Patience Required

Wildlife photography requires a lot of patience in waiting for the right moment. Yesterday afternoon it was really hot outside when I set up my photoblind and camera next to the small water feature in the backyard. Almost immediately after I had settled in a Douglas Tree Squirrel showed up at the same time as Papaya the Blasted Cat! I had to climb out of the blind and capture the cat which quickly begun stalking the squirrel. After depositing the cat indoors I sat and waited for the squirrel to return from its chirping in the trees above the blind. It didn't take too long and it came down and resumed feeding on the black sunflower seed I had placed in a small feeder off to the side of pond. I knew that eventually it was going to get thirsty. I focused and composed my camera on the most likely spot that it was going to come for a drink and waited. Birds came and went as I waited. I waited and waited. Another squirrel arrived and was warned off with guttural chatter by the little squirrel I was watching. I waited and waited some more. Then it turned and climbed up over the rocks right where I had been focused for a cool refreshing drink. After recomposing slightly I made several images. It was well worth the wait. God's blessing upon your week, chris Canoon 7D MkII camera and a Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di G2 Vc Usd Lens. #TeamCanon, #withmytamron

The Beautiful Little Sneaks

Today marks the completion of my shares of the images from my large water set up in my backyard. What better species to conclude it with than Hutton's Vireo. These sneaky little birds were both hard to photograph and to identify. They would literally dive into the water sometimes and then spring back into the air without pausing. Sometimes they would just hover above the water and then fly off again. I felt quite privileged to photograph them when they would settle down and bathe in the water for more than three seconds. After getting a sew images of them I then had to ID them. I narrowed it down to the Vireo family and then I really wasn't quite willing to commit to my ID. I put the question to the California Birders cgroup and they confirmed it was a Hutton's Vireo. Huttons's are found in a band running from Vancouver island down the length of California into Northern Baja. In the interior there is a group that runs from Southern Arizona and New Mexico Boarder down into Central Mexico. Here are a few of my favorites. Enjoy and God bless, chris All images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens on a Manfrotto tripod. Exposures varied. If you are interested in creating a water set up like this one please check out the book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography", where step by step directions are provided to show how to build a water set up. The book is available in both hardbound and as an ebook at Amazon and most anywhere fine books are sold.

Love Those Little Chickadees

The Chickadees that hang around my house are quite active and gregarious. They are like a friendly little gang that is mostly up to good with a little mischief thrown in now and then. The species that I get here are called Chestnut Backed Chickadees. They are here year round with a slight increase in population over the winter. They are a pretty bold for such a tiny little bird and live quite easily around people seemingly unafraid if you don't make any move to startle them. Chestnuts are a Coastal Range species found in the coastal mountains from southern Alaska southward to Central California. There is a branch of the population that extends inland along the Columbia River into the interior as far Alberta and the Snake River Region of Idaho. Here are some of my favorites at the water set up from last week. God's love and blessings to all, chris All images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens on a Manfrotto tripod. Exposures varied. If you are interested in creating a water set up like this one please check out the book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography", where step by step directions are provided to show how to build a water set up. The book is available in both hardbound and as an ebook at Amazon and most anywhere fine books are sold.

Real Treat For Me

Photographing warblers is a really special for me because being insect eaters they rarely will come to bird feeders. They do however like water so whenever I build a water set up there is a good chance one of them will come for water. On Wednesday last week I was really excited when a Townsend's Warbler came in for a drink and a bath. They are such a beautiful bird. Townsend's prefer the the Evergreen forests of the Pacific Northwest migrating in the fall down the California coast and then into central Mexico. What a real treat to photograph this bird. Here are three images from a series of images I photographed over about a five minute period of time. Enjoy your day with God's blessings upon you, chris All images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens on a Manfrotto tripod. Exposures varied. If you are interested in creating a water set up like this one please check out the book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography", where step by step directions are provided to show how to build a water set up. The book is available in both hardbound and as an ebook at Amazon and most anywhere fine books are sold.

Provide Them Water and They Will Come

One of the more interesting birds in my backyard is the Hermit Thrush. They eat a mixed diet depending upon the season from insects to fruit. The only place I ever find them is at our small garden pond or if I create a water set up as is the case here. Their bright eyes and speckled breast really make them stand out when they appear at the waters edge. They also are a widespread North American species from coast to coast way up into Alaska and far down into Southern Mexico. It was really hard to narrow it down to only three images for today's photoblog because I have so many that I really liked. Enjoy the Thrushes and have a blessed day, chris All images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens on a Manfrotto tripod. Exposures varied. If you are interested in creating a water set up like this one please check out the book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography", where step by step directions are provided to show how to build one. The book is available in both hardbound and as an ebook at Amazon and most anywhere fine books are sold.

Oh My Little Juncos

God has created such an incredible diversity of birds for us to enjoy and I just get to see a small sampling of it where I live. Off and on for the last five days I have been photographing birds at a water set up my backyard. Needless to say I ended up photographing a lot of birds and it has taken quite some time to edit them. For the next few days I am going to share some of my favorites. I'm starting off today with the Dark Eyed Juncos. Where I live I get the Oregon Juncos and Slate Colored Juncos. This year has been rather strange as I didn't see very many Juncos all summer long which is a rarity for here because they are usually the most common bird around. It may have something to do with the drought. Luckily they have returned in the past few weeks and I am seeing more of them. Many people across North America are quite familiar with this species as their range covers most of the continent from Alaska all the way down to Mexico and from coast to coast. Here are three of my favorites. Enjoy the birds and God bless. All images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 100-400 IS lens on a Manfrotto tripod. Exposures varied. If you are interested in creating a water set up like this one please check out the book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography", where step by step directions are provided to show how to build one. The book is available in both hardbound and as an ebook at Amazon and most anywhere fine books are sold.

Squirrels Love it Too!

Today the squirrels found the water set up I created for my bird photography in the backyard. They loved the water and were particularly intrigued with the Pyracantha Berries I put along side of it to cast some color onto the water for my photography. One Western Gray Squirrel gave it the sniff test and then later decided they were pretty good to eat too. Considering the squirrels small range these are probably the first Pyracantha Berries these squirrels have ever seen. May you have a blessed weekend, chris If you are interested in building a small pond set up like this for photography please check out my book, Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography as there are step by step directions on how to build one. It is available at Amazon and many other fine book sellers as well.