Posts in Category: birds
Maine! Drawing a bead
Least Tern: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — This Tern has me in its sights for sure! I was standing on its section of beach…though well outside the protected area and no where near its nest. Terns seem to have a compulsion to protect their territory and they lay claim to pretty much everything between their nest at the far edge of sand up against the dune, to the surf line no matter how far away that is. That is okay by me. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 100-400IS zoom at 614mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! winging it
Least Tern: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — I am still learning to photograph Terns in flight…I have a feeling that no matter how many I photograph I will always still be learning. 🙂 There are always tourists on the beach and there are always Terns in the air. I find that 600mm equivalent is the maximum I can currently handle and still occasionally get the bird in the frame. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 100-400IS zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Nothing like being close: Downy edition
Downy Woodpecker: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — I was setting up on the back deck for some afternoon lens tests when this Downy Woodpecker flew into the perch by the suet feeder. Neither the Downys nor the Hairys have much fear of me out on the deck by now, so it was not surprising, but still, great light, and close, and the camera in my hand and set to go. Take a look at the eye! OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird modifications. -1EV (I have my highlight alert turned on). Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Gotcha
Willet: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — Willet hunting along the tide line of a tidal creek. And having some success! I am testing the new M.Zuiko ED 150-600IS zoom and this shot was at the full 1200mm reach on my OM System OM-1Mkii. This is a very good lens! Program mode with my bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine: Bringing it
Least Tern: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — As I mentioned, there was lots of courting action on the beach the last time I visited. It was getting on for high tide and the terns were down along the surf line, catching and offering Rock Gunnel. Note the band on the leg of the bird in flight. The Least Terns in Maine are carefully monitored. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko ED 100-400IS zoom at 684mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! The exchange
Least Terns: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — Apparently a new group of Least Terns, perhaps a dozen, have moved up to our local beach for second nests. They were actively courting yesterday, with a good amount of eel offering. I even got to see one actual exchange, and maybe caught a pair mating. Not this pair. This is just the exchange. There is no way Facebook would keep the images in the right order, so I have made them into a read right and down composite. If you are viewing on a phone you may want to pinch and zoom out to see each individual frame. Right place, right time, and ready! That is the key to wildlife photography. 🙂 OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 100-400IS zoom at 656mm equivalent (cropped to fill the frame…I was shooting terns in flight, for which I find that 600mm works better than 800, and did not get zoomed back out to 800mm for these beach shots…so, maybe, not quite ready…but the sequence only lasted a second or two, and I got the shots :). Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
Maine! Angel unaware
Least Tern: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — I have the new M.Zuiko ED 150-600IS zoom for testing, so of course I had to go down to the beach and try it on Least Terns in flight. It is a big lens compared to my 100-400IS and much heavier, but it handles well. The Terns were doing their usual thing and I caught this one near the end of my visit…doing an excellent impression against a great backdrop of distant clouds of an angel. Of course this may have been the same tern (likely was if memory serves) who scored a direct guano hit on what would have been my forehead if I had not been wearing a hat…so not so angel like at that. Just doing what Terns do. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 150-600IS zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Getting bigger
Piping Plover: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, June 2024 — The Piping Plover chicks, at lest this one family, are getting bigger and their feathers are developing from pin to full plumage rapidly. This chick is about 3 weeks old now. They are fully functional at birth…capable of feeding themselves and running around to considerable distances from the nest, but now they are going all the way down across the open beach to the serf line. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko ED 150-600IS zoom at 1200mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Willet in the surf
Willet: York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — On one of our hot days last week, this Willet spend a lot of time in the surf, perhaps cooling off. It did not appear to be actively hunting…at least I did not see it try for any prey while I was watching. It just stood there and let the surf run around it. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Air defense
Least Tern (with Rock Dove): York County, Maine, USA, June 2024 — I had never thought of the Rock Dove (pigeon) as a potential predator of Least Tern eggs, but this pigeon was showing way too much interest in one particular Least Tern nest on the beach. I had also never realized just how big a Rock Dove is compared to a Least Tern. The Terns made a valiant attempt to dive the pigeon off, dive bombing it on the beach and harassing it in the air, but when it landed near the nest and showed every intention of raiding it, they went into full air defense mode with one of most amazing shows of aerial dexterity I have ever seen. Every Tern on the beach joined in, and for several moments the Dove had their full attention…until it finally decided two tern eggs were not worth the hassle and got up and flew off into the distance. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 338mm (Dove and Tern) and 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.