LR bird blind2-1-2
Mar, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
My wife and I have a 15 acre property near Falls Lake in North Carolina. It has a mix of trees and open areas that I manage with wildlife in mind. I have also built 3 ponds that add to the diversity of habitat. I mow paths, and plant wildlife feed and wildflower patches to create as much 'edge' as possible, which helps to provide a wide variety of species on the property. We have bird feeders and I have put out over a dozen bird houses, a bat house and built a chimney swift tower. We have a very long list of wildlife visitors we have seen. I can pretty much take a walk anytime I want, and find an opportunity for some sort of nice photo. This was taken where I mowed out a path for viewing access into a brush thicket of blackberries and other briars.Time
It was taken as the sun was setting in the evening but still provided rays of sunlight onto the area.Lighting
I had been sitting in the blind for nearly a couple of hours, getting a few shots from occasional opportunities. But the sun and lighting never seemed to be right. I wanted/needed one to land in a spot where a ray of light was able to highlight an area of the briars. I was almost ready to quit for the evening when this lady landed right where the sun happened to be just right. The sun ray mostly caught her head, but it was what I was waiting for and luckily I was ready. I returned the next few evenings, and caught some more nice shots of several varieties of birds, but this is my favorite.Equipment
I had purchased an 'Outhouse' wildlife blind I found at a sporting goods store and was anxious to try it out. I set it up the day before in the middle of the briars to give time for the birds to get used to it being there. The next day, it took at least 30 minutes for the birds to forget I had entered the blind before they resumed being active. I own a Nikon 7200 and was just using the 55-200mm kit lens. I like to use an external flash for fill. It sort of make the colors show a little better, but I usually stop it down to -2 or -3 so it doesn't have that flash look. For birds like hummingbirds, it nicely shows up the iridescence of the feathers. It was a Yongnuo 568ex TTL flash for this shotInspiration
I've always been interested in the outdoors. I have degrees in Forestry and Landscape Architecture and was a landscape contractor for 20 years. Lately I have been taking some photography courses at a local technical college AND I really like taking pictures of bug, birds and wildlife. The key to this kind of shot is patience.Editing
The shot was taken at f/5.6 with a 1:250 shutter speed and ISO at 400. I shoot in RAW files and I cropped and tweaked to get what you see in Lightroom.In my camera bag
The 55-200mm Nikon lens that came with the camera is not bad for a kit lens. It's light and versatile, the glass is OK, but it will be replaced with a better and faster lens if I can ever find enough money. I am retired. So the cost savings of some of the better 'off brand' lenses usually has to take priority over purchasing the items I would love to put in my bag. My second purchase was Sigma 17-50mm 2.8 that I like a lot. Great for all kinds of situations and wonderful for landscapes, urban scenes, and general use. Then, because I like wildlife so much, the Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 telephoto lens was next. I think of it more as a sunny day lens when it works best. Nice lens but slow glass. In cloudy and low light conditions, I have to raise the ISO numbers way up in order to get enough shutter speed. So it is not as quick to come out of the bag in those conditions. My latest purchase was a Tamaron 90mm f/2.8 macro lens. It's has a one foot focus distance, and I'm in the middle of a macro learning curve because of the tight focus range of close up photography. A Sirui tripod finishes off the major items in the bag.Feedback
Advice.....? Maximize your opportunities and have patience. You can't get the shot if you don't grab the camera and get out there. Explore for new areas with your camera in hand, you never know. Just plain look and listen for the wildlife. Look for where they might have food, water or protection. Move to where the birds are singing. Then sit and have bug spray handy. Most hunters know if your in the woods and sit still for 30 minutes to an hour, the woods comes back to life. The squirrels scamper, the birds go back to feeding or chasing each other, and you can begin to see all is not as empty as it seemed when you were walking through it. Your hunting to make a photo, same process as hunters, but even harder, because you have to get closer to the animals than they do. And if you can't get out and find the wildlife, simply set yourself down in a lounge chair in your own backyard near some bushes or trees. Maybe even a drink in one hand and a camera in the other. I bet after awhile, something will present itself for a picture possibility.
