Skywatch Friday - Season 6, Episode 4 and BEARS

My skywatch post is going to stray from the subject of skies just a little, before getting back on track.   I'm thinking quite a few of you will understand my huge excitement yesterday, when I finally saw my first EVER bears in the wild.  This, even though I have lived in British Columbia for about 14 years, and one of those years was in Fraser Lake, where bears wandered fairly regularly through the village.  So, the Mama bear you see below was a BIG deal yesterday.  Here, she is fishing the lazy way, from a net that she has found by a log.

 Obviously, her method worked. We saw not only one, 

 but TWO of her offspring, 

and we also encountered this very large bear that I am going to call a "fellow" by virtue of "his" size alone. I had my 500 mm lens, so wasn't as close as these pictures seem.  We were very respectful, and after talking with locals, knew we were not in any likely danger.  This bear turned and disappeared into the long grass to his left right after the photo.  

I have to express my enormous gratitude to Bill.  It was his idea to return to Deboville Slough, after seeing otters but no bears on a previous trip there.  We had met a self-confessed "Bear Nut" on that first visit who told us there were many bears in the area.  Here is Bill, after our sighting, happy that he has seen bears for the first time in years, but even happier for me.  I'm not sure if the poor focus in most of the pictures is a camera problem, or if it is because of my great excitement, but I do know that I hope to return and do a little bit better with the photographs.  There are more bear pictures waiting in the wings, so this week's "My World" and "ABC Wednesday" posts will include more of this story, but for now,  

back to a skywatch theme.  Here are the skies I've seen lately.  First, mallards flying over the osprey nest in Port Moody..

 and a King Fisher at Deboville Slough, flying very high in cloudless skies shortly before we saw the bears.

SATURDAY 

In the morning, I enjoyed the puffy clouds over False Creek. (Cambie Bridge to the right.)

Here are more fireworks seen that evening during Vancouver's Celebration of Light. The presenting country was Vietnam. (I showed other photos from this event in a previous post.)

I've been trying to improve my firework captures, and read that one must be careful not to be downwind of the smoke, as it spoils many pictures.  However, in this one..

and in this one, I thought the smoke had a charm of its own.

SUNDAY

This moon appeared in the daytime sky.

 MONDAY - 1ST TRIP TO DEBOVILLE SLOUGH

 On the way, we saw this mural in Burnaby at the corner of Hastings Street and Carleton Avenue. I like the way the people are looking up at the sky with their binoculars. 

I showed the mural below in my last post, but this time, am featuring the sky.   A fellow blogger, Leslie, had asked where this mural is located.  I checked on our most recent trip, and can now tell her that it was just a block away from the mural shown above.  It was near the corner of Hastings Street and Gilmore Avenue in Burnaby. 

 Although we didn't see bears on this first trip, the skies..

and scenery were amazing!

 TUESDAY - MOVING THE MOON

I know it is common knowledge that photographers must move around their subject to find the best angle and vantage point.  However, i am still learning this, and on Tuesday, I was really struck by the difference even a step in one direction or the other can make.  I felt rather powerful, as I moved the moon around at my whim, by shifting my position ever so slightly.  Here, I placed it between the lines connected to the mast of this boat.

Here, I put it behind the crane..

 and then shifted it so it could sit on top.

I placed it at the top of a tree, and then..

between two tree tops.

 I allowed it to peek over a lamp standard,

and between the railings of a structure near the bridge.

 I think I finally "get" it that a step one way or the other can completely change a picture.

 WEDNESDAY

We watched our second evening of fireworks put on by the Vancouver Festival of Lights series. Brazil was the host Country, and again, we stood on the Burrard Bridge, although this time, from a position that showed more of the water.  I took a few shots before darkness..  

to show some of the boats and people gathered for the show.

 We found Brazil's show to have a bit more variety..

 and I really liked some of the dramatic colours.

The water caught..

 some of the colours quite beautifully.

One might think I love fireworks, but actually, I worry about the stress they cause to wildlife and pets.  The eagle nest in Vanier Park probably has the best view of the show, and I always wonder if the parent eagles are able to prepare the chicks each year.  However, since fireworks are a fact of life in Vancouver, at least taking pictures of them gives me a reason to make the best of the situation, and this past show may have been my favourite of those I've seen. 

 EARLY THURSDAY MORNING - THE DAY AFTER THE FULL MOON

I took this photo around 4:30 a.m. when I woke to see the moon shining brightly outside my bedroom window.  It isn't that successful as a photograph (we could blame my sleepiness), but does record the event. 

Those are the skies (and bears!) in my life this past week.  It is always fun to share them, so thank you for taking the time to stop by the blog. For other skies around the world, I hope you will check out some of the amazing posts at the Friday Skywatch meme.