FRUSTRATIONS OF AN AMATEUR BIRDER

 

 Birds.  What great lengths they will go to to keep me from taking their picture.

 

 

Chesnut Park, Pinellas County

 

They camouflage themselves (on purpose, I'm sure) by insisting on blending into their surroundings.

A whole flock of them settle to the ground right in front of my eyes, but fly as soon as  I touch the camera (all but one indigo bunting, who was obviously a little slow).

They drum on the trees and sing in the forest, but never ever show their faces.

They hide in mossy trees (but this time, Mr Cardinal,  I caught a glimpse of you anyway).   

 

 

 

Honeymoon Beach State Park

 

Birds.  They hide their eyes.  They turn their backs on me.

They stay just out of camera range.

They blend into the  water where they're feeding   (did I say something like that already?).

 

 

But it is all worth it.  Because we are outdoors.  Birding.  Exploring.   Enjoying the wonderful weather.   And sometimes a professional birder (real or virtual) helps this amateur identify a bird that is new to me.    Life is good!

 

( A birder at Honeymoon Beach told me that this bird is a Marbled Godwit.  He was way more excited about this guy than he was the skimmers that I took a million pictures of (here).     Thanks also to all of you -- my virtual birding experts -- who told me the bird in the background of my skimmer picture was a ruddy turnstone!  

Birders, whether virtual or standing right beside me in real life, are the most helpful sharing people in the world!

 

 

FOR:   OUR WORD TUESDAY (very late ... we were away yesterday) and WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY.

 

Thank you to the whole great host team at OW and to Stuart at WBW.

Comments

[Pat]

Boy, do I ever know that feeling. Spent some time down at our local lake yesterday. Saw a lot of birds, but when it came time to take photos of them, they did their best to avoid it.

[Aimee]

LOL! This morning I have been trying my best to catch a photo of the bird that keeps flying into our windows (don't worry he seems to be okay)--so far I have, for all my efforts, one blurry photo of his tail-feathers:)
Blessings, Aimee

[Ramblingwoods]

I can relate.... Lol

[Penny]

Oooo, but, you DID get that indigo bunting. What a beauty, Sallie.

[NatureFootstep Photo]

oh. dear. They behave the same way to me. :( At least you seem to have more of them then I have.

[Stewart M]

The Godwit is a great bird (and it would be a real rarity in Australia) - but if the truth be told, I'd much rather see the skimmers! Crazy looking birds!

Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

[orchid]

Oh My, your Marbled Godwit is wonderful,I checked the Wikipedia & picture pages♡♡♡ What a long beak♪
For me, we can see same kinds of birds in the river on my way to the commodity shopping. But always too far and hard to ask my husband to stop(^^;) Loved to read the feeling you have.

PS> I AM really grateful for your sweet comment and brightened my heat. Thank you SO much for understanding♡♡♡

Sending you Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan to my dear friend in America, xoxo Miyako*

[Lois]

I have the same problem! These are all wonderful pictures. I have yet to see an indigo bunting in my yard, but I know they are in this area because others have seen them.

[Linda]

Fuzzy does that to me all the time. They know...don't they?

✿♥ღLinda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

[Lady Lilith]

I guess once you get the perfect shot, the frustration was well worth it.

[Al]

I'm always impressed with bird photos, I rarely have any luck with them.

[Annie]

Happily they are red and blue ! We are too enjoying outdoors with all the beautiful Spring flowers. Birds are nesting and singing. I agrre with you, life is good !

[naquillity]

lol, i don't think there's a birder or photographer around that wouldn't agree with you... they can be elusive little birds when they want to. your mosaic has some beautiful birds gathered together. hope all is well. have a great day~

[Alexa T]

I'm amazed, too, how difficult is photographing of birds... "conspiracy"... for sure LOL...One day "I'll learn" how to make them stay calm in front of the camera...
maybe I should tell slowly: "please, smile and say cheese"...or "please don't move"!!!..."have fun... I'll capture your image for my blog"!!
But how wonderful the result! Lovely shots and funny post! Thanks for sharing and all the best!

[Jerry E. Beuterbaugh]

I have found some birds to be just plain rude. That's all I have to say about that.

[craftygreenpoet]

I generally don't try to catch birds on film, apart from large, slow moving water birds....

I love the photo of the indigo bunting, exactly because it captures the elusiveness of birds in photos....

[I stora drag]

Hi Sallie!
Yes,to catch birds on photos are really tricky sometimes! hi hi, but I agree it's nice to be outside and enjoy, hopefully, sunshine and bird singing and more! And it is always exciting, I think.

Thanks for your nice congrats to my latest grandchild and all of us, so sweet of you! We have not seen the little fellow yet, only on photos. :)

Oh yes, we have also the legend of storks coming with the babies! :)
All the best to you! /Pia

[phil]

Well join the club Sallie. Yes, birds are amazing and frustrating creatures but we keep going back for more don't we? Marbled Godwit, Wow I'd go back for one of those.

[Anni @ I'd Rather B Birdin']

Ps....Hootin' Anni here again...I just wanted to thank you for stopping by and visiting my bird photo blog, I'd Rather B Birdin'. You taking time in your busy day to also leave a kind comment and memory this week...is very much appreciated.

[Gattina]

My cats love birding too, but not with a camera, lol ! Therefore we have very few birds around our house !

[Arti]

Such a lovely variety there! I love how photographers and birds share a relationship, play a hide and seek kind of a game - this sounds like SO much fun!

[Mary Howell Cromer]

Very lovely images and I had to giggle, for oh yes I so do know how they like to hide and just when I get them in focus, the move...sigh ;)

[Hootin' Anni]

ps...just viewed your black skimmer post that you linked for me!! Thanks.

[Birgitta]

Beautiful, great shots!

[Margaret]

HI Ye we all get a bit frustrated at times as birds blend into their natural surrounding so well, fly off too quickly etc etc. However it is all worth it to be alive, healthy and able to get out into the beautiful world of God's nature. You managed to get quite a lot of bird to show it. Great.

[katerchen]

einen Tröster Sallie
hier bei mir ist es auch so..ich sehe sie,aber sie sind schneller weg als ich ein Foto bekomme
DANKE für die Bilder
LG vom katerchen

[Debbie]

hehe, I think we can all relate but I must admit that my yard birds are very cooperative as I feed them well. I rarely hunt for birds in the wild....I can't believe I just said that because its totally not true!!

Many thanks for your kind comment on my entry today. I am a very lucky girl, I am so happy that you enjoyed my pictures!!

[SandyCarlson]

But you got the shots. These are lovely. I know the challenge, so I really appreciate your results!

[Sondra]

I agree on all fronts! I have a 100 Gigabyte of bad bird photos! BUT its the challenge that keeps us coming back for more! awesome Godwit! I'm doing a Big Day challenge this week stop by for details!

[Lavender Dreams]

I had my husband look at this post, too. We laughed because we know what you mean. We come home with photos of trees...where are the birds that we saw in them? heehee! But it's fun and like you say....sometimes you get a really good one! You are the best! Have fun! Hugs from across the way, Diane

[Life Images by Jill]

taking photos of birds certainly are a challenge. and I would think you need patience and a long lens. But infinitely rewarding, especially as this pursuit is outdoors!
Have a wonderful week and thank you for stopping by my blog.

[Barb]

These birds remind me of my Grandkids!

[Dianne]

I love this post. I get so discouraged about photographing a bird as he flies away after a perfect pose. However, seeing a bird for the first time or any time is so wonderful, I will keep on looking for them. Thanks for humanizing this challenging past time.

[DeniseinVA]

You took some lovely photos Sallie, but yes it can be frustrating to get those pictures. Still, like everything else, it is enjoying the journey, just like you do.

[Eileen]

Sallie, the Honeymoon beach park looks great for birding.. I love the Skimmers. And I see what looks like a cute plover on the far side of the skimmers. The Godwit is a cool bird and a great sighting..Thanks for sharing, enjoy the rest of your week!

[McGuffy Ann Morris]

Beautiful photos! I love the flash of colour, and the simple beauty.

[Jesh. StG]

That's why I'm not birding (laughing) - they're too smart and too sneaky, but luckily you still caught a few! Wishing you much success for the next birding week!

[Kenneth Cole Schneider]

Nice images! It surprises me how some of the most colorful birds can sometimes blend into the foliage. Your Indidg Bunting is a case in point-- this past week at Corkscrew Swamp I could not see one almost in front of me in the shadows of a bush. Would have loved to see that godwit during our stay on Sanibel Island.

[Rajesh]

Beautiful birds, nice variety.

[Hootin' Anni]

Yes...yes, yes. Nodding in agreement with all your bird photography trials!!!

But, we all keep after the perfect photo.
Those 'rescue birds'...are they not black skimmers?

[Gail]

Birders are pretty great, aren't they? :) And yes, photographing birds in the field is a challenge and test of one's patience. How neat to see the marbled godwit. That was a gift!

[HansHB]

Lovely serie!

[Hazel]

Some dogs turn their backs when I try to take a photograph-even when their owners are there! Animals and birds are similar in this way. I think a large, very heavy camera and extra zoom lens is the only answer:)

[Roan]

I feel your pain. I see such beautiful, close up, in focus pictures of birds on blogs and long to be able to get one shot that allows me to actually identify a bird from afar. I have lots of moon shots. Hard to identify them from that angle. Impressive shot of the Godwit. I'm going to post a bird tomorrow that is less than impressive. Oh, and I like the blue bird. They flit by me so fast I haven't been able to get one of them at all!

[Andrew]

You have captured some wonderful birds Sallie... many thanks for sharing them.

[Mick]

I really like your birds in this post - especially the shorebirds because I recognize some! The Ruddy Turnstone we get down here and the Marbled Godwit I saw on the coast of Washington State when I was there a few years ago. "Bush" birds are pure frustration for me - as you say they seldom stay for a good photo!

[Gunilla]

I love seeing birds when I'm out walking. If I can get a photo or two it's just a bonus.

[Carver]

Great shots. I am frustrated when trying to photograph the birds. Sometimes I decide to focus on spotting them and not to worry about photographing them. Especially in late spring and summer where they have so much cover here it's easier to look for them but realize my chances of a shot are slim except when they are bathing on my deck.

[Karen, Pixel Posts]

Lovely mosaics! I'd love to see an indigo bunting. I rarely get photos of birds when I am out and about. Thankfully I have heaps of birds in my yard.

[Pieni Lintu]

Photographing birds is SO difficult!! These are great shots!

[TexWisGirl]

it's a conspiracy! :) i recognized the indigo and cardinal from your mosaic, though. :)