January 30th 2024
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Milder & dry |
I had a short day, of which I drove around a couple of likely spots, including FWR Dickson briefly. Not one of my better days (quantity wise), but still seen a couple of interesting birds. The highlight being a sighting of a Peregrine Falcon - we don't often see too many of these in this neighbourhood, so pretty cool!!
Tip of the Day: Generally, the best money you can spend on photography, is travel
January 29th 2024
| LOCATION: Algonquin | WEATHER: Unseasonably mild and sunny |
A decent day at Algonquin, and almost worth the 4 hour drive, each way. Targets were Redpolls (pref. Hoary, but ??), Canada Jay, Crossbills, Boreal Chickadee, and a couple of others. I didn't quite make the targets, but that's what keeps me going back LOL. The plus was the Ruffed Grouse and the Purple Finches
January 25th 2024
| LOCATION: Kitchener & North Dumfries | WEATHER: Snowy and cool |
A few local goodies.
January 21st 2024
| LOCATION: East of Brantford | WEATHER: Cloudy and cool |
On impulse I took a drive around a rural area just east of Brantford - an area I don't think I have ever birded, but it was decent, I suppose, as I came across a small flock of Snow Buntings - a species that I haven't seen too much of this winter.
January 20th 2024
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Bitterly cold again, but flickers of sun |
On another local Facebook birding site, there was an invitation to visit an address in North Dumfries that had a Harris's Sparrow coming to their feeders, and that they would host their availability for a few hours today. .. and of course it was too good an offer to miss out on. I drooped by for 45 minutes or so and was delighted to be able to get a couple of distant shots of this vagrant rarity ... Awesome!!
While out I also spotted a small flock of Pine Siskins, so all in all it wasn't a bad morning.
While out I also spotted a small flock of Pine Siskins, so all in all it wasn't a bad morning.
Tip of the Day: From a technical aspect, photographing birds in the snow can be gorgeous, but challenging. Since camera metering systems are calibrated to base exposure on neutral gray, a snowy landscape can end up looking dull and gray. To combat this, it is a good idea generally, to overexpose your shots by roughly two stops.
January 18th & 19th 2024
| LOCATION: North Dumfries & Brant County | WEATHER: Cloudy, flurries & cold |
Drove around lots of back, gravel roads with mixed success. Primary target was to find Fox Sparrows, but yet again they eluded me :)
January 14th 2024
| LOCATION: Brant County, S of Brantford | WEATHER: Icy Cold, but dry |
My wife had a reason to get to Brantford today, but the roads were a little tricky, because of the winter weather, so I dropper her off in town and I headed down to the south side of the town where there had been sighted some Lapland Longspurs. I only managed a quick sighting of said Laplands, but unfortunately they didn't offer an image opportunity ... oh well!! that's how it goes, I suppose. On the plus side I found a pair of Rusty Blackbirds, and one of them sat nice for a couple of milliseconds. Close to the same spot I spotted a couple of Horned Larks foraging in a old cornfield.
Tip of the Day: Use the right equipment ... Your main apparatus in bird-watching are your eyes and ears. Binoculars and simple bird identification guide are the minimal gear needed to aid your senses, but more importantly, if photography is your need, is to invest in good equipment. Do some research and talk to other photographers and ask opinions.
January 11th 2024
| LOCATION: At Home in Kitchener | WEATHER: Cold & Snowy |
It was a cold and blustery day, so I concentrated on checking out what is visiting my back yard feeders. Nothing too unusual showed up, but it was still a great chance to get a few decent images of some of the regulars
Tip of the Day: IMHO, a great image of a common species, far outweighs a bad picture of something rarer, so don't ignore those birds that you see everyday :)
January 10th 2024
| LOCATION: FWR Dickson, North Dumfries | WEATHER: Cold, windy and miserable |
Day started being a bit snowy/sleety, but by 8:30 it cleared, so I took the opportunity to head down to FWR Dickson - generally hoping to see and get a better image of the Carolina Wren. Most visitors are there for the Tufted Titmous(es), but I seem to have a mountain of images, but the Wren, although quite often there, seldom comes into the open for a click or two. I arrived to find and one other photographer there, and there wasn't too much activity, even from the regulars - Tree Sparrows and Juncos. However after a while a Piliated Woodpecker came in reasonably close and started to(or what seemed to continue to) pound away at a dead tree just off the boardwalk. I dont think I have ever encountered a Piliated just continually hammer away at a tree, in one spot, for so long - I gave up after maybe 45 mins and headed back to the car, and he was still there - knocking this tree for 6 !!. Interesting day!!
Tip of the Day: Winter is an excellent time to concentrate on photographing birds coming to feeders. Birds need an available food source to provide the energy they need to stay warm on cold winter nights. By providing food in your backyard, you might attract a good variety of beautiful birds into range of your telephoto lens. I have my feeders setup adjacent a patio door, and is where I have my camera setup. Shooting through glass, as long as the window is clean and dry, is generally not a problem, but watch out for reflections
January 8th & 9th 2024
| LOCATION: North Dumfries & Kitchener | WEATHER: Day1 - Cloudy; Day2 - Snowy |
Yesterday (Day1) I headed to FWR Dickson yet again - it seems this year that is where, at least locally anyways, is the place to see and photograph a few birds. On my way there I dropped by 3 or 4 other spots, which in the past month or two have been quite productive, and yet another day of approximately zero <smile> at these spots. FWR however had a few birds. The highlight was the Carolina Wren, but I did see a few Golden-crowned Kinglets as well. Another point is that there is quite a bit comradery there too, so a great place to visit.
Today (Day2), because of the new snowfall I basically just setup a camera looking out my dining room patio doors towards the bird feeders - Pretty much only the regulars, but still nice to see some activity. Now I look at my shots for the day I see that my perches are getting a little old hat, so as an extra tip on scenarios like this - change your layout regularly (note to self ... change your perches asap)
Today (Day2), because of the new snowfall I basically just setup a camera looking out my dining room patio doors towards the bird feeders - Pretty much only the regulars, but still nice to see some activity. Now I look at my shots for the day I see that my perches are getting a little old hat, so as an extra tip on scenarios like this - change your layout regularly (note to self ... change your perches asap)
Tip of the Day: Winter can play havoc with battery life so keep a spare battery in your pocket close to your body, and of course stay warm yourself !!
January 1st & 2nd 2024
| LOCATION: North Dumfries & Kitchener | WEATHER: Day1: Snowed a bit Day2: Cloudy |
First things first ... Happy New Year to all !!!
With other things on the go I didn't venture too far over the first two days of the year. On day1 I took the short drive to FWR Dickson, but even though there was quite a bit of bird activity, I only took the one shot - the Golden-crowned Kinglet.
The rest of the images were taken at my back yard feeder setup, and taken through the glass of my patio doors. I have done a little setup, that I change pretty much every day, so that my images don't all look too much alike.
With other things on the go I didn't venture too far over the first two days of the year. On day1 I took the short drive to FWR Dickson, but even though there was quite a bit of bird activity, I only took the one shot - the Golden-crowned Kinglet.
The rest of the images were taken at my back yard feeder setup, and taken through the glass of my patio doors. I have done a little setup, that I change pretty much every day, so that my images don't all look too much alike.
Tip of the Day: Bird feeders attract all sorts of birds, because that is where food can be found!! so if you, or someone you know, or even a local park has one, then this is a great spot to spend time at. Look for shot opportunities when the birds are on tree branches near the feeders, and don't be afraid to do little setups if you can, and good luck!!
