the pullout now for a couple of days. This is a notoriously lousy place to see elk, maybe a 1% chance. I believe this is due to the army worms and a narrowing of the available pasture. Any time there is a herd at the pullout, it will rotate into Lost Valley eventually. That is pretty standard so continue to check Lost Valley when you visit.

On the south end of the valley there were 2 herds this morning. 1 on each side of 21 before you head up the hill. That brings a total of 5 herds in the valley now. They were still visible at 9 AM, but that is about the limit for morning viewing.

Fall color is very good now and still improving.

Elk Herd Locations 10/16/12

11/4/11 4 Herds Continue 2011 Rut in Boxley Valley

The Prince of Boxley Valley 11/4/11

Cold weather has 4 elk herds returning to Boxley Valley in the 2011 rut. Action is loaded in the south end from the observation pullout to the fields in the South end of Boxley Valley around Smith Creek. There was quite a bit of bugling this morning complete with steamy breaths. Definitely the action that any serious photographer or wildlife watcher would want to witness.

If you are thinking that elk viewing is over for 2011, you would be dead wrong. If past experience is any guide, the best is still ahead. We have the remnants of good fall color, bald eagles here and there, and the last third of the elk rut.

Great weekend weather for elk viewing is ahead. Expect the elk to be close to the morning viewing locations throughout the weekend.

This morning's herd location map is below:

11/1/11 Elk Herd Map & A Look Ahead

This morning the elk herd that has been hanging out in the first Ponca field was there again. They were up pretty close to the road, possibly preparing to cross. The Ponca field is about the best field for viewing for the last few days. 

A second herd was behind the Mill Pond, and a third down at the south end near Smith Creek. 

November is a great month to view elk. Later this week we head back into cooler weather. This should translate into more herds coming into Boxley Valley to graze, and longer viewing times. 

Bald eagles seem to be arriving early this year. The normal season is from Thanksgiving until Valentine's Day. Cold weather in the north seems to be pushing them down. The best place to see bald eagles in Boxley Valley are around the mill pond and in the middle valley area, but they do fly all along the river.                                      

10/31/11 Map -- First Ponca Field is Good Now

We close out the October map today.

There is one elk herd at the north end of the valley in the very first field south of the Ponca access.  I believe checking the south end field near Smith Creek is a good bet any day. Remember we are entering the period when traditionally the fields along the entrance road to Lost Valley could hold elk. They are worth checking because if they are there, the viewing and photography are outstanding.

10/31/11 Late Fall in the Ozarks

Fall Color at Buffalo River Canyon

Sunrise along the top bench, Buffalo River Canyon. Surely there is no more perfect place in the Ozarks. Fall color is where you find it, and when you find it.

This morning was a short break from the elk. I will be backing off a bit during November. During September and October I made about 70 visits to the Boxley Valley chasing elk and driving about 2700 miles.

Elk viewing will be just great until the end of March. The rut is still going on but now we are slowly winding down. Late this month, we will enter the third estrous, and the pace of the rut will slow. About that time, the blend between the rut and post rut will be evident. Slowly the elk herd will split along gender lines. It is at this time that big bull elk fans can get some of the most dramatic pictures of the year. 100% bull elk herds will roam primarily the south half of Boxley Valley. If antlers are your passion, this period until March is prime time.

The Buffalo River Photo Experience

Rutting bulls will be running cows into December, but some will begin the formation of these all-bull herds. The show is far from done. The best bull fight I ever photographed was November 9th. My first river crossing was shot December 6 in 2006.

Fall color is very good now and at peak. I decided to grab some photos this morning with a new friend. After our shoot, he went down to Ponca and got his first elk river crossing. As he put it, "I got my wall hanger". I could not be more pleased. The point of all this writing and the maps is to help all of you get those "wall hangers".  Nothing pleases me more. I get my share, I want you to get yours.

If you plan to visit the valley this evening to see elk, the herd in the first Ponca field is still hanging around and putting on a good show (the north end of the valley just out of Ponca).  Don't forget those fall color landscapes, we are one storm away from losing the leaves. The elk show will continue for 3 months. In some ways, it only gets better from November the end of the year and beyond.

10/25/11 Elk & Fall Color Report

Not much to report today on the elk front. There is a small herd behind the Mill Pond, and just stragglers elsewhere. This limited viewing will not last with significant weather changes just ahead.

Cattle are now grazing again in the Ponca fields. That is the kiss of death for elk grazing, it is about 95% certain you will never see elk and cattle in the same field for long, if at all.

If there is anything good in this it is the look ahead. Today is the last day of relatively warm weather before temperatures head down to seasonal normal temperatures, and more cloudy weather. If elk hate anything, it is hot sunlight and warm temperatures. Wednesday has a 50% chance of precipitation, and there is a chance through Friday. This is a significant pattern change, and the elk will react to it.

With the exception of the fields with current grazing cattle, Boxley Valley from the Lost Valley entrance to the south trail head will be the place to expect to see elk. What this means is that visitors should drive the whole valley before settling on a viewing choice.

It has been interesting this year to see how seldom the fields around the highway 43/21 intersection have had an elk herd in them. Common sense tells me at least one elk herd will show up in these fields because for all intents and purposes they have not been grazed. They are all supposedly planted as a food plot.

With the weather change and cool temperatures, I expect good if not great elk viewing by the weekend. There are a few herds around, but they are just not in the valley for now. We shall see.

Fall Color
Fall color is very good now if not at peak. Photographers and sightseers will enjoy the fall beauty that our national treasure has to offer. Photographers will want to get the fall color pictures while they are still possible. Think about river landscapes and pool reflections. Not enough photographers look at river reflections for fall color inspiration.

10/18/11 Herd Location Update, Rainy

Spitting rain and wind coupled with cool weather this morning was the first taste of November weather. Elk love this weather, and they were out in it this morning. We got over a half inch of badly needed rain.

The Boxley Beast continues to work the fields around Smith Creek. This morning he and his harem were south of the creek, I expect them to rotate back into the field north of the creek any day. There is more forage there, and the grass should be growing with the rains.

A second herd continues to lurk behind the mill pond with a couple of satellite bulls hanging around just south of the pond along the cane line.

The third herd is in the mid valley field.

The mystery is the Ponca fields. Pretty Boy and his harem have moved off again after a brief appearance. Since there have been no cattle in those fields for some time, they are a natural grazing target. There is enough grazing there to support 2 herds. My guess it that at least one will be back soon, perhaps by the weekend. Anyone visiting the valley should check these fields routinely.

The look ahead this week is excellent. Cold temperatures should extend viewing times. As we move into deeper into the fall, the fields along the entrance to Lost Valley have come into play. Don't forget to check them when you visit.

With tonight's predicted low 30's temperatures, peak fall color should be right on time next week.

11/16/11 Pattern Shift -- Elk Herd Locations

As I predicted, a herd did show up in the Ponca fields this AM. Pretty Boy and his harem returned after a brief stay up the bluff to the west. This morning they put on a nice show. There were also 5 satellite bulls hanging around the edges hoping for a wayward cow to join them.

The herd behind the mill pond continues to be very reliable -- easily the most reliable herd over the last week or so. I do expect them to move into the field adjacent to the south. When they do, there will be much better viewing for this particular herd.

On the south end, the Beast and his harem were out early AM, but gone quite early too, just after 7AM. No doubt we have a nocturnal grazing pattern with this herd. This weeks much cooler weather, beginning Monday night, should make a big difference in the quality of elk viewing there as the week goes on.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I saw a bald eagle flying over the field at the south end. The unmistakable brilliant white head and tail was a treat. It is early for the annual migration, but we do have some eagles that live here all year.

Fall color continues to advance. It is great to have some color show up in elk photos. This is clearly not peak color, but it is the color I prefer. To me fall color is like makeup, it should add dimensionality to a photo but in my compositions it is not really the point of the photo. The point is always the power of the composition and color is only one part of that. The photo is the whole package.