I make every effort in the field to “read” the behavior of my avian subjects. Sometimes I’m right and sometimes I’m not but either way it’s a learning experience for me and my percentage of accuracy does seem to be improving. One of the payoffs can be better bird photographs for a variety of reasons.
Earlier this week I spent several mornings photographing a female Western Kingbird as she was constructing her nest. Out of the many hundreds of shots I took of her the third image in this post is my favorite.
Western Meadowlarks are good subjects for practicing take-off shots. The rule of thumb is the smaller the bird the faster the take-off, so songbirds are difficult subjects for this type of shot because of their small size and quickness.
This spring I’ve had several opportunities to photograph the courtship “flight display” of the male Northern Mockingbird. While singing continuously from his perch he jumps almost straight up about six feet as he flaps his wings a couple of times which displays those conspicuous white wing patches and then parachutes down with wings open to the same perch. This performance is repeated every 30-60 seconds or so for an extended period of time.
Yesterday morning just after sunrise I was driving slowly on an isolated and deserted road looking for birds when I encountered a male Northern Harrier hunting along the road edge as it flew in the same direction I was traveling.
Avoiding “clipped” body parts is perhaps the biggest challenge associated with take-off shots.
When I’m photographing Western Meadowlarks at take-off there’s always one flight posture I hope I don’t get.
Photographing birds as they take off is tricky but with a little luck and perseverance it can be done. Landing shots are much more difficult and often require creative innovation.
Occasionally a Northern Harrier will come in close to the photographer as the hawk hunts the narrow confines of the causeway to Antelope Island.
Depth of field can have some fairly dramatic effects on an image and how much of it is preferred can depend on the tastes of the viewer.
I believe this to be a perspective on a landing raptor that one seldom sees in a photograph. It may not be to everyone’s taste but I found it interesting nonetheless.
There are three primary schools of thought when it comes to blurred wings in flight – not ever, they don’t bother me and it depends on the image. I fall in the latter camp.
Wind can be an issue when photographing birds in flight but at times it can also be your friend.
It’s easy to miss the potential of a photo when viewing it full frame. This image makes me wonder how many diamonds in the rough I’ve deleted over the years…
When I’m in the field I sometimes curse the snow but for bird photographers that white, messy stuff can often be a blessing in disguise.
