Another Bluebird thread

I will try to mix in a few unusual or animated poses. But for the most part these will probably be your run of the mill bird perched on a branch shots.
This first one was watching a hawk flying high above.

This one is from a couple of days ago, when we had sunshine.

And this one from a day when it rained.

Same day. Probably the same bird.

Getting a drink

Here is a short series that shows what happens when Papa decides he wants to throw his weight around.

First, here is junior, patiently waiting while Papa is inside the feeder cage.

Papa flies out, with a worm still in his beak, and diverts to fly at junior.

Junior continues to retreat.

And Papa lands on the spot where Junior was. Notice he still has that last worm in his beak.

Back to the run of the mill stuff.

This would have been a nice shot, except that it was taken just a little too early in the day.

This one was shot even earlier in the day.

Those are gorgeous Dave!!

Thanks Burd. This one was taken at 1200mm (600mm lens with a 2x teleconverter). No crop at all. The Mark III is one of the few cameras that will autofocus with a 2x.

Here's another but I did have to lighten this one a tad because his eye was shadowed.

One more

Hunkered down against the cold.

Last one for tonight. Can you believe I have a whole collection of these "oops" shots. If the birds only knew, I'd never see them again.

Great shots Dave, any taken with you new monster lens?

hack

Those last few were all 1200mm Hack. Dave's got the monster going. lol

Excellent shots Dave! All great but I love the last five.

Dave, your photos are just awesome!! Wish there was a way for some of you more experience photographers to teach us how to take photos like these. They're all beautiful!

Fantastic shots, Dave. I am at awe with the quality at 1200mm. That would be great at Conowingo to photograph some of the Bald Eagles sitting across the river. However, I would imagine it would be a challenge to photograph them in flight (at least for me). The other week there was a gentleman that had a 600mm with a 2x converter. I was standing next to him and it seemed as though he was missing a lot of the shots that I was getting at 500mm. My camera will autofocus with my 1.7x teleconverter but I haven't used it all this Fall. I used the 1.4x teleconverter one time and decided that I just prefer the straight 500mm for flight shots. Of course, practice definitely improves the odds for success.

Anyway, you have to feel like a kid in the candy store. Best wishes to you and your wife for a Happy Holiday Season.

Wow Dave....beautiful shots and the new lens was a great choice. I am so envious I am beside myself!!

These were great shots, I especially liked the "hawk watching" one. Those birds are pretty flexible, I might need phys therapy after doing that ^_^

Thanks everyone for your kind comments. I'll try to find some more.
This one was shot with the 200mm.

So was this one.

This was shot with the 400mm.

This was with the 600mm.

This one was taken with the 300mm f/2.8

Here's one from this morning with the 400mm. I put the 600mm away till Christmas. The lens is not a Christmas present, per se, but it takes a special tripod head to hold it and that I won't get until Christmas. And the 600 is a little heavy for me to hand hold.

Another from this morning. You can tell he was chilly.

Another. As he is leaving..

One more.

Last one for tonight.

Super shots Dave!! Thanks for showing the lens differences in your shots!

Beautiful shots no matter what lens is used!

Don't understand lenses, but I am certainly enjoying the bluebird photos.

I love all the photos. They're all very clear and sharp and it's very easy to see you love these little birds. Their expressions just make the photos all the better. Beautiful!

Iris, don't try to understand them. Life is complicated enough and take it from me, it can be addictive.

Duc, thank you for your comment. I do love them so. We are in for a major snowstorm that should begin any time now and last until Sunday.. They say Fredericksburg is directly in its path and we could get at least 10 and as much as 18 inches. I am glad I have plenty of mealworms. I should see a lot of the blues tomorrow.

Here is one from this afternoon. I got several of her with a holly berry in her mouth, but when she did that she leaned forward and her head and the berry were out of focus. I need to select a higher f-stop and increase the depth of field.



This message was edited Dec 18, 2009 8:29 PM