Nature Photography: What to shoot in October

Text and photos by Heather Cline 

Bull Moose among Autumn color, Teton National Park

October is a great month for nature photography. The weather is starting to cool, wildlife is on the move, and colors are popping with each passing day. If you aren't sure what to photograph this month, here are some ideas to get you motivated.

Autumn Leaves

This one seems kind of obvious but I had to start here because I love the bold colors that naturally occur in nature and leaves do not disappoint! You can do so many things with leaves: macro, abstract, bokeh, patterns. The list is endless. 

Autumn leaf with morning dew, Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve

Mushrooms

Although Spring is a great time to find mushrooms, when the temperatures start to drop on October, these little guys start to appear again. If you get some rain - even better. This is a great subject for a macro lens, but it isn't absolutely critical. You can capture a nice landscape with mushrooms in the foreground. Just make sure to get really, really close. If you are looking for tips on photographing mushrooms, check out my blog here: Magnificent Mushrooms. 

Mushroom, Silver Falls State Park

Sandhill Cranes

The Sandhill Cranes are back! Honestly, there are many migrating birds that you can start to capture in the fall but I I'm highlighting Sandhill Cranes because of my love and fascination with them. Cranes can be found in many of the northern parts of North America, but they migrate to warmer climates of the lower 48 in the fall, including my great state of California. Did you know there are 50 wildlife refuges and complexes in California? Those in the North-Eastern section of the state are good places to spot Sandhill Cranes. Here are some locations throughout California: 

• Cosumnes River Preserve
• Staten Island
• Carrizo Plain National Monument
• Isenberg Crane Reserve 
• Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, Llano Seco unit 
• Gray Lodge Wildlife Area 

If you would like more information on this species, check out my species highlight: Sandhill Cranes. 

Sandhill Cranes at sunrise, Isenberg Crane Reserve

Pumpkins and gourds 

Pumpkins and gourds can start making an appearance in September, but October is when they really start to take over. Taking your camera along when you go to the pumpkin patch, or sometimes even at the local hardware or grocery store, can produce some great opportunities for gourds galore, and you can find these just about everywhere.

Fun fact: The top producer of pumpkins is China with 7.7 million tons, followed by India (5 million tons), Russia (1.2 million tons), Ukraine (1.2 million tons) and USA (1 million tons tons).

Pumpkins and gourds

Salmon Run

Salmon can be spotted in rivers from October through December to begin their final journey to their spawning grounds where they complete the circle of life. Their blazing red color makes them relatively easy to spot and they are quite a sight, especially when many of them occupy the same section of a river or stream. 

Here are two reliable viewing locations in Northern California: 

• Nimbus Fish Hatchery in Gold River is a good location with an updated viewing area.
• Taylor Creek in Lake Tahoe is also a popular spot to view Kokanee Salmon with the added bonus of bird viewing and possible black bear sightings. 

Kokanee Salmon, Taylor Creek

Reflections

Because of the increased amount of color in the trees, October is a good time to capture reflections along the edges of creeks and lakes. This is a great subject to shoot in the middle of the day while you are waiting for the magic hour. 

The west fork of the Carson River is relatively calm and lined with aspen, making it a good spot to wander the shoreline looking for reflections. With Sorenson's Resort and Lake Tahoe close by, this is a great location for a day or weekend trip too. 

Aspen leaf, West Fork Carson River

Turkeys

Turkeys are strutting their stuff in the fall an their coloration and feather displays make them an interesting photographic subject. I've photographed many of these in a preserve near my home and I've always found them to be docile and willing models, patiently waiting while I compose, and recompose, and recompose again. 

These birds can found throughout the United States, in every state except for Alaska. 

Where can you find these fellow? Wild turkeys prefer hardwood and mixed conifer-hardwood forests with scattered openings such as pastures, fields, orchards and seasonal marshes.

Male Turkey, Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve

Pine Cones 

Forest floors are covered with interesting items to assemble and photograph. Much like reflections, I find this is a good activity during midday as it is generally easy to locate a nice shady spot to arrange my forest treasures to photograph. Pine cones especially provide a great opportunity to capture texture and patterns in warm tones that hint at the season.

There are 1.6 million acres of forests in California alone, so there's a good chance you can find some pine cones not far from home. Here are just a few good places around California with forests (and floors) worth visiting:  

• Lassen Volcanic National Park 
• Yosemite National Park 
• Redwoods National and State Parks
• Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks 
• Butano State Park 
• Calaveras Big Trees State Park 

Sequoia Pine Cones, Yosemite National Park

Mule Deer 

I have an interest in deer watching, particularly in the fall when the males are on the lookout for a date with a lady. They seem to be unaware of anything other than a potential mate or a competing male. Witnessing a sparring match is a pretty cool experience and not uncommon when there is more than one male in the area. 

There is a deer near my home that I see each fall. I know it is the same deer because he has a wonky antler that grows the same year after year. I call him Wonky Wally and he is my absolute favorite for his calm demeanor as he casually walks and grazes as if he owns the forest. Did you know that deer's antler can grow deformed based on genetic predisposition or injury, which is often the result of fighting with other males? It's true!

Juvenile Male Mule Deer, Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve

Abstracts

Autumn colors provide really great opportunities to goof off and experiment with abstract images. Zooming out or rotating your camera lens during a long exposure, panning horizontally or vertically, or even (carefully and gently) swinging your camera during a long exposure can produce some pretty neat stuff. It might take 100 shots to get one great one but with digital film, why not? This is another midday photo op if you are waiting for the light to get good. 

Aspens with camera motion

Full Moon

You might be thinking, there is a full moon every month. Why list it here? First, is the sun is setting earlier and the full moon always rises at sunset so you can get out and shoot the moon before dinner. In addition, as trees and bushes lose their leaves, they make great foreground elements to include with a bright moon. Finally, the temperatures are cool but bearable, so get out and grab one before it gets too cold!

Full moon rising, Mono Lake

Raging Waves

That's right! It's time to head to the coast because not only can you get some of the best sunsets of the year in autumn but storms start to create large waves that are intense and a lot of fun to photograph. The Oregon coastline has some great places to capture mega waves. I really like Cape Kiwanda in the northern coast for this very reason. 

Cape Kiwanda, Pacific City

Fall Food and Beverage

Stuck indoors? No problem! Just break out your cups, dishes, napkins, and fall decor and photograph your favorite fall food and beverages. You can even "cheat" by buying treats from your local store or bakery then dress them up at home. You don't need fancy equipment either. A basic camera (even a smartphone) and window light can create some really great images. As a reward, you can eat the treats when you are done!

Pumpkin pie

Morning Mist 

Cooler temperatures create a wonderful mist over bodies of water in the morning. You do have to get up early to capture this but it's worth it because you will often have the place all to yourself before the daytime leaf peepers take over. 

Silver Lake

Vignettes

There's no reason you can't capture the essence of fall in an intimate landscape. I think we sometimes get caught up in capturing iconic landscapes. I know I do, but I also enjoy capturing these small and anonymous vignettes of nature no one else will see or capture the exact same image, making it uniquely mine. 

Fall colors, Union Creek Oregon

Waterfalls

Fall can be a challenging time to capture waterfalls because they may run to a trickle or even completely dry, so this one requires a little research to make sure you don't show up to a wall of nothing. When the water is flowing, it can be magical, especially if you can work some fall foliage into the frame. 

I can't even begin to list all the places in the United States where you can find waterfalls among fall colors, but here are few places I have visited that are worth checking out: 

• Silver Falls State Park, Oregon 
• Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
• Lundy Canyon Falls, Lee Vining, California 
• McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park, California 
• Mossbrae Falls, Dunsmuir, California 
• Proxy Falls, Oregon
• Yosemite Falls, Yosemite National Park, California 
• Undine Falls, Yellowstone National Park 

South Falls, Silver Falls State Park

Landscapes

I had to finish with another favorite. There's nothing more delightful than a beautiful fall scene. It's temporary, making it that much more special. Fortunately, there are many places around the United States that are known for fall foliage and I provided a brief list below. 

Sunrise panorama at Oxbow Bend, Tetons National Park

• Babcock State Park, West Virginia
• Acadia National Park, Maine
• Pictured Rocks, Michigan
• Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee
• Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
• Maroon Bells, Colorado
• Zion National Park, Utah 
• Portland Japanese Garden, Oregon
• Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
• Silver Falls State Park, Oregon

I hope these ideas have given you some inspiration for your October photographic adventures!