New Year's Blind Shoot

[finnbay]

Almost too much light today but spent a little time in the blind anyway. A few visitors:

A couple of grosbeak portraits:

Redpolls are starting to come in:

an occasional red-breasted nuthatch:

and of course, plenty of chickadees:

Canon 40D 300mm 2.8 Av 3.5 ISO 200 and shutter speed varied with the changing light.

[jonny_redhorse]

Superb!....that second image especially!....incredible detail!.....great work Ken! ...I can even see the "filoplumes" on the back of the neck....allbirds have em...

[mmeyer]

Really great shots Ken!

I love 'em all!

[harvey lee]

I really like all of your photos. Nice work.

[WCS]

Very nice photos Ken. May have been bright today, but it was nice to see the sun for once.

[MN Shutterbug]

Ken, you really know how to make a person envious.

[Steve Foss]

Sweet stuff, Ken, as expected!

X-T, you have the setup you need to take images that good. Get yourself a back-yard popup blind and start feeding birds. You can set up with the camera six feet from the perch with that lens, and you'll be able to get chickadees that fill at least half the frame. And your zoom makes you totally flexible when bigger birds come in. If you want to go that route, there are lots of tips we can give you.

Anyway, great images, Ken. My back yard was the dead sea again today, so I went farther afield to find a few. Looks like I'll have to rent your setup if birds continue to avoid my yard this winter.

[Dbl]

Excellent series of shots! Number 1 and 2 are really a couple of standouts! Beautifully done!

[finnbay]

Thanks for the kinds words everyone! Steve, it's always available if you need a place to sit. You know where it is!

[MN Shutterbug]

Quote:

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X-T, you have the setup you need to take images that good. Get yourself a back-yard popup blind and start feeding birds. You can set up with the camera six feet from the perch with that lens, and you'll be able to get chickadees that fill at least half the frame. And your zoom makes you totally flexible when bigger birds come in. If you want to go that route, there are lots of tips we can give you.

---

Steve, I do have a photo blind I purchased about 15 years ago. It's a very nice one designed by L.L. Rue. Unfortunately, I live 2 blocks from downtown on 2/3 of a lot. I do have 2 trees in my yard but a house as a bg from all sides. These houses are close and high. It makes it a real challenge to get a shot of a bird high enough to have the sky as a bg, but not so high that the angle sucks. Also, I put out a couple suet feeders about a month ago and all I get is an occasional nuthatch and downy, not even a chickadee. Most days, nothing shows up. I know, I should move. I'm going to have to try and find others in town that live near the Redwood River and also feed birds. That's my next project. I'm pretty sure no one would deny me permission to take photos of their birds, if I offered them a free 8 X 10.

[MARINERMAGNUM]

Number 1 for me. What a beautiful image. Thanks.