I try to take my bird photos with my subjects in natural settings and I spend a lot of time out in nature to do that but I'm realizing I need to include the "hand of mhumans" in my bird photos too because some species fit into the urban environment as easily as they do out in more natural areas.
Yesterday while photographing the birds at my local pond this resting Canada Goose caught my eye because of the bright blue water behind it and the great view I had of the eye of the goose while it had its bill tucked under its feathers.
This Black-billed Magpie had been perched on the top of a leafless greasewood when it lifted off from it and flew almost directly towards me with its body and wings turned sideways in flight.
Two days ago there were still numerous American Crows feeding on the carcasses of the carp at Farmington Bay and some of the crows were close enough to allow me to take frame filling images of these pure black birds.
I had a great deal of fun yesterday morning while photographing the American Tree Sparrows that I found in abundance on Antelope Island State Park foraging on the ground and perching on the bushes on the northern end of the island.
This California Gull blur in a snow storm was one of those blurs that happened because of slow shutter speeds and low light but I found that I liked the resulting photo and will call it a happy accident.
My best photos of the day were of a Mountain Cottontail in the snow and that isn't saying much because of the annoying grass stem that intersects the rabbit's ears.
I've been seeing Redheads at my local pond over the winter but most of the time they have stayed on the other side of the pond so having this one up a bit closer and flapping his wings was a delight.
When some Canada Geese started swimming towards me I took a burst of photos hoping to get a at least one image where snow wasn't blocking the view of the eye of the goose in the front.
Canada Geese can look a little goofy when they are landing because they often use their wings, tails and even their feet as brakes to slow themselves down right before they land.
As much as I like the first photo where the Ring-billed Gull has its wings spread and its feet still in the water I like the second photo even more because of the action and how the bird is suspended over the water.
As I photographed this pair of Tundra Swans in flight I could hear the whir of their wings and the calls of the other swans that were still on the water and also getting ready to lift off.
Human made nest boxes, nest baskets, birdhouses, nest shelves and nest platforms can and do help many species of birds in all types of habitats.
The Tundra Swans are truly at home in the landscape of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and they belong there as much as the mountains, marshes, birds, animals, fish, sky and the clouds overhead do.
When I look up at the tops of the Wasatch, Oquirrh, Stansbury and Promontory mountain ranges and they look more like late April or May than they do on a normal winter because there is just so little snow up there.
The Rough-legged Hawk's wings were fully extended above its body while its feet were still firmly planted on the ground and with one downward swoop of its long wings it was airborne right after this was photo was created.
I'm glad that I made the trip down to the pond because I was able to photograph a drake Redhead exhibiting courtship display behavior several times as he tried to impress the hen that was nearby.
I had a blast photographing the Tundra Swans at the refuge yesterday and for the first time in a while I forgot about practically everything but the birds in front of me and the peace I find at the refuge.
Because I had noticed the Common Goldeneye drake's behavior I was able to photograph him as he assumed the Head-throw posture.
There are some other differences between Great and Snowy Egrets in appearance of course but I think the comparisons I have written about are the most helpful for me in the field for identification and may be for other people too.
Three years ago today I found and photographed a Golden Eagle that was soaring along the east side of Antelope Island over the Great Salt Lake.
I photographed a couple of American Goldfinches that morning too, as usual I heard the finches well before I spotted them foraging in some vegetation next to the auto tour route.
Two days ago this California Gull flew in and was so close to me that I felt I had to take portraits of it because the gull looked so handsome against the blue of the water.
I lost those Peregrine Falcon images because I had other things on my mind and prematurely reformatted my memory card.
Three frames later I was glad this Ring-billed Gull's rotund belly caught my eye when through my viewfinder I could see the gull preening while in flight which is unusual behavior in my experience.
My favorite image of the day was this high key Mallard drake portrait that was taken in the late afternoon which was the only time I could see the sun behind the clouds the whole day.
This portrait of a head on Ring-billed Gull in a snow storm was taken 364 days ago at a local pond near home and I liked it because the gull looks a touch grumpy.
My best finds of the day yesterday morning were two American Bitterns on the riverbank of the Bear River at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, birds I do not normally see in January here in northern Utah.
I locked on to one of the mallard drakes and when he flew past I was able to take some nice photos of him before he landed on the water
This is Broad's Fork Twin Peaks, usually just called Twin Peaks, and I thought my view of it through my lens yesterday was absolutely stunning.