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Bird and Nature PhotographyBritish Columbia, Canada |
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| Photo Blog 2009-09-26 Got a call the other day from Nikon Canada letting me know the D300 was repaired. A welcomed phone call and a pleasant surprise as it had only been a week. I went in yesterday to pick it up. It was the shutter that had packed it in prematurely (approx. 36,000 releases). A little odd as my shooting style is not that hard on the shutter or pushing it to the limit all the time. They had to replace the grip, shutter and motor. The CCD got a cleaning along with regular cleaning and adjusting. Fortunately the camera was still under warranty and there was no cost to me. Meanwhile on the photo front I am still having no luck locating the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper at Reifel the last couple of days. There have been lots of Killdeer around though, ...
... along with a few Black-bellied Plovers.
The shorebirds all left after this Peregrine Falcon made its fourth stoop over the outer ponds. This shot taken on its fifth and slower pass wondering where they all went.
Fortunately there were lots of Sandhill Cranes present again.
They were putting on a good show with their posturing.
Good entertainment and photo opportunities.
A number of the Cranes present lately are part of a larger group being studied locally. They are being tracked by satellite and GPS transmitters as seen on this adult Sandhill Crane.
Some days recently have seen over twenty Cranes present at Reifel. | Home | 2009-09-23 I have spent a couple of afternoons out at Reifel with the high tides in hopes of trying to see and photograph a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper that had been sighted. While I had no luck with that I did manage this shot of a Greater Yellowlegs about to chase off a Pectoral Sandpiper.
The Black-crowned Night-Herons started showing up at Reifel a few weeks ago. I caught this juvenile along the edge of Fuller’s slough.
There have also been good numbers of Sandhill Cranes the last while. One small group was in close on the inner ponds.
Amongst them was this juvenile.
They struck some nice poses while resting ...
... and foraging.
| Home | 2009-09-21 This past weekend the plan was to try for the Buff-breasted Sandpipers and Black Phoebe again. First was Boundary Bay on Saturday. When I arrived there were some other birders present and a couple of photographers already down on the beach shooting the Buff-breasted Sandpiper. So I started off with some shots of the Pectoral Sandpipers.
There were still some Baird’s Sandpipers showing up as well.
After a brief rain shower I looked around and noticed I was the only one left. Being alone on the beach provided me with a good opportunity to get close and shoot the Buff-breasted Sandpiper.
There was only one present and it was busy foraging for food along the beach.
My presence did not seem to concern it in the least.
Not wanting to get caught like last time with too much lens, I was prepared and able to take off the 1.4 teleconverter when the Buff moved in even closer to me.
At this point the Buff-breasted Sandpiper is only 5 metres away. Much closer and it would be within the minimum focussing distance of my lens.
You cannot ask for much more than that. I did get caught by something else though, the tide. While I am down on my knees shooting the sandpiper that close the tide was rising quickly, filling my boots and soaking me up to my thighs. I was soggy but happy when climbing back up on to the dyke. On Sunday it was back out to Terra Nova for the Black Phoebe which was still around and frequenting the same house.
I managed a couple of shots while it perched briefly on some things other than the house.
It was spending some time in a small Maple tree, but always on the back side. Finally it made a brief appearance on the front side.
And another shot while it had something down on the ground.
Quite amazing this bird has stayed as long as it has. | Home | 2009-09-18 The last few days I have been spending some time out in the Boundary Bay area. The subjects of interest this time are two Buff-breasted Sandpipers that have been around for several days. This would be another new bird for me. The first chance I had was Tuesday early in the evening after work.
Both the Buff-breasted Sandpipers were present and moving around the beach. This one stopped briefly and seemed to be checking me out.
The setting sun provided for wonderful warm light.
They seemed comfortable with me down on the beach while they were foraging for food and got to within 7 metres.
Pausing briefly at times and posing nicely for me.
The Buff-breasted were mixed in with some Pectoral Sandpipers.
The Pectoral Sandpipers were even less shy walking past me only 3 metres away while I was watching the Buff-breasted. The Buff-breasted Sandpiper is considered a rare visitor here. While seen every year in this area during the fall migration, the number of sightings is usually quite small. These two birds currently in Boundary Bay have been providing local birders and photographers a wonderful chance to see them. Sunsets are a great time for photography but I also wanted to get some shots of these sandpipers in daylight. Yesterday I was able to get out to the bay a little earlier. Both birds were present but were separated and mixed in once again with the Pectoral Sandpipers. They were also a little further away so I started off using the 2x teleconverter.
Even though the one I was watching was some distance away, it provided me with some good photo opportunities.
It was not long though before the Buff-breasted and Pectorals were moving toward me.
And in short order the Buff-breasted was right in front of me.
At this point being stuck with the 2x teleconverter on, not wanting to move any more than necessary with the bird so close, all I could do was watch. Not that I am complaining, it was an amazing moment and fun to sit there and take it all in with Buff-breasted and Pectoral Sandpipers only feet away as they worked their way down the shoreline. After the sandpipers had gone by an American Pipit showed up on the beach.
If it wanted sand flies, there was certainly no shortage as you can see in the photo, or as I could see all over myself and the camera lens. Some Baird’s Sandpipers also showed up as I was starting to leave.
The fun shot while leaving though was a couple of Pectoral Sandpipers staring each other down on a piece driftwood.
With the winner striking a nice pose.
So it was a couple of good days shooting the Buff-breasted Sandpiper which was another life list addition for me. On the non shorebird front taken at Reifel today ...
... a Red-breasted Nuthatch getting seeds from a pine cone. | Home | 2009-09-13 The Black Phoebe was still being sighted yesterday so I decided to head back out to Terra Nova Park in Richmond to try for some more shots. When I arrived the Phoebe was at the house briefly, but the objective was to try and get some more shots of it in the trees. I relocated the bird in the treed area it was frequenting the other day. Unfortunately it was tucked away inside the branches preening. While waiting to see if it would come out I could hear a few Common Yellowthroats in the foliage around me. I started pishing to see if could coax them to pop up for me. No sooner had I started when a Bewick’s Wren responded flying up right in front of me.
I continued pishing as I could hear one of the Common Yellowthroats moving closer. It eventually obliged me alighting on a branch beside me.
These were a couple of good bonus shots to start the afternoon with. I heard the Phoebe calling as it flew off back towards the house. On checking the west side of the house I came across some Savannah Sparrows.
And on checking the east side I encountered this Red-tailed Hawk.
Meanwhile back at the rear of the house the Black Phoebe had caught a moth.
It then flew off and started fly catching in the tree line along the east side of the house. Finally a chance for some more photos in more natural surroundings.
I had taken over fifteen exposures when the bird moved out of sight briefly. I took this opportunity to check the photos and make sure the camera settings were OK. You can imagine what I was thinking when I saw this.
I powered down the camera and turned it back on and took a couple of quick exposures of the trees, same thing. No time for further trouble shooting with the Phoebe still in the trees in front of me. I swapped the camera body for the D200 in my pack and managed a couple more shots before it moved off.
With the Phoebe gone I did some further troubleshooting with the D300 and it appears the shutter is malfunctioning or has packed it in. I was so focussed on the bird when shooting I did not notice the "ERR" message in the viewfinder. So I’ll probably be in Richmond again tomorrow, but to Nikon Canada and not for photos of the Black Phoebe. | Home | 2009-09-11 It was one of those “oh crap” moments a few nights ago. I was reading a posting online about a Black Phoebe being sighted in Richmond. That same evening I was packing to go out of town on business for a couple of days. The Black Phoebe is a flycatcher that is uncommon north of Oregon/southern Washington. A rare bird here in British Columbia and one I have not seen or photographed. After getting back last night I checked and the Phoebe was seen that afternoon. So this morning I headed out to Terra Nova Park in Richmond hoping the bird would still be around. It had been frequenting the same derelict house the last few days. After fielding a few work calls, emails and waiting for two and a half hours the Black Phoebe arrived at the house. It was perching and fly catching from various spots along the back.
This was fun to watch because at times it was hard to say who was going after whom.
The wasps seem to be buzzing the Phoebe as often as it was trying its hand at catching something.
The bird seemed quite content and in no hurry to leave.
The challenge now was to try and get a photo with the bird perched on something a little more natural. This is where you have to be patient and prepared to put the time in.
With flycatchers there is also a good chance you may get them on a wire as they survey their surroundings for potential food.
But it was still returning to the house regularly.
Watching the bird for some time and determining its haunts when away from the house allowed for photo opportunities in more natural settings. When the bird was relaxed, preening and in this instance, yawning.
It even moved closer and perched briefly unobstructed on a branch.
I had now been at it for about six hours when I took this shot, but it was worth the wait for this life list addition. | Home | 2009-09-07 The plan for today was to go to Elgin Park in South Surrey. The park is located along the Nicomekl River not far from where it empties into Boundary Bay. There has been a Solitary Sandpiper frequenting the area for a while now. There was actually two seen there on one occasion. This would be a new bird for me not having seen or photographed one before. On arriving there was no sign of the Solitary Sandpiper amongst the Yellowlegs and Dowitchers. The Lesser Yellowlegs were cooperative though and provided some good photo opportunities.
They were not shy in the least as they walked around the shallow water foraging for food.
This kept me busy while waiting for the Solitary Sandpiper.
Another birder mentioned he had seen the Solitary Sandpiper in another portion of the slough away from the other shorebirds. I managed to locate it and get a look, but it was some distance away. Now it was a matter of waiting to see if it would move to a spot a little closer for viewing and photographing. It was about half an hour later when it showed up.
While now in the same general area as the others, it kept to itself at the far end.
It was closer now and allowed for good viewing and photos.
I would have prefered being lower and closer, but was not about to complain.
Another Sandpiper around this afternoon that I had not seen for some time was a Stilt. This shot taken while it stopped for some preening.
After which it carried on foraging for food.
This bird was fairly cooperative as well moving back and forth in front of me.
The bonus shots of the day were of a Red-throated Loon in the Nicomekl River.
For whatever reason at the time I thought I already had photos of this type of loon. It was not until I got home I discovered that was not the case.
So another new bird for the photo list was a good way to end the afternoon. Particularly with this one being in breeding plumage. | Home | Previous Photo Blogs | 2010-01
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© Jim Martin |
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