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Behind The Lens
Location
In my daughters home in Wisconsin countryside.Time
This photo was taken on spring March day about 6pm in the evening.Lighting
There are several bluebird houses close to the house and shade already reached over them. The last one was still in a soft evening sunlight filtered by leafless tree branches. The bluebird pair was investigating the houses for an move-in opportunity and lucky for me they were impressed with the one still in sunlight.Equipment
When I saw the bird activity I quickly put on my Nikkor 500 telephoto lens so I could get close shots without scaring the pair and to achieve the blurred soft colors in the background. With vibration reduction on I was able to hold the lens without tripod and capture the fleeting moment.Inspiration
I was visiting my daughter and luckily I had my photo backpack with all my equipment in the car. So I was able to capture the birds' hunt for suitable nesting real estate.Editing
I did a little sharpening and increase gently the colour vibrance in Photoshop. I cropped the photo to achieve the desired composition. I prefer natural looking images so I keep my processing minimal.In my camera bag
I have two Nikon bodies D3200 and D3500 with 16-200mm lens kit and additional 200-500mm telephoto lens, lightweight tripod, remote shutter release and filters.Feedback
Birds are really easily photographed in spring, when there are no leaves on trees and when they are very active seeking mates and preparing to nest. Good telephoto lens brings them closer without disturbing their activity and makes great clean background through shallow depth of field.