Other Birds

My parents have several birdhouses around their yard. I particularly love this one. This bird was busy making a nest, and it took a while to capture a sharp photograph of it, but my stubbornness won out.

We had a family dinner at my brother and sister-in-law’s for the first time in a long time because of COVID-19. Paul and Sue’s back deck is surrounded by many trees – you truly feel as if you are having a picnic in the woods! Tonight, we were visited by many different varieties of birds as we enjoyed each other’s company.

I was shocked to be standing in my kitchen and to look out the window at our bird feeders to see two indigo buntings and two scarlet tanagers all at the same time. I haven’t seen either of those species in my yard before, let alone four of them at the same time. I snuck back outside to my truck and got my camera and big lens just in time to get a photo of the one remaining scarlet tanager.

I was able to sneak up on a young mourning dove that thought it was totally hidden from me. My new Sigma 70-200mm Macro F2.8 lens came in handy because I could hand hold the lens in the thick bushy tree and get my camera within three feet of the beautiful bird. F5.6 at 1/320, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

With huge telephoto lenses you can isolate the prettiest, most colorful parts of the sky in your photographs. The trick is to be patient and wait for something interesting to come into the viewfinder. After several minutes of enjoying the Lake Michigan sunset, a seagull flew into the scene. F5.6 at 1/6400, ISO 500, 600 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 850 mm

While working up part of our garden at home, one of my nieces came across this nest in the ground. I carefully made my photo, and then we left the area in peace. You never know what you will find by getting outside.

Showing off for the girls, a tom turkey struts through a West Michigan orchard. This is one of those "wing shots" for which you need to be prepared. My camera with zoom telephoto lens was preset to a high shutter speed and high ISO in anticipation of moving wildlife that often have to be "shot" quickly without the aid of a tripod or monopod. F4.5 at 1/320, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

Turkey vultures are one of the ugliest birds on the planet when seen up close while perched or on the ground. But when they take flight, wow, are they beautiful fliers. This one soars over my head while I am searching for the $500 pair of glasses I lost yesterday while stalking deer and coyotes at our river property. F3.2 at 1/4000, ISO 320, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

This rare piping plover and its mate are among only about five-dozen breeding pairs identified by Great Lakes researchers. That is about five times more breeding pairs than in 1983, before protection measures were implemented. A wire cage enclosure over its nest helps keep out predators such as wild animals and dogs. The birds are small enough to enter and exit the cage as they please. The area is posted and roped off to further protect the birds. F7.1 at 1/1600, ISO 400, 300mm lens at 300mm

A highly visible single black ring around its neck marks this as a piping plover. The multicolored bands on its legs, and on those of its mate, enable researchers and spotters to identify them as specific plovers and thereby keep track of the migrating birds' movements and activity. F4.5 at 1/3200, ISO 400, 300mm lens at 300mm

An endangered piping plover walks along the Lake Michigan shoreline far outside its roped-off protection zone at Ludington State Park. The plover and its mate have established a nesting site that the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and University of Minnesota researchers have taken steps to protect. F3.5 at 1/4000, ISO 400, 300mm lens at 300mm

What a great evening to be a seagull. As I make this picture, I think of all the times I have watched seagulls enduring the worst fall windstorms and winter blizzards. I am certain they are finding this second day of summer more enjoyable. F4.5 at 1/200, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 175 mm

Every year these birds make nests above my mom and dad’s chairs on their porch. They fly in and out preparing the nest and caring for their babies. It has become a tradition to watch them in the summertime.

With the super-high water on Lake Michigan this year, it has caused the Pere Marquette River Flats to flood. It has been fascinating watching the wildlife adapt to all the extra water. Tonight, as storm clouds were approaching Ludington, I made this image of a great blue heron hunting for food in the flats.

Piping plovers lay their eggs on beaches, often in stony areas. After spotting one of the rare piping plovers along the Lake Michigan shoreline a week earlier, today I spot four eggs in the vicinity. Someone had carefully placed driftwood around the eggs to help prevent a person or animal from accidentally stepping on them. F10 at 1/400, ISO 100, 300mm lens at 300mm

Who would expect to find an egret beside the Chicago area Tri-State Tollway? After visiting my wife's childhood home in Deerfield, we are on an entrance ramp to one the world's busiest roadways when Debbie spots two egrets in a pond beside the toll road. I pull well off onto the grass and sprint 100 yards to make a "Florida picture" in Chicago. F4.5 at 1/1600, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

While photo hunting from our little 13-foot Boston Whaler on Hamlin Lake at the Ludington State Park, my dad spotted this great blue heron with his binoculars from a quarter mile away. We slowly made our way within 50 feet of the master angler. F5.6 at 1/800, ISO 800, 300mm lens at 300mm

A great blue heron takes off from one of its fishing perches on Hamlin Lake. I look forward to seeing one of the big birds on most of my hikes and voyages at Ludington State Park. F5.6 at 1/1000, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

While looking out my bathroom window tonight, I spotted this goldfinch on our butterfly bush. I grabbed my camera gear and quietly snuck around the side of my house to capture this image before the tiny, beautiful bird flew away.

Seagulls are beautiful birds. A lot of people don't like them and I have even heard people call them "flying rats." Personally, I love seagulls and I never get tired of watching them adapt to the weather throughout the year on the shores of Lake Michigan. F5.6 at 1/2500, ISO 400, 600mm lens at 600mm