Plus some tips on what features to look for and which ones to avoid in a vehicle that will be used as a mobile blind for bird photography.
I have a new ride, a 2020 Ford F-150 Ecoboost.
I had my old pickup for over six years and it was approaching 160K miles so it was time. This one’s a different color and it has a few more bells and whistles but it’s basically the same model as the pickup I traded in. I kept the old one for much longer than usual, by my count this is the 13th (or 14th) new Ford pickup I’ve bought in my nearly six decades of driving. Yup, I’m a Ford guy through and through.
Given the number of times I’ve done it you might assume I enjoy buying new vehicles but I don’t, far from it. Even though I know I’ll buy Ford the process of negotiating and choosing options that will fit my needs is a painful one, aggravated this year by the effects of the pandemic that have severely limited vehicles to choose from. The pickup I eventually chose had to be driven down from a Ford dealer in Idaho.
And that process is made even worse by my specialized needs as a bird photographer. Most of my bird photography is done from my vehicle, using it as a mobile blind, Birds are much less fearful of a vehicle than they are of a person on foot but trying to photograph birds from a vehicle that isn’t well suited for it can be incredibly frustrating.
So I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to provide some suggestions to my bird photographer readers who may at some point be purchasing a new or used vehicle that will be used for serious bird photography. Obviously it’s far preferable to know about these tips before you buy the vehicle rather than after.
My suggestions would include the following:
- Bird photographers tend to have long lenses and they’re expensive so you don’t want them bouncing around on the seat just waiting to crash onto the floor when you brake for a bird. So you’ll need some way to secure your lens where it’s close and readily available but still secure. That requires sufficient room on the front seat and a way to secure it. My method of choice is a lens caddy that I built for my photo gear but even in my full sized pickup there’s barely enough room for it to be secured in the way I prefer. Make sure you have a plan before you buy the vehicle rather than after.
- Make sure you have enough cup holders! That’s more important than you might think. For many of us long hours in the vehicle while photographing birds requires plenty of coffee and other liquid refreshments. You need stable places to keep them, especially on rough roads.
- Avoid daytime running lights that can’t be turned off. They’ll scare off birds as you’re approaching them (especially in shade or low light) and they’ll seriously piss off other bird photographers attempting to shoot from their own vehicles as you approach the same spot they’re photographing from. I once had a Toyota Matrix with DRL’s that couldn’t be turned off and I cursed them almost daily. My Toyota dealer refused to alter them so I could turn them off because he said it would cause potential legal problems for them.
- Try to avoid mirrors that will obstruct your view and shooting angle out your window. I pull a trailer so I need large mirrors but even small mirrors on cars rather than pickups can be a huge problem. But thankfully, depending on the vehicle, there can be a solution.
The solution is to choose a vehicle that allows the mirror to be pushed forward (toward the engine) and mostly out of the way of a long lens. This is a feature I insist on having on my pickups.
- Since you’ll be shooting out your window and using the glass for support for your lens in some way the slope of the glass (and of the window opening itself) can be a problem. Sit in the vehicle with your lens and try it out before purchasing. I use a pool noodle wrapped in duct tape that allows me to conform the shape of the noodle to the sloping window. There are other solutions besides pool noodles but depending on the slope of the window some work much better than others. Have a plan before you purchase the vehicle. It’s too late after you’ve signed on the dotted line.
- Rear windows on some vehicles won’t roll all the way down which for all practical purposes prevents a second photographer from shooting from the back seat. Mia is often shooting from my back seat so my vehicle has to have a window that rolls all the way down.
- Another consideration for those who will be shooting from pickups is the back window at the rear of the cab. I prefer to have a power sliding window there that opens and closes at the touch of a button. I often stop for birds on windy and narrow dirt/gravel roads and a vehicle approaching from behind can be a safety issue. In those situations I always open the rear cab window so I can hear an approaching vehicle. Gravel roads are noisy so I can usually hear them coming from a quarter mile away.
When choosing a vehicle there are many other considerations that may be specific to your needs and/or your vehicle but I’ve mentioned some of the more important ones.
I have many friends locally who are bird photographers and we sometimes stop to jawbone a little while we’re in the field so if you see this particular pickup I’ll be in it. I put my HARRIER plate on just for this photo but I can’t drive with the plate for a week or two until my new registration arrives.
And yes, I tried to hide behind the Ford emblem when I took this photo so my reflection wouldn’t show up.
The best laid plans of mice and men…
Ron
Addendum: I’m adding the following photo at the request of Gary Carlson:
Gary, here’s my lens caddy outside my pickup as you requested. I built it about 10 years ago and I’ve modified it multiple times over the years to accommodate different vehicles and lenses. I’ll try to explain some of its features.
- The camera/lens combination rests on the caddy at three points – the camera itself rests on the platform on the right. The lens is supported at two points – in the semicircle cutout on the left and the foot of the lens fits precisely into the rectangular cutout in the middle. There are felt strips on both the camera rest and the lens rest to prevent wear and absorb some of the shock on rough roads. The weight of the lens holds it all down and the precise fit of the foot into the cutout prevents it from moving forward and back when I hit the brakes or accelerate. I have a small bungee cord I can strap over the lens to hold it down but I never use it. I don’t need to – it’s very secure without it. I’ve never had it bounce out of the caddy and I drive some very rough roads.
- The middle seat belt wraps around the bottom of the camera rest to keep the caddy/lens combination from moving forward when I brake.
- The small circular cutout is to hold my teleconverter when I remove it. Without the cutout my tc can slide or roll off the caddy if I’m parked on a slope.
- To the left of the teleconverter cutout is a spot for my phone.
- I added the drink holder as an afterthought.
I absolutely love my lens caddy! It’s perfect for my needs. I even built a second one for Mia that works in the back seat. She loves hers too.
Not only are you a very talented photographer but you are a creative genius! I am very impressed. If you tried your hand at building a “tiny house” I bet it would have a place for everything in so many creative ways! Thanks for this illuminating post!
Awesome! I love the idea of using very cheap noodles for cushioning and steadying cameras. Thanks for all your inspiration and beauty!
I really enjoyed this post. I love seeing the “back story” of how things are done. đ (And yes, I loved watching those movies in school of how bottles were capped, etc.) đ
Good looking mobile blind, Ron! To paraphrase my mother, “Drive it in good health!” đ
Thanks, Marty. I fully intend to.
Ron,
160,000 miles is impressive. I remember when you posted your odometer as it rolled over to 100,000 miles. It didn’t seem too long ago. I thought of that post this week as my Jeep turned over to 100,000 miles as well… out photographing birds on Antelope Island!
I always enjoy your posts and photos.
Stephen
(BTW, I got my first picture of a hummingbird in the wild on the island just before the 100,000 mile mark. I was very pleased.)
Stephen, I put on a lot of miles and most of them are what I call ‘bird miles’.
And congrats on your wild hummer photos.
Yes those day time running lights. In my Outback I have to pull up on the parking brake just a bit, put shirt under the handle. The brake is not engaged, but the switch to the running lights is tricked into thinking the brake is on and running lights are off. Took a bit to figure this out. And those mirrors
, glad mine go flush to the front of the car.
jake
Ha, that’s pretty ingenious, Jake!
Very nice new truck. It is huge! I hope you have many enjoyable years photographing birds with it. Maybe a trip or two with your camper too.
The last car I bought 13 years ago, I took my entire family for a test drive, even Haley’s boyfriend, Nate, who is now her husband. I needed a car 5 big adults could fit into comfortably. Eric is big and Nate is tall. Thus the
Avalon over the Camry.
Thanks, April. We all have different needs for our vehicles. Thankfully I don’t have to worry about carrying that many people. With just the two of us and all our photo gear we’re sometimes pushed for room even in that big pickup.
Woo Hoo.
Happy, safe, fulfilling driving.
And I love that you are keeping the Harrier plates.
Thanks, EC. For some reason I’m pretty attached to those plates.
NICE new ride! I hope it performs like all the other Fords I’ve owned, including my beloved ’69 Mustang! Yes, I’m a Ford girl, too!
No, I’m not driving a Ford now. I think most of us have special vehicle requirements. For me, the first consideration was that the back of the SUV have room for three giant hoods for the hawks (a pickup won’t work for me because I won’t travel anywhere with the birds outside of the vehicle with A/C and such). So I measured them with width, height and depth. My Jeep passed that first test while about a dozen other used SUVs didn’t.
After the birds were good, then came MY issues. First, I couldn’t have a door that required a working thumb. Secondly, the gear shift couldn’t require a working thumb either! With my old ’91 Jeep, I had to bring a hammer or other stick to push that button holding it to my hip (door) or use both hands (with pain) to put it in gear! WRONG answer, thank you for playing! After that, I had to be able to open the hood and work with the back hatch. There were other considerations I won’t list here, but those were the biggies. My Jeep Cherokee passed all the tests! And I know Mia agrees with me that Jeeps are (can be) cool, too!
Basically, it’s a b*tch being handicapped AND elderly, HOWEVER, the birds MUST be served first đ Like you, I HATE shopping for a new vehicle so I keep them until I run them into the ground. My ’91 Jeep had 267,000 miles on it!
Laura, with all the Ford pickups I’ve owned I’ve never had a major engine or transmission problem and the smaller problems I’ve had have been few. Maintenance isn’t cheap but I believe keeping it up to date really pays off. And I LOVE Ford’s Ecoboost engine that came out in 2011, to the point that this is my third one. That engine really scoots and it still gets excellent gas mileage for a full sized pickup.
Jon has always liked Fords too due to easy maintenance he does himself. I talked him into a Toyota, Corolla a few years ago. He hates he can’t do his own maintenance on it. He looks at the tight full engine and says “I don’t know what I am looking at.”
The pool noodle for the window is ingenious!!!! Why didn’t I or anyone I know think of that? We were unhappy that our back windows don’t roll all the way down, but have always used various bean bags to cover up the glass and support the lens–molar bags, sometimes with other bean bags on top to make the lens height comfortable. I think I’ll add a noodle. Thank you.
Nancy, personally I much prefer the noodle to a bean bag. And noodles and duct tape are cheap!
Like the shiny new wheels! Comfort at it’s best! I wish I could figure out a way to have my camera next to me as yours is but not to be so. I made an elevated ‘box’ padded very heavily with foam that fits on the passenger floor of my Subaru Forrester…this makes it easy reach over to grab my camera/lens. After one too quick stop where it went flying to the floor from the seat made coming up with something a necessity. I picked up on your noodle set-up when i first started following you…love it!
Kathy, it gets your attention when camera and lens go crashing to the floor doesn’t it!
I love my noodle almost as much as my lens caddy. I much prefer it to any variation of a bean bag I’ve tried.
So, I guess you will be keeping your old camera for a while until the pain of the new truck payments wears off ?? I like the camera caddy set up !! Have you posted any pictures of it before. If not, some of it in and out of the truck would be nice … Thanks and congrats on your new Ford F150 !!
Gary, I’d already decided to keep my old photo gear for the foreseeable future, even before I thought about buying a new pickup. I’m actually quite happy with the gear I’m using, especially since I got my teleconverter repaired. What a difference!
I’ve now posted one of the photos you requested as an addendum to this post.
Nice!
Thanks, Jean.
Sheâs a beauty âïž I knew you shot pictures from your truck. So itâs good youâve found something thatâs fits all your needsđ
Canât imagine having to maneuver that huge camera aroundâïž
Makes me appreciate your pictures even more đ
“itâs good youâve found something thatâs fits all your needs”
Diana, to be honest when it comes to vehicles used for bird photography I don’t think there’s any such thing as one that fits “all” of my needs. But this one is pretty darn close. .
Excellent advice, Ron. I have a Subaru Crosstrek with ridiculously large side mirrors that push towards me. They have blocked so many shots (of eagles especially, and the dealership told me there are no options. The moon roof does give some comfort (smile) for overhead birds in flight. Nice truck!
Deb, for a bird photographer that mirror thing is a VERY big deal.
WOW– that was an education– from your lead-in title, I expected to see
photos of something that looked like a wickiup on wheels ( you know,
covered in tree limbs, etc.), and was surprised to see a sleek, shiny
new truck—-if there’s a “blind” there, it’s the sheen from the blindingly
perfect new paint–but I suspect that it’ll be covered with Wasatch front dust
in no time !
Ha, it’s partially covered by Wasatch dust already, Kris. We took it out for its shakedown cruise this morning. Even found a couple of pleasant surprises.
WOW, great post!
I also have a 150, but I’m very fussy about my truck! Been in the market for a new one, but probably wont until they have my color!
I have some of your past tips, made me go from a Toyota truck to a Ford 150, a few years back! Love my Ford truck!
Birders as well as photographers need to take your tips to heart – I’ve had several small accidents, so I know your tips are well worth the time and effort to heed!!
Thanks, Dick. I learned some of this stuff by painful experience.
Wonderful commentary on things to be considered! Daytime running lights I wouldn’t have thought of! True of so many things! Nice looking rig…now if it will just run like it’s supposed to! đ
I didn’t think of DLR’s when I bought that Toyota, Judy. Big mistake.
Beautiful American vehicle Ron. Good luck with it. Hope it gives you many more years of fun travel and outstanding photos.
Thanks, Everett.
Good looking rig Ron. I looked at new ones a couple years ago and when I saw the price tag I decided my ten year old F-150 still works just fine. Mine wouldnât let you adjust the window height by taking your finger off the button. It would go all the way down and your noodle would end up on the ground. Will yours stop anywhere you want it too?
Sterling, my old pickup was like that and I HATED it. The windows were real touchy. Thankfully this new pickup doesn’t have that feature.
Beautiful vehicle. I’m sure you’ll put lots of miles and memories on this one too. When you say to always have a plan when you purchase a vehicle … it’s true. I once knew a little lady who played a huge drum in a senior league band. When she was shopping for a new car, she took the drum with her to make sure it would accommodate it.
Cindy, I took my lens caddy with me while I was shopping just to make damn sure I could secure it down on the seat.