JUNE 2021

June 27th & 28th 2021

LOCATION: In and around my home town of Kitchener

WEATHER: Mix - sun and cloud

Bugs and Birds, Birds and Bugs ... My life, like many nature photographers, revolves around photographing birds when they are are available and bugs when birds are not available.
This week an especially the last few days this has been more true with the bug side of things, and a few interesting species have bee showing up making it more interesting. The highlight of the week for me was finding and photographing an interesting butterfly, that has eluded me for a long time ... the Baltimore Checkerspot (shown opposite). 

Tip of the Day: Natural light is ideal for any photography, including macro photos of insects. However, conditions are not always perfect, so you often have to make do with what you have. If you’re shooting in a forest or on a cloudy day, avoid using your built in flash that will create a direct, harsh lighting. Instead, use a ring flash that provides an even spread of light. When using either natural or artificial light make sure your shadow doesn’t appear in the frame and be careful with overexposed areas on your subject. To bounce light into darker areas of your frame, use a reflector or make a DIY version from cardboard and silver foil.

June 26th 2021

LOCATION: Algonquin area

WEATHER: drizzly rain and cloud - off and on

Birding has been a little slow locally, so we have been planning a short trip up to the Algonquin area, where many songbirds are spending the summer, but we have been keeping an eye on the weather, so that we didn't have too much sun.... Nothing worse than having colourful songbird plumage blown out because of harsh lighting conditions. Anyways, today (Saturday) the lighting was looking generally OK with cloudy, albeit rainy conditions. 
Up at 2:00am, out by 3:00am and headed out, picking up my birding partner in the city, then north towards Huntsville for that 4 hour drive and arrived in our first shooting location at around 7:00am. My personal hearing is not good, and it's been a long time since I heard small birdsong, but fortunately my partner has incredibly fine hearing, so it wasn't too long before we were pointing long lenses at our first target ... a Magnolia Warbler.
For the next 8 hours we explored our chosen area, picking up several Warblers and the occasional other avian species. One of the surprise birds was a Ruby-crowned Kinglet ... probably the first time I have ever seen one in its breeding territory.

Tip of the Day: If you want to keep your ISO as low as possible in poor lighting conditions then with most long lenses it is important to use a tripod. Even shooting at 700mm (500mm x 1.4TC), I am often down as low as 250, and often somewhat lower, and still manage to get sharp images (mostly)

June 17th - 26th 2021

LOCATION: In and around KW

WEATHER: Most days sunny

Over the last week or so I have been looking for and photographing various insects

June 15th & 16th 2021

LOCATION: Around Kitchener

WEATHER:  Sunny

For the next few weeks I will be posting a mix of birds and bugs. During June I usually, and prefer, shooting birds, but as the opportunities drop off, I sometimes take a day or two and shoot insects.
These babies, I found not too far from home, so my mileage is certainly improving - not driving hundreds of miles each way in search of interesting birds. 

June 11th & 12th 2021

LOCATION: A few spots on the west side of Algonquin

WEATHER: Day1 - wet and cloudy Day2 - Sun and cloud

Canada Warbler

Every June I head up to this area, at least a couple of times through the month. We found that in previous visits that many songbirds nest and are generally found in this area. Target birds for this two day outing were the Canada Warbler, Northern Parula and Magnolia Warbler, of which I managed a few shots of all of these gorgeous birds, over both days. This was very much a last minute trip, as a weather review the day before, said that day the next day was to be cloudy and the next day a mix of sun and cloud, but with the likelihood that it would be more cloud than sun ... perfect bird photography weather ... especially the first day.
Other birds seen and photographed were Black & White Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, American Redstart, Chestnut-sided Warbler, and the big surprise of the trip was a Cape May Warbler. Non-warblers  were Hermit Thrush, Black-backed Woodpecker, Red-eyed Vireo and a Blue-headed Vireo.
All in all it was a great trip, and based on the multitude of sightings, I hope to make the same trip in a couple of weeks ... almost worth the 4 hour drive, each way. 

Tip of the Day: Personally, I keep a birding diary, and have done for many, many years, which keeps track of what, when and where of birds I've seen and photographed. Birds typically hang out in pretty much the same places around the same times of year, so useful to know when, looking for a spot to go.

June 7th & 8th 2021

LOCATION: 7) North Dumfries 8) Halton

WEATHER: 7) Hot 8) damp with occasional shower

Last couple of days have been a little flat, with not too much bird activity, but although quantity being small I made up for with quality. Yesterday I was delighted to find a Yellow-throated Vireo that passed through my chosen spot, giving me a few frames, but I was double delighted this morning to have a Hooded Warbler female pop into the open for about 5 seconds, giving me a couple of shots. Over the years I have seen many, many Hooded Warblers, but they have all been males, so this was pure delight to have a first ever sighting of the female.

Tip of the Day: Sometimes you just want a standard, identifying, classic pose bird photo. You can add interest by getting an action shot, whether that be nesting, eating, fighting, or preening. Extra points for courtship displays! Interesting action can trump a perfectly focused and exposed shot, though having all of that is best.

June 6th 2021

LOCATION: At home 

WEATHER:  N/A

Many thanks to Helen (Birding by Ear) Lam for rearing these two magnificent specimens, and for bringing them to my home based "bug studio" (my garage) so that Steve, Helen and myself can get a few frames of these two beauties, which are brother and sister Cecropia Moths. I should say that these are Ontario's largest moth - They don't get to spend much time alive. They emerge, find a mate, lay an egg, then drop dead. Sadly, we don't see them too often because they only live for about a week or two. 

June 5th 2021

LOCATION: CRC near Port Dover

WEATHER: Hot, hot

Every year or so, a few friends and I head down to Vittoria, near Port Dover, to the Canadian Raptor Conservancy, to take advantage of this awesome facilty. At CRC  they have dozens of native or foreign raptors which they, depending on each individuals training or capability, either fly them or set them so that us crazy photographers can get a few snaps.
https://canadianraptorconservancy.com

Tip of the Day: Binoculars are an essential tool for birdwatching, but a really, really useful tool for us bird photographers as well. To be honest I almost never head out without both camera and bins. With my camera and lens on a tripod, my hands are generally free, so use the bins to check the surrounding area and review movements that are out of naked eye reach.  When choosing you should look at binoculars that work well in low light, with a minimum of colour distortion, and to be able to focus on birds close to you. Best magnifications are either 8x or 10x .

June 3rd & 4th 2021

LOCATION: Zooming around  this part of Ont

WEATHER: More sun and a little cloud

After that initial surge through of migrating songbirds, things have quietened down somewhat with sightings now being generally pretty hard to get. Knowing where to go can help immensely and what many of us is to return to spots, where in previous years, we have had good sightings and where we have seen good birds. Many songbirds return year after year to nest in almost identical spots, so these individuals are often quite well known, and many photographers/birders almost lie in wait for them (metaphorically speaking). This is true for the Hooded Warbler - this individual, I seem to remember, I photographed literally  within 100 feet of todays spot.

Tip of the Day: Simple advice ... carry your camera at all times when out and about ... You never know  !!

June 1st & 2nd 2021

LOCATIONS: Flamborough & Halton

WEATHER: Generally sunny, with occasional cloud

Day1: was pretty short with a few things on the go, but still managed a few birds ... The Ovenbird was the best sighting, but several sightings of Black & White Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler and a Redstart. 
Day2: I was on my own today and took a walk around several of the Halton area tracts, and although things were generally quiet, I did manage the occasional sighting. Highlight was the female Mourning Warbler that popped up for a few seconds, and thankfully I was ready and managed a few snaps (tip - be prepared at all times). It was a kind of a Mourning morning as I managed to photograph three individuals - 2 males and the one female at a couple of different Tracts.

Tip of the Day: Bird Songs – As someone (me) who has bad hearing, I find the single biggest drawback to finding and photographing birds, is the lack of being able to identify birds by their song.  Bird watching by ear is one of the hardest things to learn, but likely one of the most important. You can learn bird songs and calls using various ways including CDs, smartphone applications, and websites. Try to watch birds sing, as this usually helps stick the image in your mind.