Chickadee Tryptich

 Over the past few days I have been working on some images to be included in an upcoming project. I created a very simple set up.  I used a lichen covered twig as a perch placed about five inches or so from a single spout bird feeder. I waited for the birds to land on it when they came to feed. The birds and squirrels loved it. I used three different backgrounds behind the perch to change how the image looks. I went from coolest to warmest. On the last day, today, I was using the fall colored background. The backgrounds all create a different feel to the image. You can do this with the new background replacement tool in Photoshop but I prefer doing it the old fashioned way! This really shows how the background color in an image can change the perception of the viewer to an image. All of these images were created with a canon EOS 7D MKII camera and a Canon 100-400 mm V.1 lens. Fill flash was provided by a Canon 550 EX Speedlight. God's blessings upon your days, chris           #teamcanonusa

Rainy Day Grays, Jays and Chickadees

This morning there were spatters of rain on the rooftop when I woke up. Back in the ancient days of film photography that would have been a disaster.  Now with digital cameras it means a whole day of uninterrupted photography. The clouds are like a giant light diffuser casting soft light onto everything. Yesterday I created a new set up with a green lichen covered section of a branch. Behind it I erected a muddled brown, black and gray backdrop. Over the branchI hung a single spout bird feeder for the birds to come to. I put my camera on a tripod in our open back bedroom window. I  put it behind a window hide or blind with an opening for my camera lens. The flash I lay on the window sill point outwards towards the feeder. It was a long wait this morning for the birds to start using the feeder. First came the Chestnut-backed Chickadees.  Tentatively at first and then soon it was one after the other. There was another long break before a male Western Gray Squirrel arrived. Wow, can they pack away the seed.! They grab the bird feeder with two paws and pull the feeder opening right up to their mouth and gobble away.  Something scared the squirrel off. Possibly a hawk flying by. Less than five minutes went by before a band of Steller's Jays showed up. They were active for about fifteen minutes jostling for positions at the feeder. I had a really nice time photographing everthing that stopped by. after editing these are my favorites. God's blessings upon your weekend, chris  All of these images were created with a Canon EOS 7 D MKII camera and a Canon 100-400 mm v.1 lens. Fill flash was provided by a Canon 550 EX Speedlight set to - 1 1/3rd stops. The camera settings used were AV mode, ISO 800, F 8.0. Shutter speeds varied.  #teamcanonusa

Wintertime brings a shortage of birds to my backyard in Mendocino County, Northern California. There is cold rain, snow, fog and sleet. The only birds that tend to stick around are the chickadees, jays and juncos. Once in a great while I'll spot a hummingbird or two and the rare warbler or thrush. This morning I put up a new bird feeder along with a mossy snag.  I had an abundance of Chestnut -backed Chickadees and a couple of Steller's Jays show up for the free seed.  One of the jays had no tail. A few days back I found an awesome perch, It was a lichen and moss covered branch. I set it up in front of a fall covered backdrop and photographed the jays and Western Gray Squirrels. I got some fantastic images. Everything was photographed with a Canon EOS 7 DMKII camera anda Canon 100-400 v.1 lens. For fill flash I used a Canon 550 EX Speedlight. God's blessings upon your upcoming week, chris #teamcanonusa