logo

Menu

  • Photography Blog
  • Photo books
  • News and weather
    • Enbridge Northern Gateway
  • People in the news
  • Northwest BC Industries
  • Natural world
    • Wildlife
  • Sea
  • Lakes, rivers and wetlands
  • Land
  • Photo Services
    • Portrait photojournalism
    • Commercial photography
    • Guides and outfitters
    • Photo printing
    • Photo books
  • Bio
  • Contact

Recent Posts

  • A rare winter bird in Kitimat, Townsend’s solitaire (plus a couple of eagles)
  • June birding: An immature bald eagle, western tanager and more
  • Haisla Bridge Replacement Project Girder Launching Ceremony
  • A mink on a log. How I got the shot (plus some bald eagles)
  • Canada Geese overhead

RSS Model making and diorama photography

  • A cold, wet winter on Arch-to
  • Dollar Store Dinosaurs
  • Star Wars #ourgreatindoors
  • The Rusty Romulan
  • Hot chicken Jedha

Posts Tagged “Minette Bay”

Bald eagle at Minette Bay

Look closely and you will see the white head of a bald eagle perched in a tree at MK Bay, taken from MK Bay West Park.

October 13, 2021 Robin Rowland
autumn, BC, birds, black and white, eagle, Kitimat, Photoblogbald eagle , Bird , Bird photography , birds , Black-and-white , British Columbia , clouds , Douglas Channel , Kitimat , Minette Bay

Fall colors on Thanksgiving

Fall colours reflected on Minette Bay on still waters at low tide. (Robin Rowland)

October 14, 2019 Robin Rowland
BC, fall, forest, Kitimat, Photoblog, Sony RX10iiiautumn , British Columbia , fall colors , forest , Kitimat , Minette Bay , reflection

A song sparrow in sea grass

Shortly after I shot the crows chasing the juvenile bald eagle, on the drive home, I stopped at an old dock. I clearly could hear a bird, probably a sparrow, but wasn’t sure where it was. It was low tide and then I spotted the bird in a small “cave” created in the sea grass when the tide went out.

It’s a large song sparrow. The blue/grey tones are what I was with my eyes and the images are correctly white balanced. It may be the large, grey Alaska variant of the song sparrow which are more common farther north than the north coast of British Columbia, but the expert opinion I consulted was divided, with some saying it was the “merilli/montana”  subspecies that is also found in the BC and US interior.  Problem is that in most, there is a lot more brown than grey.

October 28, 2018 Robin Rowland
birds, Kitamaat Village, Kitimat, Photography, Sony RX10iiiBird , Bird photography , birds , Kitimat , Minette Bay , song sparrow , sparrow

Summer wildlife and nature photos in and around Kitimat

Summer photography in Kitimat and down Douglas Channel.

Images from walking around Kitimat, hikes, and from North West Photo Fest at Minette Bay Lodge and down Douglas Channel.

The most amazing event was when we were off Coste Rocks and witnessed three humpbacks up Amos Channel. One did not dive, but floated on the ocean, asleep. The currents slowly sent the whale toward us while the winds pushed the boat toward the whale.

A sleeping humpback floats in Douglas Channel near Coste Rocks Provincial Park on August 13, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

Watch the encounter on Youtube.

 

 

A newly fledged American robin hides in the undergrowth in Kitimat, August 4, 2018. It was just beside the sidewalk as I walked by. About 10 minutes later as I walked back to the location it finally flew away. (Robin Rowland)

Another fledgling American robin munches on #berries in the undergrowth of Kitimat, August 4m 2018. (Robin Rowland)

A female surf scoter at Pine Lake, near Terrace, BC, August 6, 2018. (Robin Rowland)


A lesser yellow leg flies over seagrass at Minette Bay Kitimat BC during a North West Photo Fest photowalk, August 10, 2018. (Robin Rowland)



Two lesser yellow legs perch in the tidal streams of Minette Bay, August 10, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

A light in the forest.  Light on a tree during a photo walk at Minette Bay Lodge, August 11, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

The largest Coste Rock on August 13, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

A flock of juvenile surf scoters fly over Douglas Channel south of Kitimat. (Robin Rowland)

Harbour seals look out from Coste Rocks, August 13, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

Two marbled murrelets take off near Coste Rocks in Douglas Channel south of Kitimat, August 13. (Robin Rowland)

A marbled murrelet swims in Douglas Channel south of Kitimat, August 13. (Robin Rowland)

 

A barn swallow feeds its young under the rafters of the Tookus Inn floating lodge anchored in Clio Bay, south of Kitimat. (Robin Rowland)

A rufous humming bird coming in to flowers at Minette Bay Lodge Kitimat, BC, August 13, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

 A rufous humming bird coming in to flowers at Minette Bay Lodge Kitimat, BC, August 13, 2018. (Robin Rowland)

August 23, 2018 Robin Rowland
camera phone, Douglas Channel, duck, hummingbird, humpback whale, Kitimat, North West Photo Fest, Photography, seabird, seascape, Sony RX10iii, videoBird , Bird photography , birds , British Columbia , Coste Rocks , Douglas Channel , humingbird , humpback whale , Kitimat , marbled murrelet , Minette Bay , photoblog , seascape , Surf scoter

Moon, Mars and a meteor over Minette Bay (plus other celestial wonders)

The moon and Mars rise over Minette Bay, Kitimat, BC, as a meteor streaks over head. You can see Saturn on the far right (Robin Rowland)

This week is a stargazer’s delight. Mars is at its closest approach to Earth, and that means the Red Planet is the brightest it will be from July 27 to July 31 (the latter date is when Mars is actually the closest). Although North America missed the solar eclipse earlier this week, the moon is actually at its smallest, sometimes called a Buck Moon. The giant planets Saturn and Jupiter are high in the southern sky this week. Earlier in the month, Venus was visible as the Evening Star and for those with the proper gear it was possible to get a glance of Mercury.

Kitimat is in the midst of the summer heat wave that is gripping most of North America. Nights are mostly clear although there is some high haze from smoke in the atmosphere stemming from the forest fires in both Siberia and North America.

With all that I drove out to the Kitimat Viewpoint late Saturday July 28,  to capture it all.

Gear
Apps (for Android)
The Photographer’s Emphemeris
– told me when the moon will rise and the angle of location. Note: TPE gives moonrise at sea level. That means moonrise in Kitimat is usually between 50 and 70 minutes later depending on where it comes up over the mountains.
A compass app. To check the compass direction of the moonrise as predicted by TPE.
Sky Map. Android app originally developed by Google. Hold up you phone and see location of stars, planets, nebulae, satellite etc.

Camera
Heavy duty Manfrotto tripod
with
Sony Alpha 77, Minolta 17 to 35mm wide angle lens
Mounted with Cokin P121L Neutral density filter (to reduce the glare from the moon)

Handheld
Sony RX10iii

Jupiter and Saturn over Douglas Channel

Jupiter over the Rio Tinto aluminum plant (right) and Saturn (left)  over the mountains above Kitamaat Village, about an hour after sunset (Robin Rowland)

The late summer dusk lingers for more than hour after sunset, so even the distant mountains of Douglas Channel can be seen.  Jupiter is bright over the Rio Tinto plant at 10:50:33

Sony Alpha 77 ISO 4000 F2.8  1/2.5 of a second

Moonrise

Moonrise over Minette Bay. (Robin Rowland)

 

The moon is about to rise above the mountain (Robin Rowland)

 

The first arc of the moon peeked over the mountaintop at about 10:57:40.

The first image in the photoblog was taken at 11:00:23 and the second at 11::02:27

Sony RX10iii, handheld, ISO 4000 f4 1/1000 of a second

The RX1oiii is a high-end carry everywhere point and shoot. Moon was shot at 600mm on manual focus.

 

The moon reaches for the zenith. (Robin Rowland)

Same settings on the RX10iii at 11:06:50.

 

Mars rises

 

Mars rose to the west of the moon at 11:17:08 This image showing the moon, Mars and Minette Bay Lodge was taken 11:18:35.

Sony Alpha 77, manual focus,  ISO 2500, f5 at 2.5 seconds

At 11:23:31 same settings

 

 

I was bracketing shots, working with different shutter speeds and other settings, still on manual focus.  The meteor streak is in just two frames. This was taken at 11:37:05. (The other at 11:36:58 by 11:37:00 the next frame it was gone. I did not notice the meteor streak until I got home.

Alpha 77 ISO 1600, f3.2 at 2.5 seconds

A last look at Jupiter

Jupiter over the Kitimat mountains and the Rio Tinto plant. (Robin Rowland)

At 11:34:02 Jupiter is setting over the mountains behind the Rio Tinto aluminum plant.

Sony Alpha 77  ISO 1600  f2.8 2.5 seconds

 

July 29, 2018 Robin Rowland
Alpha 77, Android, Douglas Channel, Kitimat, landscape, moon, mountains, night, Photography, skyBritish Columbia , Douglas Channel , Jupiter , Kitimat , Mars , Minette Bay , Moon , mountain , photoblog , Photography , Rio Tinto , Rio Tinto Alcan , Saturn

New Year’s Day at Minette Bay

Photos from the annual local photographers’ walk around Minette Bay. The deepest cold passed, leaving ice everywhere. There was a heavy overcast and occasional fog.

A female bufflehead duck in the tidal flats of Minette Bay. (Robin Rowland)

Previous New Year’s walks

January 1, 2017
January 1, 2016

January 2, 2018 Robin Rowland
BC, birds, Douglas Channel, duck, eastuary, fog, forest, ocean, Photoblog, Photography, snow, Sony RX10iii, wetlandDouglas Channel , Kitimat , Minette Bay , Minette Bay Lodge , snow

Fall reflections at low tide at Minette Bay

Fall reflections at low tide at Minette Bay. (Robin Rowland)

October 14, 2017 Robin Rowland
Alpha 77, autumn, boreal, forest, Kitimat, natureBritish Columbia , fall colors , fall colours , Kitimat , low tide , Minette Bay , mountain , reflection
Next Page »

Archives

Archives

Search

All images Copyright © 2022 By Robin Rowland. All Rights Reserved.
WordPress Themes Copyright © 2017. by Web-Dorado