Your Bio

Thank you for visiting!  I'm Jay S. Mangum from Kingwood, Texas. The equipment that was used here is a Canon Rebel XTi for the photos taken since Dec 2006, a Minolta Konica DimageZ3 for March 2005-6 photos, and a twin lens reflex for the old dragster photos.  The telephoto lens is a Canon 100-400 IS  4.5/5.6.  The Canon 18-55MM kit lens was used for all the wide angles.  This page is new, with more photos to be loaded soon.  If you have info on those unidentified subjects, please let me know.  My email is jaymangum73@gmail.com. Many thanks to friends Wayne Wendel, David McDonald and Damien Carey for their fellowship, assistance and ideas. All rights reserved.

Galleries

Alaska 2008 :

Alaska 2008

Updated: Aug 23, 2008 8:04pm PST

Other Birds : All other birds incl. smaller birds, Birds of Prey, Hummingbirds, etc.

Other Birds

All other birds incl. smaller birds, Birds of Prey, Hummingbirds, etc.

Updated: Aug 01, 2008 7:26pm PST

Vintage Dragsters of the '60's : New photos were posted July 10, 2008. With help from veteran racers and fans we have made progress on identifications of the first set of photos. Thanks to all! If you have additional information or comments on the old dragsters shown here please email me at jaymangum73@gmail.com. I welcome your comments. All of these photos were taken by me with a large format cameras, a Rolleiflex twin lens or a Yashica Mat 124 twin lens reflex wide angle set up. Back then you could walk right up to the guardrail and walk down track taking pictures only a few feet from the cars going by. On several occasions I got a blast of smoke and fumes in the face from a nitro-powered fuel dragster as it went by under full throttle 6 to 8 feet from me. In the very early sixties many of the National Championship contenders towed their prized machines on open, flat trailers or simple flat bed trucks, exposed to the rain and wind, with only the motor covered, and often with little or no pit crew. They would enlist race fans to help with any chore that took more than two hands. It was easy to be a "crewmember for the day" back then.

Vintage Dragsters of the '60's

New photos were posted July 10, 2008. With help from veteran racers an ...

Updated: Jul 12, 2008 1:27pm PST

American Landscapes : Mountains, Waterfalls, Beaches, Sunsets,etc.

American Landscapes

Mountains, Waterfalls, Beaches, Sunsets,etc.

Updated: Jul 12, 2008 1:07pm PST

Waterfowl, Wading Birds : Primarily Herons, Egrets, Ducks, and other birds that live around water.

Waterfowl, Wading Birds

Primarily Herons, Egrets, Ducks, and other birds that live around wate ...

Updated: Jul 12, 2008 6:37am PST

Flowers, Butterflies, other Wildlife : This is all nature subjects other than birds

Flowers, Butterflies, other Wildlife

This is all nature subjects other than birds

Updated: Jun 22, 2008 7:44pm PST

Chrome and Steel : Images of the Man's machinery, concentrating on transportation.

Chrome and Steel

Images of the Man's machinery, concentrating on transportation.

Updated: Jun 21, 2008 10:39pm PST

Structures : Disney Fireworks, old Missions, Time Exposures, etc.

Structures

Disney Fireworks, old Missions, Time Exposures, etc.

Updated: May 30, 2008 9:44pm PST

Graphics, Abstracts, Colors : These photographs, some obviously highly altered, are themed on colors and design. All original photos are mine except for the Troy Merchant picture, which started out as relatively colorless smoke trails. Thanks, Troy!

Graphics, Abstracts, Colors

These photographs, some obviously highly altered, are themed on colors ...

Updated: May 28, 2008 10:13pm PST

California Condors : The Big Sur coastline of California provides a dramatic backdrop for this rare, endangered and spectacular bird. One of the my greatest experiences with nature was a California Condor making a very low, deliberate pass directly at me, then going straight over my head, very close. His approach started 100 yards or so away, wings locked in glide, moving directly toward me at my eye level, staring me down. I did not know what he had in mind! A few yards away, he slowly started pulling up. Over the noise of the ocean breakers below I could easily hear the whistle of the wind through the 22 pound bird's giant wings as it pulled up and passed over me. It was not more than 10 feet over my head when it went over. Its huge shadow on the ground was impressive and somewhat menacing. Wingspan is 9 to 10 feet. Most likely it was just curious (a trait they have that can work against them), because I had stood there and watched it and a couple of others for a long time before this happened. Less than 150 California Condors are flying free- mostly in the mountains and coastline around Big Sur, The Grand Canyon, Pinnacles National Monument, Zion, and a handful in Mexico. I have had the thrill of photographing many of these free flyers-22 of them close enough to read their wing tag serial numbers. Their steady glide is rock solid and majestic, with very long intervals between wing beats. The Ventana Wildlife Society (and others) work hard to keep these birds healthy and safe. The bird's locations are monitored daily. If one appears to be stationary, even over a short period of time, a search rescue is initiated to check on it. Because each Condor's transmitter sends a unique signal with a dimensional characteristic, researchers miles away can I.D a specific bird and, with a twist of the receiver, tell if the bird is on the wing or perched! UPDATE, 7-16-08. Nearly all of the Condors have been found and acccounted for after the tragic fires. Even two of the three wild chicks rode out the inferno and survived-the other chick's fate is unknown. The Ventana Wildlife Society facilites were devastated by flames and your donations for the rebuild are badly needed to continue the bird's recovery process from near extinction. (Google "Ventana Wildlife Society").

California Condors

The Big Sur coastline of California provides a dramatic backdrop for ...

Updated: May 28, 2008 9:07pm PST

My Smug Mug : Chasing Western birds at Choke Canyon, Texas with Wayne Wendel, Spring of 2008

My Smug Mug

Chasing Western birds at Choke Canyon, Texas with Wayne Wendel, Spring ...

Updated: May 25, 2008 6:03pm PST