Three Tips for Photographing Birds

  Three Tips for Photographing Birds

Jesse James was once asked why he robbed banks. His reply, "That's where the money is". This winter, I decided that birds have it figured out by migrating south, so I did likewise by heading to the Gulf Coast. And, while here I am going to be doing a lot of bird photography, because this is where the birds are.  Did you know that there are over 500 species of birds in Florida? No matter where, birds are all around us, you just have to keep our eyes and ears open. 

When it comes to bird photography finding birds is just the beginning. Photographing birds is actually quite easy, but it requires work and practice to capture really good bird photos.  Here are three tips to improve your bird photos:

1.    Understand the habits of birds to put yourself into position for photos. 

Like most wildlife, birds are much more active early in the morning.  Birds feed heavily in the morning after a night at rest. The really good part of this is that soft early morning light can be the most flattering light not just for birds but for all nature photography. Much like planes that take off and land into the wind, large birds will also take off and land into the wind. This knowledge will aid your bird photography. Positioning yourself so that the wind is at your back may result in birds heading right towards you as they take off. So, instead of getting butt shots you get those great flying at you shots. Learn what types of habitats birds prefer. For example, I have a favorite marsh near home that is a magnet for yellow warblers, common yellow-throated warblers and many other birds. In the spring this spot is quite literally full of birds.  

Yellow Warbler

Time of year is important too. As I mentioned, this spot is best in the spring as some of the wood warblers found in my marsh will disperse before summer fully arrives.  There is also a period of time when birds are less visible and they sing a lot less as they are nesting. Some birds sing from favorite trees or shrubs on the edge of their territory. They will frequently return to the same location to patrol their area.

Sparrow

Learning the habits of birds means knowing what foods birds like to eat. One of the black cherry trees in my marsh is a favorite of cedar waxwings and when the fruits ripen it does not take long for a cedar waxwing to appear. Make like a bird watcher, because the best bird watchers could be great bird photographers because they have learned the habits of birds.  

Cedar Waxwing

2.   Try to blend in with your surroundings while minimizing movement and noise   

Try shooting from a blind or even using a car as a blind. But even without a blind, try to blend in with your surroundings by minimizing movement and the amount of noise you make. In some cases camouflage may be needed, but normally just wearing neutral clothing will help.  No bright colors - like hot pink. If you blend in really well, birds will sometimes totally ignore you giving you the chance to capture amazing close up shots of birds as they go about their daily activities. 

3. Use the proper gear including long lenses, tripods, gimbal heads and flash.

My third tip is to use the proper gear for bird photography. Unfortunately this normally requires long-telephoto lenses which can get you closer to the birds. And I might add, it will disturb the birds a lot less. The reason I say that long-telephoto lenses are unfortunate is that they can be very expensive as well as heavy to carry. The good news is that some lens makers such as Tamron and Sigma are starting to make really good lenses that are much cheaper than those made by camera manufacturers Nikon and Canon. If spending thousands upon thousands of dollars is not appealing, adding a tele-extender to a lens is an inexpensive way of getting more reach. There is another way of extending your effective focal length too, read on. 

It is not necessary to use the top of the line cameras, but it helps to have a camera that can shoot at high frame rates (at least 7 frames per second) and show low noise at higher ISOs. Consider using what is known as a crop-sensor camera which has a smaller sensor and gives the effect of cropping to a narrower area, thus mimicking a longer focal length lens. These cameras and the lenses made to fit them are much are less expensive than full-frame cameras and lenses. That sounds good doesn't it.  Less expensive camera and longer effective focal length.  Mirrorless cameras are becoming popular as these are lighter and often have higher frame rates than DSLRs.  One more thing, if I have a choice between spending a lot of money on a lens or on a camera, I would put the money into the good lenses. Good lenses can last a lifetime, but camera technology is changing so fast that what is great today will only be o.k. a few years from now. 

Invest in a good tripod that will hold the weight of a big lens and your camera. This will help you to get super sharp images. No amount of image stablization (Canon) or vibration reduction (Nikon) or other similar systems by other manufacturers which reduce the effects of movement while handholding can match shooting from a good stable tripod.  One other suggestion is to add a gimbal  head to your tripod. This makes handling and supporting a large lens on a tripod so easy that you can move your camera with just a few fingers. Finally, you may want to use to flash to add catch light in the eyes of the birds or to fill in shadows. Flash extenders can also be used to project the flash further away. I do not use flash often, but have made good use of it in special cases. Care must be used though to avoid impacting the birds with a flash.  That is another chapter on ethics that I will cover later as well as other tips on bird photography. I am planning to make an entire pdf guide on bird photography available online in the near future. Until then you can always peruse the bird gallery on my website. If you find these tips useful, please let me know. I would love to hear from other photographers at my e-mail, about your challenges and successes.

 

 

Shooting the Sun at the Edge of Day

If you are going to shoot sunrises, or for that matter sunsets, be prepared to stretch your day out to match the sun's day. So, the alarm goes off at 5:00 am, thus it is time to head out to my chosen destination for photography today.  The night before I had checked the weather forecast to get an idea of what kind of conditions I might expect. This will make a big difference as to whether I decide to concentrate on sunrise photos such as this one. 

Sunrise on Intercoastal Waterway

More than anything, broken clouds make the best sunrises and sunsets. To me, a blue sky without any clouds at all is boring. There is nothing to reflect the gorgeous sunrise colors and it is just too much negative space with very little depth, or for that matter, texture. A heavy overcast is similarly undesirable.  Although there may be a lot of texture in the clouds, often there is a lack of color and contrast that really makes a sunrise landscape pop. What really gets my pulse going is if there is a break in the clouds on the horizon that the sun can use to light a bank of clouds from below. This is called gap light and can result in some of the most amazing scenes for your camera.

I wish there were a way of accurately predicting great conditions for sunrises or sunsets. Something that will be reported during the weather broadcast the night before. Perhaps a meteorologist can predict a great sunrise and would be willing to share that information.

However, without such a forecast, I have decided that when preparing to shoot winter sunrises or sunsets along the gulf coast that I have to learn the local weather patterns. So far, I can say that it is best to plan on shooting on the edges of storm systems. That is, either before a storm system arrives or after the departure. Obviously, as the storm is raging there is really no great light and you and your gear will be soaked. When a large-cool-dry high pressure is parked over the region, that is when you get the clear blue skies.  Sometimes if you are fortunate lingering humidity between storms will help to produce great clouds.

When shooting over water, a lack of wind leads to great water reflections. On the morning when I captured this photo the wind was quite still and it was easy to see that the reflections were going to be stellar. Realize that quite often fronts containing storms stir up lots of wind and will scatter your reflections.

I will share with you a few technical details on this photo. My gear includes a Nikon D850 and the lens chosen was my 14-24 mm f/2.8 lens. I really like this lens for skies. Shooting a wide angle lens just seems to make the sky come alive. The landscape must complement the sky, but a really great sky really captures your attention and adds so much depth to an image. My issue with composing this photo was that the sandy bottom was quite apparent in many of my compositions. I finally found a composition where the water was a mirror rather than a window.

Of course, I almost always use a tripod with a ball head to steady my camera and to allow me to really look at my composition. There is almost no need to hurry when the scene is slowly unfolding and the tripod slows me down just enough. 

Finally, for the camera settings I used ISO 100, f/8 at 1/80 second at 14 mm. The combination of ISO, aperture and shutter speed gave me the depth and the slight motion in the water I wanted while rendering the fine details at a suitable ISO to minimize noise.   I almost always use a setting to lock the mirror up and a shutter delay of 1-2 seconds to allow any vibrations to  dissipate.  This helps to keep my images sharp. Knowing that the motion in the reflection will mean that no matter what I will get some blur, I aimed my auto focus point quite a ways into the photo to keep the clouds in the sky sharp. Checking the histogram in the camera showed that I had the entire range of tonalities in the image and thus would only need minor adjustments in Lightroom to bring out the scene as I saw it with my eyes. This is now one of my favorite images and I would just love to see this in a large metal print.

Here is another of a picturesque sunset made by great clouds........ 

Smoky Mountains Sunset

 

Now, I must close as the alarm is again set for 5:00 am for another sunrise tomorrow. Tonight I will dream of great clouds and light.

 

 

 

Bird Photography at the Black Point Wildlife Drive

In closing out 2018, I spent the last two days of the year photographing birds at the Black Point Wildlife Drive. Located on the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge near Cape Canaveral, Florida, this 7-mile one-way scenic drive is one of the top spots in Florida for photographing all kinds of birds. Of the 503 species of birds identified in Florida, to date, 358 species have been identified at the refuge. Along the drive I spotted wading birds such as little blue heron, tricolor heron, great blue heron, ibis, roseate spoonbill, reddish egrets, snowy egrets and more. Small-fast-moving wood warblers, sparrows, chickadees and finches darted throughout the vegetation. There were osprey galore, (look on the tops of the telephone poles), and lots of ducks, geese and other diving birds. Look for the birding checklist at the kiosk that gives a more complete accounting of the birds there.

Other areas on the refuge such as cabbage palm and hardwood hammocks,  oak scrub, pine uplands and more add to the diversity of habitats for the many bird species. Away from the wildlife drive, I was even fortunate to spot a kestrel and an eagle. 

Reddish Egret

These last days of December were quite warm and dense fog in the mornings lasted until 10 am. This meant that my normal routine of photographing early in the morning had to be adjusted. Still, there were so many birds that posed for my Nikon D850 that I have resolved to return.

Here are a couple of my tips for getting better bird photos: 

Upon spotting a bird I would often set up my tripod and camera with the 500 mm lens and 1.4x teleconverter. At times I did not even leave the vehicle, using it as a blind and the window frame for support.   A couple of recent changes in my techniques that have helped me to improve my bird photography are the use of a smaller aperture and a higher ISO.  By using apertures from f/8 to f/11 I am using the sharpest apertures on my lens and adding the needed depth-of-field for the larger wading birds. There was plenty of light, but by using the higher ISO I was able to use faster shutter speeds to compensate for any camera movement or movement in my subjects.

Roseate Spoonbill

 

Kestrel 

I feel like in the time allowed by my travel budget that I got some really great photos and I would highly recommend the Black Point Wildlife Drive for any photographers wanting to add to their bird portfolios. In fact, the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) is hosting a regional birding workshop there from January 27-30, 2019. 

More of my bird photography, as well as my other photography, can be viewed on my website at tomhaxby photos. 

The Plight of the Monarch

The Plight of the Monarch

     In a world filled with amazing animals, one tiny but colorful insect stands out because of its endurance and unique life cycle. Weighing only .0095 to .026 oz with a lifespan of 6 to 8 months, the amazing monarch butterfly manages to journey up to 3,000 miles on paper thin wings through storms and across vast landscapes. Although monarchs are found throughout the world, the North American monarch is referenced here. The perilous journey of the North American monarch is necessary as the milkweed is only found in the midwestern US and Canada in the summer and the monarch cannot withstand cold winter temperatures. Thus, the need to migrate between winter locations in Mexico or warm areas of southern California and the summer feeding areas of the US and southern Canada.

      Unfortunately, populations of the brightly colored monarch butterflies have gone into a steep decline. Understanding more about their life cycle and habits is key so that humans can help to reverse this trend.

     Monarchs begin their life as eggs which are placed on milkweed plants. The placement of eggs on milkweed is vital for monarchs as the larva, otherwise known as a caterpillar, which hatches from the eggs feeds almost exclusively on milkweed. This is only the beginning of the most unusual life cycle over the next year.


      The young caterpillars feed voraciously on the milkweed and are capable of consuming an entire leaf in 5 minutes.  To protect from being eaten by lizards, frogs and birds the caterpillars produce a toxin from the sap of the milkweed which is poisonous to potential predators. The brightly colored caterpillar serves as a warning to predators.

     This first phase, also known as an instar, may only last a few weeks before the caterpillar begins one of the most incredible transformations in nature. The larva while attached by a thin thread to a stationary object will next spin a protective case or chrysalis inside of which the caterpillar will undergo a metamorphosis into the beautiful and iconic monarch butterfly.  This second generation will only live for a short while during which they will continue to feed on milkweed and later on nectar after another metamorphosis into a butterfly as they flutter further north. Soon, this generation will lay eggs on milkweed which will begin the third generation of butterflies.

     As the summer begins to wane, this third generation of the year will again cycle through the stages of egg to caterpillar to butterfly.  The fourth and final generation of the monarch which emerges in September to October is the long distance flier to winter ranges in California or Mexico ahead of the advancing winter. One of the truly amazing feats is that although this generation of monarchs has never been to the winter retreat, they manage to return to the same area and often to the same tree as the butterflies from the previous winter.

    This perilous journey of thousands of miles is full of obstacles to survival along the way. Recent changes in farming practices have lead to a steep decline in milkweed throughout the corn belt in the midwestern US. The population and extent of milkweed necessary for the caterpillars has declined because of the conversion of areas that previously grew milkweed to corn for ethanol and because the increased use of herbicide resistant crop species has allowed the use of non-selective herbicides which kills the milkweed. Illegal logging has impacted winter habitat in Mexico and recent unprecedented weather events may have adversely impacted the delicate butterfly.

   What can be done to reverse this recent trend? Preserving a corridor of milkweed is absolutely essential to providing a food source for the larval stage of the monarch. Conserving areas that can grow milkweed, especially in regions dominated by managed crops, will provide feeding stations along the northward path.

      Conservation of habitat within areas of historical wintering retreats in  Mexico and California is essential. Perhaps ecotourism in these areas will provide an additional financial incentive to preserve these critical areas. Small landowners and even urban dwellers can encourage milkweed or nectar producing plants on their properties. Finally, education that helps to raise awareness of the plight of the monarch will encourage people to care so that future generations can also enjoy the amazing monarch.

Here are some additional sources of information:

Battle For Butterflies

Habitat Highways 

Monarch Butterfly

On the Track of the Monarch Butterfly






  

Looking for Spring

Yesterday I took a long stroll along the North Country Trail above the Manistee River in a quest to find signs of spring. Yes, the day was warm and spring-like, but you had to really look hard to find signs of spring.

Hepatica

  

One butterfly, seemingly out of season because there is nothing blooming, flitted about, occasionally pausing on the leafy ground. There were a few insects. Good, that means protein for soon-to-come baby birds. But for now, only a few robins found food to eat. Aspens displayed fuzzy buds that soon will be followed by flowers and later a flush of spring-green leaves.

Bloodroot

Still, although the calendar says April, it was hard to find signs of spring in the northwoods. At times, swirling winds shifted last fall's thick layer of leaves. The woodland wildflowers have yet to feel the touch of a warm rain followed by a sunny day to wake them from their slumber. Soon spring will arrive and seemingly overnight the forest floor will undergo a magical transformation.

It has been almost a year since the woodland wildflowers have announced the coming spring. I cannot wait to again see the delicate bloodroot with its pure white petals. I anxiously await the arrival of patches of spring beauty, the aptly named Dutchman's breeches and hepatica, also known as liverleaf, which brave the still fickle early spring weather to give a sense that spring is finally making progress.  Even a tiny violet will be a welcome sight. In wetter areas, early blooming marsh marigold will put on a dazzling display of yellow and green. Seemingly infinite numbers of yellow trout lily with its spotted leaves and graceful flower at the end of a stalk are another sure sign of spring. 

I must admit that I cannot wait for the later blooming wildflowers to announce that spring is finally here to stay. The giant white trillium is by far the star of the spring woods. In places, it seems to form a carpet of blossoms. Not to be outdone, the individual or small areas of red trillium, also known as wake robin, add an unexpected splash of red. The large-flowered

Trillium

bellwort, with its bell-shaped yellow flowers, complements the white trillium. With spring in full swing, bees will buzz among this kaleidoscope of woodland flowers. Spring in the woods lasts only a short time, as the blooming spring ephemerals quickly fade in the shade of emerging leaves on the trees overhead. Spring however short is still much anticipated.

Meanwhile, I wait patiently as the sun tilts ever higher in the sky and the days grow warmer.  Soon there will be new life everywhere, and with a spring in my step and a smile on my face I will traipse down the trail surrounded by the magic of spring. 

Wake Robin

 

Artist-in-Residence Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Big Creek in the rain

It was my dream come true to have been the Artist-in-Residence (AiR) as a photographer in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) for six weeks from September through November of 2016. I have been to the GSMNP many times and I would never have imagined having this opportunity. My background as a natural resource manager for 26 years along with my passion for photography helped to secure the chance to take photographs for an entire season in one of the most picturesque national parks. For me, it was about more than just taking photos. I wanted to take the time to gain a greater understanding of the park.

Middle Prong

The National Park Service, the Friends of the Smokies and the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts sponsor the AiR program in the GSMNP. Artists are provided housing in a park service apartment inside of the park. From May through November painters, musicians, poets, writers and other artists were given from 3 to 6 weeks to utilize the park to inspire their art.

Although I mostly had the freedom to pursue my photography during my residency, there were few requirements to fulfill. I worked with the Volunteer Coordinator for the National Park Service to present programs on photography to the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and the Job Corps. I also took a day to work with a park volunteer to capture and tag monarch butterflies during their fall migration. On another day, I worked with the Great Smoky Mountain Association on a video promoting the AiR program. I gave a brief summary of the AiR program before taking a group hike with the Friends of the Smokies to the stunning Charlie's Bunion formation and the awe-inspiring views near the Appalachian Trail. An AiR is also required to donate a product of their work and I am currently finishing a book of photos and essays about the park for the National Park Service and the Friends of the Smokies.

Deep Creek Drainage

On most days with my camera bags and lunch packed, I headed to my chosen location well before sunrise. Sometimes the days lasted into the night for sunsets or even night stars from Clingmans Dome. During the early part of my residency, I felt no rush and just absorbing and studying about the surroundings was enough. As my time as an AiR dwindled there was a sense of urgency to capture with my camera as much as possible.

Fall Colors

During my six weeks, I visited all of my favorite places, but I also had time to explore and photograph places I had previously never had the time to visit. I discovered that I really enjoyed photographing butterflies as they stopped to fuel up on nectar during their migration through the area. On several occasions, I photographed elk in the Cataloochee Valley during the fall rut as the bull elk bugled and sparred with other males in the herd. On some days the camera stayed behind and I just hiked the trails. One of my favorite trails was the Boogerman Trail, perhaps because of the

Great Spangled Fritillary

amusing story behind the name, but also for the solitude and beauty of the trail through an old growth hardwood forest on a stunning fall day. A hike through the giant trees in the Albright Grove had me thinking about the cycle of life and the struggle to capture sunlight energy in the forest. Another memorable day was spent along beautiful Big Creek in a driving rainstorm at the peak of the fall color when I was able to capture several of my favorite images. Drawing from my experience as a natural resource manager, it was during these hikes when I contemplated the state of the park and what will it be like in the future.

Majestic Bull Elk

In 2016 over 11 million people, many of which are serious photographers, visited the GSMNP. It is obvious that people really do love the park, as we do all of our national parks. Although the Smokies may seem like paradise, the park has faced past threats is facing many new threats. I left just before the historic fires burned almost 17,000 acres in the park and devastated many adjoining areas around Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Past invasive pests such as the chestnut blight and balsam woolly adelgid removed the American chestnut and Fraser fir from the park. New threats have arrived, such as the hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA), which kills hemlock trees. During my time in residence, I wondered how future threats such as climate change, air pollution and the ever increasing number of visitors will impact the park.

Monarch on Lobelia

My six weeks went by too quickly, but my adventure as an AiR in the GSMNP provided the time to immerse myself into one of the most amazing places on earth. It also gave me the chance to see and learn so much more about the park while contemplating the future of this special place.

There are many other AiR programs throughout the country and I would highly recommend that photographers pursue these opportunities. Not only are these programs great opportunities for photography, but they also provide ample time to gain a unique perspective of a place.

Up North Winter Getaway

Viewing the Caves

Getting through the winter "up north" means learning to enjoy winter outings. It can be skiing, snowshoeing or some other way of getting out of the house for fresh air and welcome exercise which has the added benefit of keeping you warm. After watching through the windows as the winter snows swirled down, I saw the weather reports that a January thaw was promising a break in the  relentless rounds of snow. That is when I knew that I could not resist the siren song of a winter trip and outing any longer.

So, I loaded the truck and headed off to the Upper Peninsula (UP ) for a winter getaway. I had my sights set for the Eben Ice Caves with a couple of added side trips. While most "Yoopers" know about the Eben Ice Caves, also known as the Rock River Canyon Wilderness on the Hiawatha National Forest, many non-locals may not have experienced this spectacle.

In winter, water seeping from a rock bluff freezes into a magical curtain of ice about 50 feet tall and several hundred feet across.  As the water percolates through the rock layers it dissolves minerals which gives distinctive colors to the ice formations.  This other worldly sight beckons thousands of visitors every year who make the short hike through a beautiful yellow birch forest and into the riparian area leading to the caves.

Behind the Curtain

I have been here several times and made the three quarter-mile hike to the caves on good days when the trail was easy and on other days when it was a challenge just to stay upright. The sign at the entrance to the wilderness area advises of the treacherous nature of trail, and this is quite true. During times when the trail has been packed down by the many visitors into an icy path, hiking the short-steep hills is quite daunting.  I have seen some people resort to sliding down the hills on their bottoms, only to find that they could not stop at the bottom of the hill. It is highly advisable to wear ice cleats, not only for the hike in, but also for the even icier area around the caves.

When you finally reach the caves, the best part is that if you have your cleats, and otherwise, only if you are extremely careful, you can walk behind the ice to see why these formations are called ice caves. In the narrow chamber behind the ice there is space to explore further this unique natural phenomena. Be careful though, as it is still slippery even with cleats and the super-sized icicles can be very easily dislodged onto people below. While exploring the caves, listen closely for the constant drips of water echoing throughout the cave and look out through the translucent ice to experience the amazing colors. 

If you go on a weekend between January and March, when the ice formations are normally at their best, you will probably have plenty of company. There is limited parking, so get there early. To get there, start at the small town of Eben Junction, MI (about a half hour west of Munising). From M-94 in Eben Junction, turn north onto Eben Road and drive about 1.5 miles to Frey Road. Turn right on Frey Road and drive to the end where there is a small parking area, or find a space along the road. Also, Eben Road and Frey Road have small hand-made yellow wooden signs on them that say "Ice Caves".  Parking and the first part of the trail is on private property, and the family there has been nice enough to allow access across their property. They have even provided portable toilets and only ask for a contribution. There is another much longer way in to the caves, so please be respectful of the privilege when crossing private property.

Tahquamenon Falls

Side trips to Tahquamenon Fall State Park north of Newberry, MI and Wagner Falls were also included on my getaway.  The Upper Falls at Tahquamenon only requires a short hike and there is a nice lodge with food and beverages at the parking area. Beautiful in any season, the falls here are even more amazing when surrounded by ice and snow.  The Lower Falls requires more hiking and snowshoes may come in quite handy. Wagner Falls, just south of Munising,  is just a hundred yards from M-94 and the parking area is not plowed, leaving only parking along the road shoulder. If the normally deep snow on trail along the boardwalk into the falls  has been packed by previous visitors it is worth the stop.

There are  many other winter outings awaiting in this area of the UP.  There are even a few local hotels with an indoor hot tub to soak in later.  So, make your plans, get your reservations, pack the car and head over the bridge and through the woods to a unique winter adventure.