I’ve been enjoying bird photography lately. I’ve always kept a bird feeder, especially through the winter months and enjoy seeing the birds and squirrels go to town at it. Over the years, and unintentionally, I’ve developed a genuine interest in birding and have amassed a decent library of identification and reference materials. I’m particularly fond of the National Audubon Society’s Guides. I’ve got a nice set of binoculars and get a kick out of watching the antics of each type of little bird that visits the feeder.
Growing tired of shooting birds from my living room window, I decided to make an early morning trip over to the Wissahickon Waterfowl Preserve. My plan was to arrive at sunrise and capture a male red winged blackbird, perched on a cattail, backlit by those golden sideways morning rays with a wisp of steam coming from it’s open beak. Welp. That didn’t happen! This morning’s sunrise was a real let down; it was so overcast. Gee thanks Mother Nature! Still, I did enjoy using shooting at 500mm. focal length and am fairly happy with the results. I’ll definitely be visiting this Preserve again!
By the way… how sad is it that the little bird shown above is actually the female Red Winged Black Bird? Poor girl! I think it’s funny, that in the world of birds, the males are generally the more brightly colored ones.