Monday, January 31, 2011

Whitewater Draw

Last Thursday Mike and I went to Whitewater Draw with our friends, Ben and Mary Anne.Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area is in Sulphur Springs Valley.Familiar to veteran birders as Hyannis Cattle Company, this 1500-acre property was purchased in January 1997 by the Arizona Game & Fish Department to provide habitat for waterfowl and Sandhill Cranes and wildlife viewing opportunities. Located in the southwestern part of the valley, between Bisbee and Elfrida, this area features a seasonal wetland (playa lake) that attracts up to 21,000 Sandhill Cranes in winter and numerous other water-loving species from late summer through spring.

Here are some photos from the afternoon outing. These were all done with a digital pinhole camera. I'm having fun experimenting with the digital pinhole, which I acquired last year after taking a pinhole photography class with Kathleen Velo.








I plan to do a little more touching up with a few of these and seal them in wax!

We did see lots of Sandhill cranes during our excursion. My telephoto lens was better  for photographing the cranes.




 The last time I visited Whitewater Draw was in March 2010. I went with my friend, Sonya. Check out her photos from last year at Sonya's Daily Art Journal And here are my first experiments with my digital pinhole from that visit.




I wasn't very fond of these, so they sat in a folder on the computer until now. It's nice to compare and see what more experimentation has led to with the digital pinhole.
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7 comments:

  1. Sonya JohnsonJanuary 31, 2011 at 8:49 AM

    I love these, Liz! I had such a great time when we went there last year; it is a wonderful place. And look at all those Sandhills - wow! The weather was too awful when we were in town over the holidays to take Wayne over to Whitewater as I'd planned.

    Your creative use of filters and other PP treatments on these photos (and others) always impresses me :).

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  2. Liz Hampton-Derivan StudioJanuary 31, 2011 at 10:16 AM

    Thanks, Sonya. WWD is a great place! Maybe next time you're in town weather will be better for such an excursion.

    I love playing with filters:-)

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  3. NuminosityJanuary 31, 2011 at 5:29 PM

    Very dreamy and interesting, those pinhole photos. I love them.
    And oh, the cranes! They visit us in Alaska and are the first sign of spring. Our place is an avian highway for them and they pass over our hose by the 1000's making that wonderful crackling warble.
    So nice to see you yesterday.
    xoxo Kim

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  4. Liz Hampton-Derivan StudioFebruary 1, 2011 at 6:13 AM

    Thanks, Kim. Yeah, there's nothing else that sounds like the crane warble. Love the sights and sounds of them. Quite an experience. xo

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  5. helenFebruary 2, 2011 at 1:44 PM

    What a great place and what beautiful pictures - thanks for sharing!

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  6. Jala PfaffFebruary 4, 2011 at 2:39 PM

    Pictures 6, 10, and 12 I love!

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  7. Liz Hampton-Derivan StudioFebruary 5, 2011 at 7:41 AM

    Thank you Helen and Jala. I like your picks,Jala. Thanks for sharing.

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