Photo of the Day! Gray Jays Interaction!

Nikon D7000, Nikkor 500mm f/4 AFS, manual focus, manual exposure, auto ISO, ISO 900, f/5.6, 1/800

This image is from last weekend in northern Minnesota. While working with some cooperative Gray Jay I really wanted multiple subjects and hopefully some interaction between the two. Since I was using a fixed focal length lens I needed to back up a bit so I could get two birds in the scene. After a little bit of patience I ended up with this photo!

Back Yard Birds

There are birds everywhere! You just have to take the time to look around for the little guys. One of my favorite types of photography is shooting back yard birds. These are typical birds you might see out your window or on your way to work.

Why do I enjoy photographing something that is so common? The answer is a fairly simple one. Generally, you don't get so close to small quick birds to notice all the intricate feathers and colors. An added bonus is that you soon realize how many different species and sub species there are around your neighborhood.

For Example, we all probably have seen or heard a Black-capped Chickadee. But if you look closely at the feather details in the photo below. You can begin to see the different shades of white, gray, black and brown.



If you look at the photo below of a Boreal Chickadee That Chad took. The Black-capped Chickadee and Boreal Chickadee are very similar.



To help keep track of the birds in your back yard with or without a camera is to download a free birding checklist. There are several websites to help you keep track and help identify the birds. One to try is http://printablebirdchecklists.homestead.com

Click each image to view it larger!

Bog Video

I've been busy but I finally got together a video from our trip up north this winter. Derek and I saw and photographed several species of birds we had never seen before. We even stumbled onto the same Great Gray Owl twice! We had a blast and can't wait to get back up there next year.

Bog Wrap Up

Boreal Chickadee
In a word... Success! What a couple of days it was. The trip exceeded my expectations. I figured seeing some new species of birds was worth the drive and getting some images would be a bonus. Not only did we see some new species, but we got GREAT images. Much better images than I had ever anticipated.

Black-capped Chickadee

New species of birds I'd never seen before Monday: Great Gray Owl, Boreal Chickadee, Red Breasted Nuthatch, Pine Grosbeak, Gray Jay, and Common Raven. On top of that I got better than expected images from almost all of them. The little Red Breasted Nuthatch eluded me, but I'll be back.

Great Gray Owl

What a treat it was to see the Great Gray Owl. I had low expectations of seeing any Owls. Here in the Twin Cities, I hardly ever them. So to see some in a two day period, I could only hope right? Well first first thing Tuesday morning, there she was, a Great Gray Owl no less! It was dark and snowing so the photos weren't great, but that didn't matter. We even got some video (we'll post that later.) Then again in the evening on our way out, there she was again! Same spot, same tree! This time the sun was still up and we were able to get some shots.

This was a great experience that we will be repeating, hopefully soon.