Post your yard and pond visitors

[GBBUDD]

How about a pair of California Quail.

View attachment 116921

We have hoards of them here, often on my morning walk around the neighborhood, I see groups of 25-75 and in the winter, we often have that many in our yard. When the powder snow is deep, they put on quite a show! They'll land on our fence, barely above the snow, then fly out near the feeder and disappear into the powder! Then the head will pop up like a periscope and they'll plow on over to the feeder.

When the snow crusts over, it is real bumpy. Then they run over the top, hurrying to the scattered seed. Many times, a hollow will get in the way and they'll face-plant, then get up and continue running. They're a riot to watch!

Magnificent

 

[GBBUDD]

 

[Stephen T.]

Great shot, it's amazing how fast they can strip most the bark off of a dead tree, leaving a conical pile around the base. They have a "jungle movie" call that's something else.

 

[GBBUDD]

Great shot, it's amazing how fast they can strip most the bark off of a dead tree, leaving a conical pile around the base. They have a "jungle movie" call that's something else.

They are the one bird that really doesn't vary much from the coast to coast. Though I believe east coast can be larger.

 

[GBBUDD]

Maybe you be a little less enthusiastic if you had to fish hundreds of feathers out of your pond 3 or 4 times a month! We have Agency lake about 1000' away and they catch many large fish and a lot of ducks. This is one of their favorite spots to have a meal. At least they leave my fish alone, the pond is only about 75' from the tree.

View attachment 117017

Your lucky they need a good flight path and that they would just as well steal a meal as catch it on there own. I never thought i'd see a bird fly upside down until I went to conawingo

Sitting on a perch by the pond

Red Shouldered Hawk by A & R Photography, on Flickr

Your setup is crazy sharp amazing

 

[Lisak1]

These are all amazing! I'm over here going "oh look! A robin in the tree! And look at that little brown bird!" haha!

 

[Stephen T.]

Although these aren't great images, they show an amazing fight. Looking out the kitchen window one afternoon, I saw something happening and grabbed my wife's camera with very long zoom. Two male red-breasted sapsuckers where going at it, through the wire fence! They must have tussled for at least 3 minutes.

The way they were fighting, the fence may have saved a fatality.

 

[GBBUDD]

These are all amazing! I'm over here going "oh look! A robin in the tree! And look at that little brown bird!" haha!

That's what normal people do lisa.. I see a bird and go running for the camera. chase the little thing trying to get the best shot just the right angle. People have no idea what photographers do to get the shot. I have a hunters blind or two where I will set up and sit there for hours waiting on the shot. I can see the pond is going to be a hot spot for wild life. prior to the pond I never noticed humming birds in the area.

 

[Stephen T.]

"People have no idea what photographers do to get the shot. I have a hunters blind or two where I will set up and sit there for hours waiting on the shot."

Photographers are a bunch of obsessed nuts! I do the same thing, along with waiting on many other things. The clouds need to move for the light to be right, the sun angle is wrong, the only way to get this shot of a mushroom is to be a contortionist (my wife has quite a few shots of me doing this, usually my rear is in the air, head at the camera, sprawled across the landscape).

I built my pond and small stream to attract wildlife and also as a photographic backdrop. I do have a portable blind out there, along with a couple spots where trees or brush form a good blind.

 

[RobAmy]

From today, it has it's winter fuzz

Winter fuzz by A & R Photography, on Flickr

 

[MitchM]

You folks have some fantastic photography skills.
Thanks for posting.

I see similar subjects but just can't capture the same quality images.

 

[addy1]

You folks have some fantastic photography skills.
Thanks for posting.

I see similar subjects but just can't capture the same quality images.

You need more than a point and shoot or phone camera!
Their equipment is fantastic, way above mine.

 

[RobAmy]

You need more than a point and shoot or phone camera!
Their equipment is fantastic, way above mine.

Learning how to use the equipment is a big factor too. Here is one from my iPhone, if you can get close enough and adjust the settings, they do fairly well. A bit off topic as this is not from around my yard but I just do not want to make anyone feel you need the best equipment to take good pictures.

Flamingo - National Bird of The Bahamas by A & R Photography, on Flickr

 

[addy1]

Learning how to use the equipment is a big factor too. Here is one from my iPhone, if you can get close enough and adjust the settings, they do fairly well. A bit off topic as this is not from around my yard but I just do not want to make anyone feel you need the best equipment to take good pictures.

It is also having the eye.

I found that artist, photographers, anybody visual, made a better sonographer (ultrasound tech) than others. I would try to hire people whom had those hobbies. They had the eye to spot the tiny disease pattern in all those gray pixels.

Most of my shots are phone, a small camera. I tend to not carry around my big camera like I do my smaller ones.

 

[GBBUDD]

It is also having the eye.

I found that artist, photographers, anybody visual, made a better sonographer (ultrasound tech) than others. I would try to hire people whom had those hobbies. They had the eye to spot the tiny disease pattern in all those gray pixels.

Most of my shots are phone, a small camera. I tend to not carry around my big camera like I do my smaller ones.

I'm lucky I have my camera sitting in the passenger seat as I work all day. I get to use it for documenting the job as well as to grab the occasional wild life that shows it's self.