First Birds of Spring

saddler · 23 Mar 2008 at 20:10

I finally managed to get out and shoot some wildlife this spring. One tip though, if your'e going to hide in some undergrowth to get close, don't choose brambles, my legs are now covered in scratches!

1) A bee

2) Robin

3) Duckling

4) Male Bullfinch

5) Female Bullfinch

6) Male Reed Warbler

7) Male Great tit

8) Great Crested grebe

Hopefully these are just a start and i'll have time to capture more.

Any C&C welcome.

Will_3rd · 23 Mar 2008 at 20:12

Wow really like the duckling one brought out an instant awwww

cleanbluesky · 23 Mar 2008 at 20:51

saddler said:
3) Duckling

Any C&C welcome.

You want me to C&C that? What possible criticism could I have?

A.N.Other · 24 Mar 2008 at 00:25

cleanbluesky said:
You want me to C&C that? What possible criticism could I have?

That compositionally it's taken down on the animal? Cute duckling, but that spoils it for me, although I know it's often difficult to do otherwise.

You've got some good shots there, though perhaps a bit of cropping just to make the subjects a bit larger in the frame would be good.

33L · 24 Mar 2008 at 13:23

what equipment are you using for those shots

Jebblehmoo · 24 Mar 2008 at 13:25

It's not just me that thinks a bumble bee isnt a bird right?

Right?!

All lovely shots though ^__^ and awwwwness to the duckling

saddler · 24 Mar 2008 at 21:40

Thanks for the comments,

A.N.Other Yeah the ccomposition was not perfect but the opportunity was limited. The mother wanted to keep them away from the others. I kept the crop loose on the others as I wanted to retain a bit of context to the shots.

33L All the pics were taken with a Canon 40D and Sigma 100-300F4 +1.4x converter.

Jebblehmoo I know a bee is not technically a bird but it flys so its close

KarlMcWade · 24 Mar 2008 at 22:19

the picture of the duck is very good

James07 · 24 Mar 2008 at 23:37

saddler said:
3) Duckling

Any C&C welcome.

No Criticism can be given for this shot. I think its an amazing capture.

Out of interest and in the interest of learning what lens was this shot with?

Big LOL at the bramble comment.

gillywibble · 24 Mar 2008 at 23:49

Really nice to see a male reed warbler. Thanks

saddler · 25 Mar 2008 at 00:53

James07 said:
Out of interest and in the interest of learning what lens was this shot with?

This was shot with the Sigma 100-300F4 with a 1.4x converter on. You could probably get away with a shorter lens if you have time to gain the trust of the parents. The mother was very protective so I didnt try to get too close.

Duckings are suprisingly hard to shoot, apart from the fact they are small, they are also bloody quick and never keep still. I had to use AI Servo mode on my camera to get an in focus image.

I just hope the four ducklings I saw survived the 3" of snow that fell the day after I saw them!