Tufted Titmouse :: John H
A couple of weeks back, I spent a few days sitting in a makeshift “hide” behind an open window while it was around 32 degrees outside, trying to trick my yard birds into posing for me. Putting aside that sitting in a chilly breeze for all that time gave me something akin to bronchitis, I did manage to get a couple of bird pictures too. Here is one of my visitors – the Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor). A few photos, then an explanation:
This is all a bit of an experiment for me. In my yard, I usually just take pictures of birds visiting my feeders (similar to #3) or perching on a big old branch I’ve put nearby, but the “hand of man” in the feeder shots can be a little off-putting. So I’ve been trying some of the techniques in Alan Murphy’s Song Bird Setup Photography eBook. Here’s a quick setup shot:
The setup above is from day 3 where I got mean and limited access to the food to approximately one bird at a time, in order to encourage them to wait patiently on the feeder while the bird in front grabs some seed. It goes without saying that the birds’ favorite perch was in fact the tripod:
I plan to keep working on this technique to see how far I can improve my captures – and it’s Hummingbird season soon…
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I like the bird in the fifth shot the best, the bird appears to be posing… if only the tripod weren’t in the shot!
I’ve never gone out to photograph birds, but the variety of species alone could keep one busy for a while. What camera are you shooting with?
I like the last one the best too. So are you actually at the tripod with that little branch in front of you? I’m a little shocked they get that close. Or are you triggering the camera manually?
I’m really interested in this as I love birds and my wife treats them like pets (at least the bluebirds). The hummingbird thing should be fun too. Any plans on staging some flashes around the hummingbirds favorite parts of the yard?
Thanks for posting and I look forward to seeing more!
Thanks Mike and Mark for your comments. I kind of agree about the last image – it makes me smile (as the bird mocks me
– and it also doesn’t have a beak stuffed with food, which makes it look a little less domesticated. This is one of the challenges with using food as ‘bait’ – what I am really trying to capture are the birds _waiting in line_ for the food, not the ones that have just had their fill. The tripod – star of the photograph surely, is a $20 Velbon specifically purchased because it has a hollow handle which allows me to wedge branches into it and arrange them. Plus, I care less when the birds do to it what comes so naturally to them.
Mike> I’m shooting with a lowly Canon RebelXT (350D) – and budgets mean that won’t change for a while – great shame, as my wish list is extensive and expensive
Mark> The setup shot is taken from where I’m hiding inside my house, just zoomed out so you can see the whole thing. That’s set up about 15 feet or so from one of my basement windows. I was sitting inside the basement with the window open and a sheet hanging to cover my movements behind the camera, so hopefully all they ever see is the lens moving occasionally.
Hummingbirds do not care so much how close you are apparently. The trick I have lined up for them (again from Alan Murphy’s book) is to set up a feeder so they get used to visiting, then doing a bait and switch for a nice flower(s) with a drop of sugar water put in it with a pipette (yes, the flower would be wedged into the tripod handle
. We’ll see if that works, as we have some lovely Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds that nest in my neighbor’s yard.