Titmouse!
We have a pair of Titmice that frequent our yard. One of them has unique coloration…a dark bib covering the top third of the chest…this is the other one. I am still trying for a photo of the darker bird. It is particularly shy, perhaps suffering from a persecution complex do to its odd plumage. Anyway, I like this close up of the mate hanging off a bittersweet vine in front of my backyard photo blind. I will add a water feeder and a hanging bird bath to the feeder array by the blind today. I am still hoping for a shot of the melanistic titmouse before long. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Wood Frog Symphony
I was out the other day walking in the woods of Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, just down the street from us actually. When I got back to the car there was a Wood Frog Symphony going on the vernal pool next to the road. I have tried to photograph the Wood Frogs singing in the past, with mixed luck, but this time I found two largish males quite near each other who stayed on the surface as I approached the pool. They are tricky to photograph, as are any frogs, since the wet spots on their skin reflect so strongly creating highlights that are totally burned out. I did some cloning on these shots to make them look more realistic. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. Highlights retouched in TouchRetouch.
One little Chipmunk on a Mission!
I spent an hour or more watching one little Chipmunk haul away my scatter of sunflower seeds in front of my new bird / photo blind, two packed cheek pouches at a time. She lives under the shed two backyards over from us, and made a dozen trips across the yards to load up on seeds. Watching her skitter through the leaf litter was a real treat. When she stood tall to scope out the situation on each trip, you could see the reason for her urgency…she was obviously nursing at least 6 pups. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Handsome House Finch
The House Finch, seen here in Kennebunk, Maine, USA, is often overlooked as “just another finch,” so common as not to require, or deserve, our attention. This male in fresh spring plumage, and in spectacular late afternoon light, makes it clear that we need to rethink our prejudices. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos. Taken from my backyard photo blind.
American Goldfinch
American Goldfinch, Kennebunk, Maine, USA. Still coming into full breeding plumage. My backyard bird / photo blind is proving to be very satisfying, and very productive. The opportunity to observe and photograph my backyard birds this close, without disturbing them in any way, is new to me, and I am enjoying it immensely. Odd as it seems, I will have the pandemic to thank for this. I would not have gone to the expense and effort of setting it up if not for the “stay at home” advice. I ordered a hanging water feeder and bird bath to add to my setup. I expect I will be using the blind a lot this spring and summer. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Photo.
Dark-eyed Junco (slate-colored)
Dark-eyed Junco, slate-colored sub-species. Kennebunk Maine, USA. This is “first fruits” from my new bird / photo blind in our back yard. I put out my pop-up turkey hunting blind and 2 squirrel proof bird feeders and a suet cage within another cage, again to discourage the squirrels, under the big pine along the boarder of our yard in the back. The Chickadees found the feeders first, of course, but in 2 hours of sitting in the blind yesterday afternoon I had opportunities to observe and photograph several species at close range. It works amazing well. This Slate-colored Junco is a bird that is around the yard all summer, and occasional up on our deck under the feeders there, but this is the first decent photo I have gotten. I will be spending a lot of time, these next weeks as we wait out the pandemic, in my blind. One afternoon was enough to convince me it will work. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Photo.
What’ca think of them berries?
Dropping back a week or so to when the flock of Cedar Waxwings was working its way though the berry trees and vines of Kennebunk (Maine, USA) for this interesting pose. I don’t know where the Cedar Waxwings are now. I have not seen them in many days. I suspect they have moved on…or at least out of town…or perhaps dispersed to breeding territories. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Look at my seed!
Another interesting pose from the White-breasted Nuthatch, at our back deck feeders here in Kennebunk Maine, USA. Sony Rx10iv at 454mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
There are always Chickadees
Black-capped Chickadee, Kennebunk, Maine, USA. Chickadees are reliable. They are everywhere, at least here in the northeast, and they are always there…even on the quietest day…even when we are under stay-at-home orders. 🙂 Occasionally one will strike a pose that lifts the photo out of the ordinary. It does not take much…in this case the angle of the head and way the light strikes and kindles the eye. In most photos the chickadee eye looks completely dark. Here you can see the rich brown iris. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Head on with a Bluebird
This is the male of the pair of Eastern Bluebirds that frequent our yard here in Kennebunk, Maine, USA. They started coming three years ago, and this same pair (I assume) comes back every year. They are actually here during all but bleak mid-winter. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.