Maine! Tufted Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, May 2023 — I am trying to find the best combination of focus settings on the OM-1 to allow me to pick the warblers out of the dense foliage at Magee Marsh in Ohio next week when I am there to give two Point and Shoot for Warbler workshops, so I am spending time in my backyard photo blind whenever the weather permits, practicing on the titmice, chickadees, chipping sparrows, and goldfinches. As you can see, this was a tricky shot, with foreground foliage and vines and a confusing background. I had the camera set to bird recognition and to the “small” focus target to give it a chance to find the bird in the brush and it worked quite well. Often with a larger focus target, which works fine in less obscured situations, the camera could not get close enough to focus to actually recognize the bird. But with the small target if I could get the target on any piece of the bird, the camera would focus, recognize the bird and move focus to the eye. Pretty slick! Still a lot to learn! Olympus OM-1 with the OM System 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my evolving birds modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro. ISO 320 @ f6.3 @ 1/640th. Minus .7EV. (to protect the highlights).
Siberian Ruby-throat
Siberian Ruby-throat: Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, March 2023 — We worked hard for this bird. It was hanging around the little trickle of water that flows under the road at the second entrance station at Keoladeo. But it was only seen every few days. We were there at the absolute end of its season in India. Most Ruby-throats were already on their way back to Siberia. This one bird was still around. We stopped for at least a half hour at the entrance station each morning on our way into the park…some used the restroom facilities provided, and one day we had chi from the little canteen around the back of the garage, while we looked for the bird, but it was only on our third day in the park that we arrived at the right time…and even then it took more than an hour for the bird to emerge into camera range. And because the bird had already been sighted that morning, we had pretty much the whole staff of the entrance station out helping us. When we found it, it was perched, kind o flattened out, deep in the brush with only a few windows that allowed a look or a photo. Not easy! Still, worth it for a bird we basically had only this one chance of seeing…and which, indeed, we only saw at Keoladeo. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 500 @ f4 @ 1/500th. Plus .3EV.
Maine! Fiddlehead season
Fiddleheads (emerging ferns): Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve at Laudholm Farms, Wells, Maine, May 2023 — It is fiddlehead season and the woods at Laudholm Farms are full of them. Emerging ferns. I was trying out the somewhat macro capabilities of the Olympus 100-400mm zoom. It does .5x at 800mm equivalent, and 1x using the digital tele-converter for 1600mm from 4.3 feet. You don’t have much depth of field, but still, it makes a emergency macro without carrying an extra lens. 🙂 Olympus OM-1 with 100-400mm zoom at 800 and 1600mm equivalent. Program mode with my evolving macro and environmental modifications. (Custom program #4). ISO 800 and 640 @ f6.3 @ 1/320th. Shot off my bean-bag headed monopod.
India! Sarus Crane in flight
Sarus Crane: Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, March 2023 — It was late, after 5PM, and we were still deep in the refuge. The sun was setting. The light was failing. We were well out on dyke birding the marsh on both sides when we heard cranes in flight calling and turned to see a pair of Sarus Cranes coming right at us and just above tree top level. Not much hope, but I had to try. You have to right? I did not have time to zoom out, so as the birds passed over I just fired off a burst of shots and hoped for the best. I do have my Birds In Flight settings programed to a button so I was able to switch on the fly, so to speak. This is not the best ever, but it is the best shot I got. 🙂 These are huge birds. Long wings. Heavy bodies, and tall…the tallest cranes on earth at over 5 feet. I had to pull detail out of the shadows in this very back-lit shot, but overall I am happy with it. You don’t get many chances at a shot like this, especially if you are only in India for two weeks. Sony Rx10iv at 591mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds-in-flight modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 100 @ f4.5 @ 1/1000th.
Costa Rica! Lesser Violetear and Mountain Gem
Lesser Violetear and White-throated Mountain Gem hummingbirds: Batsu Gardens, San Geraldo de Dota, Costa Rica, December 2022 — Another shot from the flower set up at Batsu Gardens last December. I have lots! This is a Lesser Violetear and a male White-throated Mountain Gem. There were way more Violetears than Mountain Gems. Sony Rx10iv at 493mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 2000 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Maine! Eastern Towhee
Eastern Towhee: Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve at Laudholm Farms, Wells, Maine, USA, May 2023 — Again I took advantage of some early sun, or so I thought, to get out for some practice with the new Olympus OM-1 and the 100-400mm zoom. By the time I got down to Laudholm Farms, the clouds had rolled in and the light was already less than ideal. So it goes. I have trouble remembering that this is not the Rufous-sided Towhee, which is the name it had when I as first leaning bird names. I think I may have confused more than one young birder by calling it that. It has been the Eastern Towhee for some time now. 🙂 It was keeping company with a couple of Catbirds and some Robins along the upper trail at Laudholm. Olympus OM-1 with the 100-400mm zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my evolving custom birds modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 250 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
White-breasted Waterhen
White-breasted Waterhen: Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, March 2023 — There are several birds at Keoladeo which are adapted for walking on floating vegetation. One of the most common is the Waterhen, which is, at least in the park, relatively fearless. We saw them right next to and even up on the road. In fact, not to spoil a future post, we hand fed one who was enamored of our trail mix. 🙂 Sony Rx10iv at 561mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 320 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Maine! Chickadee at nest hole…
Black-capped Chickadee: Roger’s Pond Park, Kennebunk, Maine, USA, May 2023 — We had a few hours of sunshine yesterday early so I took my new Olympus OM-1 and 100-400mm zoom out for some “field” practice. So far most of my photos have been from the back deck door or from my backyard photo blind. I need to know how the camera works in less controlled environment. 🙂 Not much going on at Roger’s Pond. I always hope for the pair of Eagles that is often see there…well, more often not seen there…but sometimes seen there. Not yesterday. And no ducks in the river. I had to make do with chickadees and titmice. This Chickadee was working a nest cavity low on a big maple. Olympus OM-1 and 100-400mm zoom at 1600mm equivalent (with digital tele-converter). Program mode with my evolving custom bird modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 320 @ f6.3 @ 1/500th. Minus .7EV.
India! Immature Black-necked Stork
Immature Black-necked Stork: Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, March 2023 — Not our first Black-necked Stork, but considerably closer than the ones we saw from the road on our way to Bharatpur. This is an immature bird. We saw a LOT of immature birds of many species at Keoladeo. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 125 @ f4 @ 1/500th.
Maine! Grey Squirrel (I see you!)
Grey Squirrel: Kennebunk Maine, USA, May 2023 — When you live in Maine you practice Animal Auto Focus on any wildlife available…mostly squirrels. 🙂 This squirrel did its “laying out flat on a branch” thing for me, and watched me inside my hide. He very definitely knew exactly where I was and was keeping track of what I was doing. We have two different framings here: 800mm equivalent and, using the digital tele-converter in the OM-1, 1600mm equivalent. In both cases the camera automatically kept focus on the eye. Program mode with my evolving wildlife modifications. (That is what the practice is all about.) Processed in Pixelmator Pro and Apple Photos. ISO 800 @ f6.3 @ 1/500th. Minus .7EV.