June 30th 2022
| LOCATION: In and around my neighborhood (KW) | WEATHER: Sunny and hot |
Another "Birds first then Bugs" day. Initially started off in the North Dumfries area then as I drifted closer to home I picked up a few insects.
Tip of the Day: Insect Macro Tip: At such a close range to your subject, your camera won’t be able to autofocus correctly. As a result, you will need to use manual focus. But, because your room for error regarding sharp focus is so thin, you will also need to use your camera’s live view feature so you can inspect the image on your camera’s LCD. This will give you the best view to determine whether your image is in focus or not.
June 29th 2022
| LOCATION: KIncardine area | WEATHER: Cloudy with some sun |
I always keep an eye on one or two of the rare bird alerts for southern Ontario, and sometime something will pop up that tweaks my interest. Yesterday a report came in of a Dickcissal being reported along a side road just inland from Kincardine, so it's only a two hour drive, so off we went. Unfortunately after a few hours we were still without a sighting or even hearing their distinctive call. Oh well luck of the draw so to speak.
Tip of the Day: There is a rule that photographers use to compose great images. It’s called the Rule of Thirds. Rather than placing the subject right in the middle of a shot, try placing it roughly one third of the way along the photograph. Add more interest to the photo by including some other interesting features to frame the main subject such as tree branches or leaves.
June 27th 2022
| LOCATION: near Woodstock | WEATHER: Bright sun and Hot |
Headed down to Sweaburg Swamp with the thought that this area might be worth checking out. It had been a few years since I had visited, but it was a tad disappointing.
June 26th 2022
| LOCATION: Halton region near Guelph Line | WEATHER: Cloudy with some sun |
The weather looked very promising, with cloudy skies, and a little cooler, and not too much wind, so it was very much the kind of day to go birding. The Guelph Line area has always been pretty good to me over the years, so it was a fairly easy choice of location for the day.
Almost immediately on getting there I am picking up several warblers on Merlin (I have no high end hearing, so I rely so much on Merlin). Over the period of the next few hours I was able to get a few decent shots of my favorite bird genus ... Warblers. There was a even a few species I ignored .. ie Redstarts and Yellow Warblers.
Almost immediately on getting there I am picking up several warblers on Merlin (I have no high end hearing, so I rely so much on Merlin). Over the period of the next few hours I was able to get a few decent shots of my favorite bird genus ... Warblers. There was a even a few species I ignored .. ie Redstarts and Yellow Warblers.
Tip of the Day: Learn everything that you can about birds. Any type of photography can be improved by studying your subjects, and this is especially true of Bird Photography. Since birds don’t necessarily pose whenever a photographer points a lens in their direction, you need to understand their behavior so that you can be ready when opportunities present themselves. Know your subject. The more you know about the way birds behave, the better your images of birds will be.
June 23rd, 24th & 25th 2022
| LOCATION: In and around Kitchener | WEATHER: Mixed, but mainly sunny |
The last few days have been "Bug Days", which is what we bird photographers often revert to when birds are slow, and getting harder to find. We unclip the large telephotos and snap in the macro lenses. Macro has it's own magic, and I think I like shooting insects almost as much as birds ... almost :)
June 20th & 21st 2022
| LOCATION: Sundridge & Huntsville | WEATHER: Day1 hot, but dull Day2 sunny & hot |
As you see from the pics below the trip was pretty successful. My main targets (again) were both the Bay-breasted Warbler and the Cape May Warbler. I did hear a couple of Cape Mays, but I never once caught a glimpse, so a tad disappointed in that respect, but very happy with my captures overall.
On the, other than birds, side of things I did see a couple of interesting mammals - First thing a Wolf ran across on front of me, then a bit later a Fox wandered past. Mid morning on Day 1 I had a Moose stand in the middle of the road for a couple of minutes.
Season is most certainly advancing as many of the bird sightings were with food in their beaks, so chick rearing is well under way.
Most common sightings were Magnolia Warblers, Red-eyed Vireos, Northern Parulas and Blackburnian Warblers. Merlin also picked up a lot of Ovenbirds, but only a couple of sightings. The one singly most common call that Merlin picked up was the Winter Wren (at almost every stop), but even after making lots of calls I saw, or glimpsed movement, approximately zero birds ... strange, I thought.
On the, other than birds, side of things I did see a couple of interesting mammals - First thing a Wolf ran across on front of me, then a bit later a Fox wandered past. Mid morning on Day 1 I had a Moose stand in the middle of the road for a couple of minutes.
Season is most certainly advancing as many of the bird sightings were with food in their beaks, so chick rearing is well under way.
Most common sightings were Magnolia Warblers, Red-eyed Vireos, Northern Parulas and Blackburnian Warblers. Merlin also picked up a lot of Ovenbirds, but only a couple of sightings. The one singly most common call that Merlin picked up was the Winter Wren (at almost every stop), but even after making lots of calls I saw, or glimpsed movement, approximately zero birds ... strange, I thought.
Tip of the Day: Looking outside is a great way to start your bird photography journey, but sometimes it’s hard to catch all the little details from so far away. Buying binoculars is a great way to enhance your experience and analyze the vibrant colours and rough edges each bird has to offer, as well as confirming the species and target. Binoculars can range from tens of dollars to thousands, but a tip from someone who has went down that road .. if you are serious then buy the best you can afford.
June 16th & 17th 2022
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Sunny |
Over the past few weeks I have been seeing things that I have never really noticed before. As many of you know my hearing is pretty poor especially at the higher frequencies ie bird calls, so over the years I have compensated by watching and observing, and to some extent playing a few calls to attract birds.
So with the advent of the Merlin app it has opened up so many more opportunities for me. Anyways ... I have noticed that a couple of birds that show up on Merlin eg the Philadelphia Vireo are not what they seem, and although this species has been a target bird for all this season, the calls are in fact those of the Red-eyed Vireo. It would seem that the Red-eyed is mimicking the Phillie ... This hasn't been an isolated event as it has happened several times.
Another bird that seems to have a tendency to mimic is Yellow Warbler. Several times Merlin has popped up an unlikely Warbler (eg Cape May or similar) and the next thing I see is a Yellow Warbler.
I wonder how many other species has this trait ??
So with the advent of the Merlin app it has opened up so many more opportunities for me. Anyways ... I have noticed that a couple of birds that show up on Merlin eg the Philadelphia Vireo are not what they seem, and although this species has been a target bird for all this season, the calls are in fact those of the Red-eyed Vireo. It would seem that the Red-eyed is mimicking the Phillie ... This hasn't been an isolated event as it has happened several times.
Another bird that seems to have a tendency to mimic is Yellow Warbler. Several times Merlin has popped up an unlikely Warbler (eg Cape May or similar) and the next thing I see is a Yellow Warbler.
I wonder how many other species has this trait ??
Tip of the Day: As the hot weather is now here be aware of ticks !! Here’s what you can do to avoid getting a tick bite. Wear: ....
- light-coloured clothing, so it’s easier to see ticks
- closed-toed shoes
- long-sleeved shirts
- long pants, tucked into your socks
- special clothing designed to repel ticks
June 14th 2022
| LOCATION: Luther Marsh | WEATHER: Sunny for the most part |
Luther is quite a well known area where the Sedge Wren can be found and so we headed up there with this target high on our wish list. Unfortunately, although the Merlin app was picking up the call in several spots, we never did see one, even for a split second. Oh well sometime it doesn't work out. However, what we did find were several Canada Warblers, so the day was still a success.
Tip of the Day: If you’re not poised and ready to shoot, there’s no way you’ll have enough time to capture that once-in-a-lifetime shot. So, remember to set your baseline settings before you head out, and make sure you’re fully ready to pick up your camera and shoot at a moment’s notice
June 12th & 13th 2022
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Mainly cloudy |
I headed down to the North Dumfries area again, but for these two days I did a little exploring on some of the other roads and trails in the area, that I don't usually go to. I am certainly glad I did, as I found some new spots that I now have added to my "go to" spots. The Yellow-throated Vireo was at one those locations and it was a real nice surprise to come across him.
Tip of the Day: As with most living subjects, observe what the birds are doing, and think about how you can best take a picture of them. Try to take a profile (showing one of the bird's eyes, or full view of it's face, with both eyes visible. If you can't see the eyes, the image will have less impact.
June 10th & 11th 2022
| LOCATION: Halton & North Dumfries | WEATHER: Continuing sunny |
Another Bird and Bug day. Day 1 we headed up to one of the Halton tracts, as I had been hearing about a Hooded Warbler that is hanging out there. A few years back I remembered about one we had been seeing quite a ways along the track next to a swampy area, so off we went. Unfortunately we came up blank after a significant amount of time so we gave up and headed back to the parking lot, and would you believe it .. we spotted the bird right in the parking lot (could have saved some shoe leather <wink> )
Tip of the Day: Head out early in the morning when birds are actively feeding will improve your chances of a good sighting
June 8th 2022
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Sun and cloud |
As you can see from some of the images it is getting in to macro season, which is something that I do as the birding starts to slow down., so for the next few weeks you can expect to see a mix of both birds and bugs.
On the birding side I drove around some off the back roads fairly close to home and spotted a few birds, but the highlight was the Vesper Sparrow, which was a FOY (first of year) for me.
On the birding side I drove around some off the back roads fairly close to home and spotted a few birds, but the highlight was the Vesper Sparrow, which was a FOY (first of year) for me.
Tip of the Day: Respect your subject. The beautiful birds did not ask us to click a picture of them in the first place. So during the process, it is only fair to come back with photographs putting least stress on our subjects. Approach and part from them as unobtrusively as possible, so they would ignore you immaterial of you bagging the shot or not.
June 4th 2022
| LOCATION: Along 4th side Road, Halton | WEATHER: Mainly cloudy |
It was a nice day ... cool and little or no direct sun. This road always seems to be quite birdy, and today we managed to find a reactive and inquisitive Blackburnian Warbler. Always nice to see this beauty not too far from home.
Tip of the Day: Shutter speed should be the equivalent of the focal length of the lens to get cleaner shots. In aperture priority the shutter speed is controlled by the camera. The bigger the aperture (small f/stop number) the faster the shutter speed. Shutter speed can also be increased by elevating the ISO and/or adjusting the exposure compensation down. Note: The use of a tripod provides a bit more flexibility with being able to use a slower shutter speed as the camera is more stabilized.
June 1st - 2nd 2022
| LOCATION: Sundridge area | WEATHER: Mainly cloudy |
Up by 2:15 am and out the door in Kitchener before 3:00am. It wasn't easy to get the butt moving this early, but the anticipation of catching a few Warblers during the best part of the day (ie before 7:00am) made it a little easier than I thought it would be. The drive to this most awesome songbird area was generally easy enough, other than a very dramatic drive through a severe thunder & lightning storm.
Arrived at my destination and was looking at Warblers very soon thereafter. I had a list of birds in mind and other than a couple of species that eluded me a bit - the Cape May Warbler and the Bay-breasted Warbler. I did actually see them, and even managed a coupe of absolutely terrible shots, so I suppose I reached all my targets.
This was a two day trip so after a decent sleep at a local Hotel I was back out there at the crack of stupid. Day two was pretty good, but not quite as active as the day before.
Now I cant wait for the next trip up these, which might end up being pretty soon.
Arrived at my destination and was looking at Warblers very soon thereafter. I had a list of birds in mind and other than a couple of species that eluded me a bit - the Cape May Warbler and the Bay-breasted Warbler. I did actually see them, and even managed a coupe of absolutely terrible shots, so I suppose I reached all my targets.
This was a two day trip so after a decent sleep at a local Hotel I was back out there at the crack of stupid. Day two was pretty good, but not quite as active as the day before.
Now I cant wait for the next trip up these, which might end up being pretty soon.
Tip of the Day: Funny enough, one of the most difficult aspects of photographing warblers is actually finding them in the viewfinder of your camera. Because they like to hop around in varying densities of foliage, they often disappear for a short period of time into the brush. You’d be surprised at the number of times you look through your camera and completely lose sight of your subject. The best advice we can give you is to use an obvious detail in the surrounding landscape to get you started. A unique shape of a tree branch, a distinct bark texture, anything that’s easy to point out quickly through the viewfinder. First, use your naked eye to map out the general distance the warbler is away from this feature. Then, find your “landmark” feature in the viewfinder, and scan in the direction you noted before bringing the camera to your eye.
As always ... click on any image to show full size. Also by hovering your cursor over any image will provide a title
