{"id":113425,"date":"2023-05-15T03:01:02","date_gmt":"2023-05-15T09:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=113425"},"modified":"2023-05-15T03:01:02","modified_gmt":"2023-05-15T09:01:02","slug":"american-white-pelicans-study-of-light-and-shadows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/05\/15\/american-white-pelicans-study-of-light-and-shadows\/","title":{"rendered":"American White Pelicans &#8211; Study Of Light And Shadows"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last month there were plenty of American White Pelicans at my local pond. Because they were there I had the opportunity to photograph them in light and shadows.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazyload aligncenter wp-image-113422 size-full\" title=\"American White Pelicans with light and shadows\" src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533.jpg\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533.jpg\" alt=\"American White Pelicans with light and shadows, Salt Lake County, Utah\" width=\"900\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20900%20643%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-200x143.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-250x179.jpg 250w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-400x286.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-600x429.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533-800x572.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533.jpg 900w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-orig-sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\">American White Pelicans with light and shadows \u2013 Nikon D500, tripod mounted, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 640, -1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n<p>There are a few minutes each morning when the sun rises over the Wasatch Mountains, and during this time, my subjects can be bathed in bright morning light while part of the pond remains in the shadow of the mountains.<\/p>\n<p>When I took this image of the American White Pelicans the sun lit them up and they glowed. The water in that particular section of the pond was in the shade of the mountains, which made the pelicans appear even brighter. I enjoyed the contrast between the darkness and the brightness of the pelicans.<\/p>\n<p>Would I have been happier if the pelicans had been facing me? Maybe. I think the fact that they were not is what contributes to the image&#8217;s drama. Drama that might not have been present if they had been facing me.<\/p>\n<p>Most of my American White Pelican photos in my galleries has the kind of light photographers are taught or trained to look for.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What kind of light is that?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Early morning or late afternoon light with the sun behind my shoulder.<\/p>\n<p>However, I like to experiment, I love challenges, and I like to look at my subjects in their settings with a different perspective or eye at times.<\/p>\n<p>While this image might not satisfy everyone&#8217;s tastes, I know it more than satisfies mine. As I have mentioned before, I take photos for me.<\/p>\n<p>Life <em>is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n<p>Mia<\/p>\n<p>Click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/american-white-pelican-images\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my American White Pelican photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last month there were plenty of American White Pelicans at my local pond. Because they were there I had the opportunity to photograph them in light and shadows.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":113422,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,27,709,26],"tags":[4004,3966,13908,4053,4204,10698,4154,4,706,1984,10605,4677,165,8018,3996],"class_list":["post-113425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-white-pelicans","category-avian","category-salt-lake-county-utah","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-american-white-pelican","tag-ater","tag-breeding-plumage","tag-light","tag-park","tag-pelecanus-erythrorhynchos","tag-pelican","tag-pelicans","tag-pond","tag-ripples","tag-shadows","tag-spring","tag-urban","tag-water"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-4533.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-tvr","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":101504,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/04\/10\/american-white-pelican-in-low-light\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":0},"title":"American White Pelican In Low Light","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"I am enjoying seeing the birds that have returned to breed in Utah including this American White Pelican I photographed in low light two days ago at a local pond.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult American White Pelican in low light, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/american-white-pelican-early-morning-mia-mcpherson-3848.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/american-white-pelican-early-morning-mia-mcpherson-3848.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/american-white-pelican-early-morning-mia-mcpherson-3848.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/american-white-pelican-early-morning-mia-mcpherson-3848.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":112311,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/04\/16\/spring-american-white-pelican-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":1},"title":"Spring American White Pelican Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 16, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This collection of American White Pelican photos were taken starting the 6th of April. Some of the images show the snow from a snowstorm earlier this month.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American White Pelican in a morning mist, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/american-white-pelican-adult-mist-mia-mcpherson-0481.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/american-white-pelican-adult-mist-mia-mcpherson-0481.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/american-white-pelican-adult-mist-mia-mcpherson-0481.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/american-white-pelican-adult-mist-mia-mcpherson-0481.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100893,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/03\/17\/an-american-white-pelican-in-soft-morning-light\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":2},"title":"An American White Pelican In Soft Morning Light","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 17, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Two mornings ago I photographed my first American White Pelican of the year in soft morning light at an urban park close to home.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Preening American White Pelican on an urban pond, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/american-white-pelican-pond-mia-mcpherson-2057.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/american-white-pelican-pond-mia-mcpherson-2057.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/american-white-pelican-pond-mia-mcpherson-2057.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/american-white-pelican-pond-mia-mcpherson-2057.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":106588,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/09\/29\/american-white-pelican-reflections\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":3},"title":"American White Pelican Reflections","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 29, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Two days ago, as the sun first flooded the marshes with light, I was at Farmington Bay WMA photographing two American White Pelicans float on the water.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American White Pelican reflections, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/american-white-pelican-reflections-mia-mcpherson-7234.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/american-white-pelican-reflections-mia-mcpherson-7234.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/american-white-pelican-reflections-mia-mcpherson-7234.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/american-white-pelican-reflections-mia-mcpherson-7234.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":113592,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/05\/29\/spring-american-white-pelican-portraits\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":4},"title":"Spring American White Pelican Portraits","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 29, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Before summer begins, I wanted to share these American White Pelican portraits that I took along the shoreline of my local pond.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American White Pelican portrait with a split horn, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-adult-mia-mcpherson-2343.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-adult-mia-mcpherson-2343.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-adult-mia-mcpherson-2343.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-white-pelican-adult-mia-mcpherson-2343.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9844,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/10\/19\/american-white-pelican-lifting-off\/","url_meta":{"origin":113425,"position":5},"title":"American White Pelican Lifting Off","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 19, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"This American White Pelican was taking off from a pond near where I live in Salt Lake County and I happened to click the shutter when its wings were extended upwards and when its feet had just slapped the water","rel":"","context":"In &quot;American White Pelicans&quot;","block_context":{"text":"American White Pelicans","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/pelicans\/white-pelicans\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American White Pelican lifting off, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-white-pelican-lift-off-mia-mcpherson-3506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-white-pelican-lift-off-mia-mcpherson-3506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-white-pelican-lift-off-mia-mcpherson-3506.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-white-pelican-lift-off-mia-mcpherson-3506.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=113425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=113425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=113425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=113425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}