Golden-crowned Kinglet

Golden-crowned Kinglet, Cooper Mountain Nature Park, Beaverton, Oregon, 13 October 2011 by Greg Gillson.

 

On a recent slow drive with my window down I heard numerous Golden-crowned Kinglets in the lowland woods. Although some birds will remain through the winter in the snow-covered mountains where they breed, most move down-slope or southward for winter.

The photo above was taken on a recent cloudy morning at the nearby nature park. These low-light weather conditions will be frequent through the winter in western Oregon, where I live. At 1/30th of a second, hand-held, 400mm, and 800 ISO, it is amazing I got even one good photo of this energetic little bird. So I'll probably add a flash to my camera for my photo outings for the next few months. Birds look more realistic and three-dimensional with natural light. But without flash my bird photography would be very sparse from late October into April.

Earlier this year I posted a more in-depth article on Golden-crowned Kinglets.

Photography tip

Here's a great bird photography tip by Bill Schmoker on the ABA blog. Get low: A matter of perspective

Anna's Hummingbird portrait

Anna's Hummingbird, Forest Grove, Oregon on 15 April 2010 by Greg Gillson.

 

This afternoon I decided to shoot some photos at the hummingbird feeder. I'm still trying to get good photos of full adult male Rufous and Anna's Hummingbirds. And, well, I'm still trying....

Instead I got photos of this Anna's Hummingbird. It may actually be a recently-fledged bird. The fresh plumage of the head feathers show crisp gray borders.

My recent bird photos (except for some digiscoped ones) are taken with my Canon 100-400mm image stabilized lens. This allows me to hand-hold the camera and get very good photos. However, today I put the camera on the tripod. This allows very sharp photos at much lower shutter speeds than I can take hand-holding.

This photo is cropped to less than 25% of full frame to show the feather details (click on photos to see full size). The lens was only zoomed about 2/3 of full (285 mm), f7.1, 1/1000 second, ISO 400, exposure compensation -0.3.

Following the (bird photography) rules

American Robin, Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve, Hillsboro, Oregon on February 25, 2010 by Greg Gillson.

 

There are several "rules" in bird photography that help make a pleasing composition. There can be times to break those rules. In this photograph, however, I stayed within the rules for pleasing results.

First, get the bird's eyes in focus. Most people agree that if the subjects eyes are in focus that the photo as a whole is in focus--even if distant parts of the bird may actually be out-of-focus. And get a catchlight in the eye--that little sparkle of light. If the eye is in shadow and all dark, it doesn't appear as "alive" as it should.

Secondly, give the bird extra space both above the head and in front of the bird in the direction which the bird is facing.

Third, get on the same level as the bird; do not shoot up or down at the bird. In this case, the foreground and background fade away pleasantly as I crouched down to get as close as I could to the bird's level.

Fourth, use natural light or, if necessary, use only a subdued fill-flash. Flash may garishly brighten a bird's colors and make the bird look like a two-dimensional cut-out. In this case I used only natural morning light. The morning light has a pleasing golden cast and the directional side lighting creates shadow for a realistic, three-dimensional shape.

Other techniques come down to personal taste--the photographer's style. I have been following Rich Ditch's photography blog. His personal taste is for understated colors and earth tones. This photo falls into that category. Rich also prefers to back off--not cropping tightly--and show more of the bird-in-habitat. I believe this photo is in the style of Rich Ditch.

Surfing the web... bird photography

Yellow-rumped (Audubon's)
Warbler, Jackson Bottom
Wetlands, Hillsboro, Oregon on
26 March 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

My bird photos have improved measurably over the past few months thanks to suggestions I have put to use using these web sites.

Rich Ditch's Photography Blog: Rich started this great bird photography blog in January 2009 and posts nearly every day. About 80% of his photos are birds, and most of these are taken in locales near his home in Phoenix, Arizona. He describes composition, technique, light--everything that goes into making a good bird photo--and explains his own personal style.

Nature Photographers Online Magazine: My primary interest in this site is the Avian Image Critique Gallery. Here members post bird photos and give and receive helpful criticism on what they like and how to make it better. I especially enjoy "reposts," where a photographer takes the suggestions and re-adjusts his photograph using the recommendations given.

Bird Photographers.Net: This site also has a photo critique site and a monthly eZine, with helpful articles by some of the world's best nature photographers.