Don’t say anything, but I think winter is about over. Spring may be here; the trees are leafing out! Isn’t it wonderful? Even if the temperature is 47°.

I was out to Grand Island and vicinity photographing the sandhill cranes yesterday. The peak migration is past, but there were still hundreds of birds there. This is my fourth year; it would have been more, but I didn’t know about it. In case you don’t know about it, the spring migration and stopover of sandhill cranes on the Platte River between Kearney and Grand Island is a sight (and sound) to behold! The large ancient birds spend about a month in that area to eat corn and gain strength for the rest of their trip to their breeding grounds in the Artic, from Siberia to eastern Canada. And, once in a while an endangered whooping crane will be spotted in with the sandhills. They are larger and white; the sandhill cranes are gray.

This is just one example of the wonderful photographic opportunities that we have here in Nebraska. If you want to find out more about our photo hot spots and how to make better photographs, check out the series of articles that just started in Nebraskaland magazine, put out by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. It is called “Photographing Nebraska’s Outdoors.” The first articles appeared in the April 2007 issue which may still be on the newsstands, or is available from Game and Parks, 2200 N. 33rd Street, right here in Lincoln. The articles are excellent, with something for everyone, from those of you using “point and shoot” digital cameras, to professional gear.

It is like all photographic opportunities; you have to go to them; they won’t come to you!

So dig out that camera that you put away last fall, dust it off, and start looking for those opportunities. Your own back yard is a great place to get warmed up! You’ll be surprised at what you find. Probably some flowers blooming for starters.

I’ve made a commitment to myself to get out and take photographs every possible day this spring, summer and fall. To help us along, some neat field trips and club events are in the planning stages. How about a garden with over 600 different varieties of iris?

And, as Steve Traudt told us in the recent seminar, you “take” snapshots, but you “make” great photographs. It takes a little more time, but the rewards are marvelous! That’s why we like photography.

Clark Springman