To catch a shadow

  

I made a quick stop this morning (8 September 2022) when I noticed two Peregrine Falcons on the top of sea stack off Highway 1 near Gleason Beach.

When one of them dove, I tried to get a photo of the falcon in a stoop.  I was so focused on the bird, that I missed the shadow entirely until I downloaded the photos after dinner.  Pretty cool!

 

 

Of time and light

 

 

Curl of time, curl of light.  We're approaching the solstice!

 

Birch bark in Walpole, MA, on 17 December 2021.

 

Long shadows

  

The amazingly long shadows of December -- photographed in the late afternoon in Humarock, MA, on 13 December 2021.

Foam shadows

  

 

Blue shadows from low-angled light across ocean waves of foam, 27 October 2020. 

 [You can click on the images for larger versions.]

 

 

 

Shadows on the far horizon

A rain shower passed by this afternoon and left streaming cloud shadows on the surface of the sea.  [You can click on the images for larger versions.]

 

 

 

In appreciation of flight

Last night (21 October 2019) I spent a few more minutes watching one of the White-tailed Kites (Elanus leucurus) that's been actively hunting on Bodega Head at the end of the day.  The lighting was beautiful up high where the kite was hovering, but it was shaded down low where I was standing, so I don't think the kite noticed me.  Several times it was hovering almost directly above me.  The views were pretty special, and I couldn't choose a favorite photo, so here's a selection.  Enjoy!  [You can click on the images for larger versions.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

December shadows

 

Along the Sonoma Coast on 8 December 2018

 

Gnomon

A couple of nights ago, Eric and I were walking on Salmon Creek Beach and we looked down to see some amazing shadows on the sand.  Each shadow was slightly different.

 

 

 

  

They were all caused by the sun shining through the thin, upright sails of Velella velella:

 

It became quite fun, because you never knew what you were going to find next.  The shadows were different shapes and sizes, depending on the outline of the sail and the angle of the sail relative to the sun.  The experience reminded us of looking at sundials, and in this case the gnomon (the part of the sundial that casts the shadow) was Velella's sail.

Here are two of my favorite shadows of the night:

 

 

Although the sails were ~2 cm tall, many of the longest shadows were ~6 cm long.

Doesn't it make you wonder — if Velella is in the middle of the ocean, during very calm conditions, does it cast the same shadows on the surface of the sea?