I took these photos earlier this week, but I’m only just now getting them posted to the blog. Barred owls are beautiful and this one was very easy to work with.

Permalink

Bird photography is hard.  There’s a bit of a dance to it, at least how I practice it.  I understand that most serious bird photographers use blinds and sit in one place, but who has that kind of time?  Instead, I combine my photography needs with my exercise needs, and I hike out into wild spaces. 

When I see a bird perched in a way that is conducive to a decent enough shot, I begin the slow process of approach.  You can’t look right at the bird a lot of times, as they’re sensitive to your line of sight.  And if you move too quickly, you read as a predator, and they fly away.  If you move right, keep your eyes down, and push forward slowly, you may close distance enough that the crop won’t be too bad.  You have to watch the bird during this to make sure they don’t move. And often, they do.  And so the bird backs up, you get closer.  Bird backs up, you reframe and get closer.  It takes me an hour to get a handful of decent shots.

I’m thinking about googling up the location of public bird blinds in my area, honestly.

Permalink

Merry Christmas and happy birthday to me.  I invested in a new camera yesterday, an E-M1 Mark II Olympus.  It’s my first time shooting without a mirror, and I have to say, so far I’m pretty impressed, although I really would have liked better light to practice with this morning.

I went out to the Baker Wetlands today because I thought for sure I’d find some good wildlife to chase, and there was a decent amount of activity out there, not that I could see any of it. It was basically working in pre-dawn conditions due to the cloud cover.  Still, I managed to snap a couple of shots that I liked, and I’m really in love with this new camera.

A big reason I’ve decided to take pictures again is for my health. I hiked about a mile and a half this morning in pursuit, and it didn’t feel like exercise. I was engaged and in the moment the entire time, only stopping to check my phone for the time once and a while (because no matter what, I have to get into the office and build websites for part of the day). 

We’re in the depths of winter here now, as you can see. I’m looking forward to spring already.

Permalink

I’m trying to ease back into photography.  Apparently the way I do that is take a two hour hike into the woods near our house to chase birds. 

I feel good for having done it.  I’m very much out of practice, and it’s going to take me some time to rediscover my eye for these things, as well as technique.  I was fascinated by how much of my operation of the camera itself was muscle memory, though. I hadn’t picked this up seriously in about five years, since moving to Kansas, and surprisingly, my hands still knew how to adjust all the settings as I went without much thinking. 

Here are some photos that weren’t too terrible.

Permalink