distortions.net Profile Photo

distortions.net

I'm Ryan M. Tech geek. Avgeek. California Native plant gardener. All photos on this blog, unless stated otherwise, are mine. Cameras: Fujifilm X-T5 and X100V. Views are my own.

Straight out of Camera

    ∞

    Today (12/14/2025)! Look at those slats! And the condensation. United 777-2 (N796UA) taking off runway 28L for Munich from SFO

    #B772 #N796UA #SFO #PlaneSpotting #Aviation #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A United 777-200 taking off, gear already up, with slats down and flaps slightly visibly down. The slats are shadowed as the sun is behind the aircraft (though out of frame but causing a lot of glare). Wing condensation is visible above and behind the rear wing edge. There’s also visible condensation in the left engine. The aircraft fills the whole photo.

    ∞

    Bauzten, December 2023 #Bautzen #StreetPhotography #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A night scene with warm lights glowing off the cobble streets & three story apartments, with lights strung across the street. Wreaths hang at the center of each light strand. Silhouettes of people with long shadows are walking down the pedestrian friendly street.
    ∞

    A raven. #Raven #BirdPhotography #Birds #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #Fujifilm #SOoCA photo of a raven from the front, as its perched on the tip of a bare branch. Its stark black feathers stand out agaist a blue sky. Its beak is slightly open, almost as if it's saying something. There's a glint in its left eye.

    ∞

    Classic Black Phoebe! They’re always on the tip of objects close to the ground, searching for its next meal. This one is a crossing guard for a very brief moment. #BlackPhoebe #Birds #BirdPhotography #Fujifilm #SOoCA black phoebe is perched atop a stop sign. Only the rear the stop sign can be seen, with the sun lighting up its back, highlighting the wood pole and straps keeping the sign attached. The black phoebe is looking to the right, its back lit up, but the rest of its dark body in silohette. The sky is cloudy.

    ∞

    A Cooper’s Hawk appears to acknowledge my presence in its hunting grounds
    #CoopersHawk #Birds #BirdPhotography #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #CropToZoom #Fujfifilm #SOoC

    A Coopers Hawk, atop a leafless tree branch under overcast skies, appears to look right at the camera. The hawk has a brown back with a fluffy white chest adorned with brown raindrop shapes.

    ∞

    Snow Geese have swarmed the Sacramento Valley. Some of the darker geese in the second photo are White-fronted or Canadian #SnowGeese #Geese #Birds #BirdPhotography #SacramentoWildlifeRefuge #Fujifilm #SOoC

    Six Snow Geese with their white bodies and black wing tips soar above in clear blue skies. The sun highlights their right breast, neck, and head.Far off in the distance, dozens of geese, Snow Geese and White Fronteds (maybe some canadian), take up the photo frame as they fly in a foggy sky.

    ∞

    From a few weekends ago: this bird was exceedingly far from me and so was mysterious to me until I downloaded its photo from the camera. I was VERY surprised to find a Belted Kingfisher. Yeah, you’ll need to tap into the photo to see it well... #BeltedKingfisher #Birds #BirdPhotography #BlackButteReservoir #CropToZoom #Fujifilm #SOoCA Belted Kingfisher, with its cool blue-gray mohawk & cape, along with white cheaks, neck, and chest, studies the distance to its right, while perched on a utility line. Behind it are various blurred trees and some powerlines.

    ∞

    Backyard Hooded Oriole alert! #HoodedOriole #BirdPhotography #Yarden #Fujifilm #CropToZoom #SOoC

    Atop a wooden stake is perched a Hooded Oriole, looking to the left, with its bright orange body, black kerchief, wings with black and white stripes, and a somewhat visible cape of brown with black spots. Its tail is black. The background is just off white blur.A front facing Hooded Oriole perched on a Ceanothus branch with many green leaves. Its black kerchief is prominent.

    ∞

    A Say’s Phoebe at Black Butte Reservoir, California

    #SaysPhoebe #Birds #BirdPhotography #BlackButteReservoir #Fujifilm #CropToZoom #SOoCA flat headed Say's Phoebe bird, looking to the right, is colored brown all over with an orange belly, is perched on an oak branch, looking over a bough of oak leaves. The bird has a slight glint in its eyes and its front is sunlit. The background is bokeh of dried grass.

    ∞

    This basking serpent committed the most natural of acts just before #GopherSnake #ReptilePhotography #BlackButteReservoir #Fujifilm #SOoC

    Upon a gravelly surface, a tan and black gopher snake rests its head on a horizontal reed, next to a clump of dead weed stems.

    ∞

    We went out to Black Butte Reservoir (west of Chico, CA) today and I finally photographed a Rock Wren! #RockWren #Birds #BirdPhotography #BlackButteReservoir #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A long-beaked Rock Wren is posing, chest toward the camera, on some old dead wood, surrounded by twigs. It has a black spotted face and neck with some linear traces of black on its chest. It has a black stripe going from its eye to the back of its head. Its beak is long and narrow.

    ∞

    I don’t know what kind of spider this is, but it was pretty daring to be out in the open at Point Reyes National Seashore (late September). Most of these were in their day-time hideouts, tucked up in a shrub branch. #Arachtober #Spiders  #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    ∞

    Here is a contented White Crown Sparrow gorging on seeds from a plant I haven’t identified. #WhiteCrownSparrow #Birds #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A close up of a White Crown sparrow that is facing left, getting ready to tuck into some seeds with tufted tops like a dandelion but much denser, almost like cotton. Its head is prominently stripped white above its eye with a black top of the head,

    ∞

    Bull Elk at Point Reyes National Seashore. I had some trouble focusing, but I like the meal hanging out of his mouth #BullElk #WildlifePhotography #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoCA Bull Elk is walking to the left in a field of dried grass and forbs. It has a bunch grass or some other vegetation hanging out of his mouth. He has very long antlers with five points. The sky is clear but hazy.

    ∞

    BLEP. #Blep #Deer #WildlifePhotography #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoCA partial body shot of a young deer, looking to the right, with its tongue sticking out: BLEP. The background is all blur of brown vegetation, with a bit of green. The young deer has debris on its back, probably grass seeds. Its neck and head seem a bit small for its body. Poor thing.

    ∞

    There are two Ravens at the Point Reyes Lighthouse. And apparently they’re celebrities among the park staff (who are very nice & full of knowledge!). I hope all furloughed National Park staff are okay. These photos are from just before the US Government shutdown. #Ravens #Birds #BirdPhotography #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    Two Ravens on a linear concrete structure that runs along Point Reyes Conglomerate. The Raven on the left has their feathers puffed out. Both are looking to the left. The blue sky peaks out a bit above the outcropping.A Raven walks along an inclined roof, with some shiny black feathers being lifted by wind. Its beak is just open and it is looking to the left. The background and the roof are completely blurred out.

    ∞

    Here’s a proud scrub jay with a tasty treat in its beak #WesternScrubJay #Birds #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A Western Scrubjay, with a white underbelly, and a blue upper body with a gray cape, is perched on the top of a weathered wooden post. It has some sort of insect in its beak, maybe a wasp or a hornet. It is in full profile view, though its face is shaded out.

    ∞

    Here are a few more photos of the Point Reyes Lighthouse from a few days ago #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    The lighthouse frames the right side of the photo, where the sky is slowly being revealed by passing low clouds or fog. The sea is calm.

    A view of the iconic red fog horn house on the right and the lighthouse on the left. The fog is clearing with a view port of blue sky on the right. The sun illuminates the scene.

    The iconic red fog horn house with a hazy calm ocean behind it. The house is rustic and is in need of a fresh coat of paint. It has a modern electric foghorn and LED beacon setup on the peak of its roof. The building cast a stark shadow to its right (north).

    ∞

    #GreatBlueHeron #Birds #PointReyesNationalSeashore #Fujifilm #SOoC

    A Great Blue Heron, wings spread out, appears to be aggressively stumbling through water, making a small splash with its right foot. It looks very awkward.

    ∞

    At Redwood National and State Parks, last July, this bat was probably sick. It’s sad to see a disoriented bat out in the open daylight and not at its roost or hibernaculum. My telephoto lens let me get a good look without disturbing it. #Myotis #Bat #Skypuppy #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SOoCThe backside of a bat, climbing down lap siding. It is nice and fuzzy. You can see its skin lined tail connected to its feet.A brown mouse-eared bat is climbing down the lap siding of a building. Its mouth is open, as it looks down.

← Newer Posts Older Posts →