Sunrise and a Resident Band-tailed Pigeon

It was a beautiful sunrise over the Mendocino Range and the fog filled Little Lake Vally this morning. After breakfast I set about photographing birds and squirrels coming to a new feeder that I put up yesterday to replace the old one that was destroyed by the squirrels. It's amazing what the squirrels can chew through! While photographing I heard the very distinctive sound of the wings of a Band-tailed Pigeon coming down from the trees. It landed on the ground below the bird feeder and began eating the loose seed that had been knocked off the feeder by the Steller's Jays. I froze then waited and waited. I knew that there couldn't be too much seed on the ground and it would come up to the mossy branch next to the feeder. After what seemed like forever it flew up to the branch. Very, very slowly I composed the camera. At the first click of the shutter it froze and looked around. Band-tailed Pigeons are quite nervous and can be fairly hard to photograph as they are quite alert to danger. This Band-tail is part of a small group of resident pigeons that spend the winter here rather than migrating southward. I often hear them in the trees but rarely manage to capture them at the bird feeder. This morning was one of those rare times. I carefully took as many images as I could before it got too nervous and took off back up to the trees over head. After editing the images this one was my favorite. God's love and blessings upon your day, chris Both images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens. For the pigeon the camera settings were AV mode, ISO 400, F 8.0 at 1/125th of a sec. The camera was supported by a ground pod and a Bogen 3055 heavy duty ballhead on our bedroom window sill.

Bandies and Jays

I spent a good chunk of time last night and this morning editing images from my photoshoot yesterday morning in the backyard photoblind. I usually do a quick edit and pick out my favorite images and then do a more thorough edit the second time through. These were my favorites images of the Steller's Jays and Band-tailed Pigeons. The last Band-tailed image is one of the best Band-tailed images I have made in quite awhile. I hope that you have an enjoyable weekend. God'sblessings, chris all images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens. AV mode, ISO 800, Exposures varied. #TeamCanon, #Bringit Please check out my book, "Secrets of Backyard bBird Photography" on Amazon. It is available in both hardbound and as an Ebook http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Backyard-Photography-Chris-Hansen/dp/1937538559

"Focused"

I spent about two hours in the photoblind this morning. I was out there early before the sun was even up to try and catch the great soft light of early morning. It was quite surprising that not a single squirrel showed up to interrupt my bird photography this morning. No blasted cat either as I was careful not to let the beast escape and I put notes on the doors so no one would let her out. Bird wise there were many Steller's Jays mixed with Band-tailed Pigeons. Not another type of bird made any kind of a showing. I heard some Mourning Doves fly by but that was about it. I ended up with a lot of great images images. In editing them this is the one that really stood out to me. This Steller's Jay is really focused on something. I just love that fantastic look of intent. God's precious love to all, chris This image was taken in Mendocino County, Northern California in my backyard. It was created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens at 180mm. AV mode,ISO 800, F 5.0 at 1/15th of a sec. If you are interested in learning about photographing backyard birds please check out my book, "Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography". It is available at most online book sellers in hardbound and as an ebook. http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Backyard-Photography-Chris-Hansen/dp/1937538559 #TeamCanon,#Bringit

Niñas de la Tierra

While digging in the garden I ran across a Potato Bug or Jerusalem Cricket.In Spanish they are called Niñas de la Tierra "Children of the Earth". This is because because you usually find them in dirt while digging or under rubbish piles. They love moist places where they can eat their favorite foods of roots and tubers. They will also eat other insects as they are omnivorous.Many people find them to be rather scary for they make a hissing noise similar to sandpaper being rubbed together. The other reason they can be frightening is that they do have rather strong jaws and will bite if they are mishandled or squeezed too hard if you are brave enough to pick one up. Here are a few images of Niñas de la Tierra. God's light and love to all, chris