I have never had much luck photographing House Wrens (and if you remember the last “house wren” images I posted were actually a Winter Wren holding its tail funny). But every dog has its day, as the saying goes, and a Sunday visit to the Edinburg Scenic Wetlands World Birding Center, in Edinburg TX was mine…or the wren’s…or something…call it a confluence of opportunity. There were House Wrens signing all through the butterfly gardens and along the ponds at ESWWBC that day. Photographically they were a problematic as ever, mostly, skulking in the deep bush, popping out of sight as soon a sighted, playing hard to get. This specimen however was at the head of the boardwalk to the observation platform on the back side of the pond across the road from the Visitor Center, and seem determined to hold his ground while I shot off a series of images. Still difficult, still buried in the bushy tree, still with no clear line of sight…but, amazingly, when I looked at the images on my laptop…in focus and by far the best shots I have gotten to date of the House Wren. (All the images open at a larger viewing sizes by clicking the image.)

Canon SX40HS at 1250mm equivalent (627mm optical plus 2x digital-converter). f5.8 @ 1/250th @ ISO 800. Program with iContrast. –1/3EV exposure compensation. (This is very impressive performance for ISO 800 in a Point and Shoot camera!)

Processed in Lightroom for Intensity and Sharpness.

And, yes, I probably should go in and clone out that strange little “bird foot shaped” twiggy thing in front of the bird…but these shots are SO how you see a House Wren that I am tempted (so far successfully) to leave it in. 🙂