Welcome to the forum. Be careful birds get very addicting and end up costing lots of $$$. Try to get the sun to be behind you. Bird photography is very difficult. If you can get the bird lit up by the sun it helps your exposure and you won't end up with washed out backgrounds. Of course this is not always possible. Also it is important o sneak up on birds(or let them come to you). Even with big expensive lenses, the closer you get the better your image...