Wow, 4 days since anyone has posted in Birds; that must be a record---what did you guys do with your weekend? As for me, the bride and I took a trip to the mountains for some R&R and a little picture takeing in hopes of finding some bear, elk, dear etc. During our search for the big game, I kept seeing this blue bird with a black head and crest flying around, I had never seen this bird before but found him very ineteresting and photogenic---if I could only get cloes enough for a shot. As things would have it, We saw lots of elk and a couple of very big bulls, but....... by the time we saw them, they saw us and the shot was gone. No bears, and only a couple of deer. So, Last night I was packing up the truck for the trip home and I was somewhat dissapointed becuase I couldn't return home with a single shot of wildlife. So, I decided to try and call in this bird I had been seeing throughout the trip. Just outside my cabin, I pulled out the smart phone with I-Bird on it and hooked up an external speaker and and began to call him in. Almost immediately he came to a nearby pine tree, and made several passes near the speaker I had set up. Well, This motivated me to set up my gear and see if I could get a shot or two. As luck would have it, Once I set up my camera, all the birds went quiet:(. But, I endured and called for almost two hours, and just about the time I was ready to give up, guess who shows up?
Steller's Jay
7d, 500, flash and better beamer
ISO 400, 1/250th, f9
and a little ps work to remove branches, etc
http://rwilliamsimaging.com/img/s9/v13/p500347212-5.jpg