First Bird Outing. Another Epic Fail haha

[sscarmack]

I've been asking around if anyone has seen anything worth looking at, eagles etc. I've been told there are some Eagles in the area, so I went out looking. I didn't have much time as I had dinner plans.

This is the only thing I saw and I don't have nearly enough reach for Wildlife haha. Time to drain the bank account. Agh




Anyone familiar with Northwestern PA, hour north of pittsburgh, hour south of erie. Any good sights?

 

[IzzieK]

Er....ahhhhhhhh.......:er: O...Kay......I think........ much better than what I caught yesterday in my backyard though...and I planned. I ended up buying a good macro lens and extension tubes instead and leave the big lenses for the birdographers. I decided to stay on ground shots instead. hahaha.

 

[robbins.photo]

I've been asking around if anyone has seen anything worth looking at, eagles etc. I've been told there are some Eagles in the area, so I went out looking. I didn't have much time as I had dinner plans.

This is the only thing I saw and I don't have nearly enough reach for Wildlife haha. Time to drain the bank account. Agh

Anyone familiar with Northwestern PA, hour north of pittsburgh, hour south of erie. Any good sights?

Ok, this is not an epic fail. There is actually a bird in this photograph. To be an epic fail you would have needed to come back with a really blurry, out of focus picture of your thumb. I have plenty I can send you as examples if needed.. lol

 

[sscarmack]

I've been asking around if anyone has seen anything worth looking at, eagles etc. I've been told there are some Eagles in the area, so I went out looking. I didn't have much time as I had dinner plans.

This is the only thing I saw and I don't have nearly enough reach for Wildlife haha. Time to drain the bank account. Agh

Anyone familiar with Northwestern PA, hour north of pittsburgh, hour south of erie. Any good sights?

Ok, this is not an epic fail. There is actually a bird in this photograph. To be an epic fail you would have needed to come back with a really blurry, out of focus picture of your thumb. I have plenty I can send you as examples if needed.. lol

Maybe I just have higher expectations then for myself haha. I see all these great shots, and think "Yeah I can do that one day", then I go out and realize how hard it really is.

And thats why being a photographer, you need to master one craft before trying to be "okay" at several.

But I found it extremely hard photographing this little bugger. So 'small' and fast. I couldn't believe how fast he was swooping down (only did twice). And then he was gone, and so was my idea of getting a great shot haha

 

[Eclectix]

But I found it extremely hard photographing this little bugger. So 'small' and fast. I couldn't believe how fast he was swooping down (only did twice). And then he was gone, and so was my idea of getting a great shot haha

Small birds are much harder to photograph in flight than large birds are. They're fast, maneuver quickly, and are a small target to focus on. I've been trying to photograph some violet green sparrows for a few days now, as they swoop down over this pond chasing insects they are gone almost as soon as I see them! I have to keep my eyes out watching for them as they approach, but even then I hardly have time to get my camera pointed at them before they have sped off in another direction and all I get are a few blurry shots!

A great resource to find birds in your area is the eBird app or dot org site. People enter information about birds they have spotted, when, and where. You can even get alerts for rare sightings in a given area sent to your email if you like. I've found some great spots for photographing birds this way; a few of them are within five miles of my house!

 

[TheNevadanStig]

It looks like an osprey, which all things considered, is a pretty large bird. If you think this was difficult, try getting a swallow in flight lol.

As for locations, I have never been out anywhere near your area, but there are a few things I like to look for in wildlife locations that stand anywhere in the world. First is a water source. If there is water nearby, so is wildlife. Second would be not many people. If you can find a spot with both of those things in common, you'll find wildlife.

 

[Derrel]

I would just throw three or four years of shooting and around $13K at the issue...problem solved!!! I mean, with tons of dedication and effort, and loads of greenbacks, almost anything is possible in photography.

 

[JustJazzie]

It looks like an osprey, which all things considered, is a pretty large bird. If you think this was difficult, try getting a swallow in flight lol. As for locations, I have never been out anywhere near your area, but there are a few things I like to look for in wildlife locations that stand anywhere in the world. First is a water source. If there is water nearby, so is wildlife. Second would be not many people. If you can find a spot with both of those things in common, you'll find wildlife.

Don't forget timing! The birds around the lake here ALWAYS swarm us when the sun is setting!

 

[Civchic]

It looks like an osprey, which all things considered, is a pretty large bird. If you think this was difficult, try getting a swallow in flight lol.

As for locations, I have never been out anywhere near your area, but there are a few things I like to look for in wildlife locations that stand anywhere in the world. First is a water source. If there is water nearby, so is wildlife. Second would be not many people. If you can find a spot with both of those things in common, you'll find wildlife.

STOP ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO TRY THE SWALLOWS. LOL, you guys and your swallows have already ruined my eyes and self-confidence, don't kill sscarmack too! haha just kidding of course.

Sscarmack, for learning in flight, try ducks, geese, swans, and seagulls. Biggish, predictable flight, and fairly slow flyers as well. Gets your confidence up, and get some nice shots before you jump into the big lenses (I haven't made the leap yet). Then try some common backyard birds. Robins and doves and such. I have only one recognizable osprey picture and it's terrible. The problem with birds of prey are that they fly really really high.

Oh, and I wanted to add that this was not an epic fail - you NAILED focus on that teeny osprey! But seriously, I know what you mean about expecting more. The technical knowledge is there, and it's frustrating when that doesn't translate to success.

 

[sscarmack]

I went out again today and find some interesting things.

Any idea what this is??? He was like a mile away and didn't get any closer.



There were a couple of them soaring around.




Oh and I spotted a nest.

 

[DarkShadow]

Looks like all hawks except the last which is a Osprey with traffic cones.LOL

 

[MSnowy]

I went out again today and find some interesting things.

Any idea what this is??? He was like a mile away and didn't get any closer.

View attachment 77928

There were a couple of them soaring around.
View attachment 77930

View attachment 77931

I would say these are Vultures

 

[TheNevadanStig]

Yep, not hawks, turkey vultures. Last one is another osprey.

 

[sscarmack]

Its crazy how many different species of birds are out there. Just in five minutes I saw at least 10 different colors and sizes. Very neat.