Three Moose Parade Behind my Alberta Yard

My home office, the place where I write all these pithy posts, is a recliner in the living room. My laptop sits on a board that straddles the two arms – my desk. The chair faces the windows and patio door and I have a clear view of all that is happening to the east and the south of The Red House.

One recent morning, just as the sun was painting the horizon a reddish orange colour, a flash of something light caught my eye. It was the bum end of a white tail deer, then another one, bounding out of the woods. Odd to see them in such a hurry. Then, close behind them, I saw a large dark form, then another and then a third. As they all cleared the woods and headed into the field, I saw that the dark forms were three moose.

I leaped out of my chair and grabbed my camera. “Wait Moose! Please Wait!”  But they were in a hurry, and by the time I got to the window they were almost out of view. I ran outside, crossed the yard and then stopped to make sure the moose weren’t close enough to be dangerous. Once I knew their whereabouts, I made a dash for the edge of our property.

By now the moose were specks in the distance, so I zoomed the camera in and hoped for the best. The result was this rather grainy picture, but at least it shows the three moose, and one of the surprised horses who was also watching the Moose Parade.

While I was working with this photo in Photoshop Elements, I wondered what would happen if I cropped out just one moose.

I was pleased to see the result. Looks rather like an impressionist painting, don’t you think?

Hunters will tell you that a moose is a wily and ferocious forest creature. In fact, a moose is a cow drawn by a three-year-old.
– Bill Bryson – Notes from a Big Country –