Deer in the Headlights Minus the Headlights

Deer in the Headlights Minus the Headlights, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

I was watching football at a friend's house yesterday when I spotted this deer foraging in my friends yard. When I got my camera and went outside, there were three in the yard leisurely munching on the grass. I was able to snap a bunch of photos and although I caught this one in what looks to be a startled pose, she was actually just chewing lazily and not really bothered by my presence a short distance away.

Taken with the D7000 & 80-400mm VR

Black River Rensselaer County

Black River Rensselaer County, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

I had the opportunity to travel a few back roads in Rensselaer County after work one night and I came upon this stream (Actually called the Black River). The conditions were nice for capturing some moderate fall color as it was overcast and misty.

Taken with the D7000 & Sigma 10-20mm

Fall on the Sacandaga River

Fall on the Sacandaga River, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

Had a chance to photograph the Sacandaga River near Speculator recently. It was a rainy miserable day and then all of a sudden the weather cleared and I was left with a sunny late afternoon. I was actually hoping that it didn't clear to the extent that it did as it made slow shutter work nearly impossible given the filters that I own.

The color in this area was actually quite spectacular and I did not come close to doing it justice. I took this near the middle of the river and I used my fishing waders to get out in the fast moving waters.

Taken with the Nikon D7000 DSLR and Nikon 18-105mm VR.

Sunset on the Farm

Sunset on the Farm, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

Every photographer has a favorite subject to shoot. While I don't know if I could ever pick just one, farms have to be near the top of that list for me.

Each barn tells a different story. With the state of farms today and the rate these treasures are lost you have to wonder if this barn will soon become another cookie cutter home.

This photos was shot near Palatine, NY in Montgomery County.

Sunset Road

Sunset Road, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

I went for a drive near Palatine, NY in search of a late summer scene or two to photograph. As I was driving down a rural road this beautiful late summer light was spread out in the road before me. I couldn't stop fast enough. I grabbed this shot with my 80-200 F/2.8 Nikkor.

Green Heron

Green Heron, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

I did more wrong here than I did right but I am fairly pleased with the result. I stopped at the Mill Pond Park in Charlton, NY this morning to see what I could photograph.

The Mill Pond is more or less a glorified swamp that is covered in neon green algae. It is usually chock full of frogs and is usually good for a Great Blue Heron sighting or perhaps a wood duck or two. I was lucky enough today to observe a pair of Green Herons hunting (successfully) for frogs. Unfortunately the successful frog hunting took place a little out of the reach of my 80-400 VR (I did get some sub-par shots).

Last night I was playing around with some of the settings on my camera and making some test shots and I left the camera on ISO 1600. That was the main mistake that I made here (not checking my settings) although without the higher shutter speed, this might have been blurrier. I was able to minimize the noise in post but there was nothing that I could do about taking a shot that was partially obstructed by leaves.

13th Brook

13th Brook, a photo by UpstateNYPhototaker on Flickr.

I haven't been posting much and for that I apologize. Summer is not my most active season as I HATE the heat and this has been a HOT one.

When I took this photo today in North River, NY it was in the low 60's and the mist from this small brook felt refreshing. Fall is definitely in the air and I couldn't be happier.

I don't want to say that I have put photography on the back burner lately but I have been trying my hand at making rustic furniture (yes more exerting than photography in this heat) and have managed to make a couple of nice benches. Hopefully you will see some photos of those coming up soon.

This photos was taken with the Sigma 10-20mm with use of a Cokin Polarizer. It was somewhat overcast and that allowed me to get the shutter speeds around 2 seconds, necessary to blur the water like this and not blow out the highlights. I hope you enjoy!

As always, if you see any of my images that interest you, check out my Zenfolio website at: Stephenpuliafico.com