Unexpected Gifts: California Poppies!

 

California Poppies. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

California Poppies. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

After a week of clouds and rain, our last morning in Fremont California was the only morning that started out bright and sunny. I needed to pack for our flight home but I made one last quick trip to the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It is one of my favorite places to go early in the morning when we are visiting family in the Bay Area.

With precious little time to shoot, I made the most of the opportunity to photograph sunlit shorebirds feeding in the mud flats under the Dumbarton Bridge. Pushed by the clock and my long standing agreement with the airline (they have my permission to leave without me if I am late for my flight), I finally had to leave.

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Fremont California

Overlook. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Fremont California. Click for a larger version.

On the way out of the refuge I stopped briefly for one last image overlooking the refuge. I looked down at my feet. Not visible from the road, the whole hillside was covered with thousands of California Poppies. If I hadn’t stopped for the overlook photo, I would have missed them entirely. It was an unexpected photographic gift.

Earlier in the week on a mostly cloudy day I had just enough brief moments of light to photograph small clusters of poppies around the parking lot, but nothing as extravagant as this!

I looked at the time and said to myself, “OK just five more minutes, and then you HAVE to go.”

I slid down the hill side, picked a nice angle, grabbed a few hand held shots, and left in time to pack and catch our flight home. This is one of my favorite images of the week.

Photo Data: Canon 5D Mark III. Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L lens at 32mm. f/16, 1/50 second, ISO 100.

Links

The Best “How To” Nature Photography Books

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge – the official site