{"id":3440,"date":"2011-11-03T18:48:03","date_gmt":"2011-11-04T00:48:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=3440"},"modified":"2025-11-29T12:41:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T18:41:07","slug":"bird-photography-you-have-to-be-prepared","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2011\/11\/03\/bird-photography-you-have-to-be-prepared\/","title":{"rendered":"Bird Photography – You Have To Be Prepared"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have learned that you have to be\u00a0prepared to be a bird photographer and additionally that you need to be\u00a0fast because birds are free moving creatures. There are times that you simply don’t or won’t have time to change your camera’s settings.<\/p>\n

\"Young\u00a0Young Chukar on rocks – Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-300mm VR with 1.4x TC 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

This series of Chukar images that I am posting were taken in only two seconds<\/em>, barely enough time to focus, lock on and shoot a burst of shots. At that moment it seemed a little longer than that but I double checked my file EXIF information (Exchangeable Image File) in Adobe Photoshop and two seconds was all I had with this young Chukar.<\/p>\n

\"ImmatureImmature Chukar hurrying down a rock –\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I was fortunate that\u00a0my camera’s\u00a0settings at the time worked with these photos because there wasn’t even a second to spare to change them. Some times that works, some times it doesn’t.<\/p>\n

I’ve been on both sides of that stick.<\/p>\n

\"YoungYoung Chukar in a hurry –\u00a0Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

Being\u00a0prepared = being fast.<\/strong> You never know when a wild bird might cross your path so quite often you have to\u00a0make adjustments\u00a0quickly on the “fly” (pardon the pun). This Chukar had scurried across the road to this lofty, rocky perch and after getting to the top of the rocks it headed east as fast as it seemed it could.<\/p>\n

But if I had stopped even long enough to adjust my EV compensation or aperture this young Chukar would have been long gone and I would have lost the opportunity to photograph it.<\/p>\n

\"HighHigh stepping immature Chukar –\u00a0Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

By estimating what your camera’s settings might need to be frequently out in the field you can increase your chances of getting the photos you desire.<\/p>\n

Birds that are nervous on approach might not allow you the time to adjust your EV before they take flight\u00a0and you may lose the opportunity to photograph them.<\/p>\n

\"ImmatureImmature Chukar on Farmington Complex rocks –\u00a0Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

Knowing about your location in advance\u00a0can help with some settings; for instance this location is well known to me, I know what angle I need to be at for the best light and I also know that the hill in the background is a long way from the rocks and that it will give the images a clean background.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"ImmatureImmature Chukar looking at me –\u00a0Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0This young Chukar was in a hurry to join the rest of the Chukars<\/span><\/a> that has already gone into the nearby cover of sagebrush at the base of the rocks.<\/p>\n

I can’t say I blame the bird with a big lens aimed at it. I know I prefer being on the back side of the lens myself.<\/p>\n

\"YoungGotta go! –\u00a0Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a fun two seconds because I was prepared.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Chukar photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have learned that you have to be prepared to be a bird photographer and additionally that you need to be fast because birds are free moving creatures. There are times that you simply don’t or won’t have time to change your camera’s settings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":165009,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[511,27,442,26],"tags":[4146,1037,970,4021,1040,445,11978,4620,1163,4067,1039,519,4470,1038,4193],"class_list":["post-3440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antelope-island-state-park","category-avian","category-chukars","category-utah","tag-alectoris-chukar","tag-aperture","tag-autumn","tag-bird-photography","tag-camera-settings","tag-chukar","tag-desert-island","tag-fall","tag-frary-peak","tag-immature","tag-iso","tag-nature","tag-rocks","tag-shutter-speed","tag-young"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-young-rocks-mia-mcpherson-5100.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-Tu","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4609,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/03\/10\/chukars-in-habitat\/","url_meta":{"origin":3440,"position":0},"title":"Chukars in Western Habitat","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 10, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Chukars are not native to North America, they were introduced as game birds and in some areas they have thrived, one of those locations is Antelope Island State Park in northern Utah.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Chukar on snowy hilltop, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-mia-mcpherson-7833.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-mia-mcpherson-7833.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-mia-mcpherson-7833.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-mia-mcpherson-7833.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2652,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2011\/07\/05\/the-chukars-of-antelope-island-throughout-the-year\/","url_meta":{"origin":3440,"position":1},"title":"Chukars of Antelope Island – Throughout the Year","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 5, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Photographs of the Chukars on Antelope Island State Park, Utah throughout the year.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Chukar calling in Black Mustard on Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-calling-sunrise-utah-mia-mcpherson-7277.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-calling-sunrise-utah-mia-mcpherson-7277.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-calling-sunrise-utah-mia-mcpherson-7277.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-calling-sunrise-utah-mia-mcpherson-7277.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6932,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/12\/28\/chukar-in-fresh-fallen-snow\/","url_meta":{"origin":3440,"position":2},"title":"Chukar In Fresh Fallen Snow","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 28, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Fresh snow fell on Antelope Island last night and it made for wonderful settings for the subjects I photographed this morning like this Chukar. I haven't been seeing the Chukars regularly lately so I was very pleased to see them again.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Bad Seed? Chukar tongue exposed. Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-snow-mia-mcpherson-5399.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-snow-mia-mcpherson-5399.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-snow-mia-mcpherson-5399.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/chukar-snow-mia-mcpherson-5399.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7488,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/02\/10\/chukars-how-light-can-make-the-mood\/","url_meta":{"origin":3440,"position":3},"title":"Chukars – How Light Can Make The Mood","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 10, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"When I look at these two snowy Chukar images I sense a moodiness in the first image that the second one doesn't seem to convey.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Low light Chukar in snow, Antelope Island State Park, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/chukar-gray-snow-mia-mcpherson-4638.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/chukar-gray-snow-mia-mcpherson-4638.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/chukar-gray-snow-mia-mcpherson-4638.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/chukar-gray-snow-mia-mcpherson-4638.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4699,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/03\/31\/lesson-learned-beyond-the-viewfinder\/","url_meta":{"origin":3440,"position":4},"title":"Lesson Learned – Beyond The Viewfinder","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 31, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Had I not seen that moving, tan blob beyond my viewfinder I could have easily missed being able to create these Chukar images. 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