AKA BIRD NERD

Photos By Shawn Weigelt
November 23, 2010
Vaughn, Washington

An early snowstorm fell on Western Washington yesterday, leaving us with a few inches of the white stuff.  High winds overnight felled trees and knocked out the power well into this morning.  I quickly got bored being stuck inside, so I decided to bundle up and check on the birds in the backyard, taking my camera with me.  With very few clouds in the sky the light was perfect and I found some Dark-eyed Juncos willing to pose for a few shots.

Nikon D80 70-300mm VR at 300mm, ISO 100, f/5.6, hand held
1)  at 1/500sec
2)  at 1/160sec
3)  at 1/400sec

Female

Tags: Bird Photo, Weigelt Photos by Shawn Weigelt
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Photo By Shawn Weigelt
November 15, 2010
Sequim, Washington

While taking a morning drive around Sequim, my wife, Malia, spotted this handsome male pheasant on the side of the road.  Poking my camera out the window I got a couple of marginal shots before he became nervous and ran off.  We were a little surprised to see him tear a petal from a California Poppy and eat it!  Apparently pheasants like poppies!

Nikon D80 70-300mm VR at 300mm, 1/160sec, ISO 400, f/5.6, hand held

Tags: Weigelt Photos by Shawn Weigelt
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Photo By Shawn Weigelt
November 14, 2010
Ediz Hook, Port Angeles, Washington

When it comes to gulls along the Pacific Coast, Heermann’s Gull’s kind of stick out like a sore thumb.  Their dark gray coloration really distinguishes them from white bodied gulls and makes them look unique.  This bird was the only Heermann’s Gull in the company of larger Glaucous-winged and Western Gull’s.

Nikon D80 70-300mm VR at 270mm, 1/160sec, ISO 400, f/5.6, hand held

Tags: Bird Photo, Weigelt Photos by Shawn Weigelt
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Photo By Shawn Weigelt
November 3, 2010
Montlake Fill, Seattle, Washington

Birds weren’t the only wildlife to be found at the fill.  These, “three bumps on a log,” were taking advantage of the warm 70+ degree temperature to bask in the sun.  It seemed as though most of the logs poking out of the water were occupied by these pretty Painted Turtles.

Nikon D80 70-300mm VR at 300mm, 1/500sec, ISO 200, f/5.6, hand held

Tags: General, Weigelt Photos by Shawn Weigelt
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Photos By Shawn Weigelt
November 3, 2010
Montlake Fill, Seattle, Washington

This was my first trip to, “the fill,” a popular birding spot on the outskirts of Seattle near the University of Washington campus.  A relatively cosmopolitan location, the fill attracts a huge variety of bird species, many of whom only stop for a matter of hours before continuing with their migration.  Amazingly, this was the site of the City of Seattle’s primary landfill from the 1920′s through the 60′s.  Gadwall’s, Hooded Merganser’s, Green-winged Teal, and these Northern Shoveler’s were some of the duck species we found.  Those bills are ginormous!

Nikon D80 70-300mm VR at 300mm, ISO 200, f/5.6, hand held
1)  at 1/800sec
2)  at 1/500sec

Female Northern Shoveler

Tags: Bird Photo, Weigelt Photos by Shawn Weigelt
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Montlake Fill
Seattle, Washington
November 3, 2010

I don’t want to scare you or anything, but look at the date this photo was taken and the date it was posted. I think this is a new AKA Bird Nerd record for me. Shawn posts his photos rather quickly, but I am often months and even over a year behind. Now that I’m teaching part time, I have a little more time to spend processing photos.

Shawn and the grandkids and I made a trip up to Seattle (up to 2 hour drive one way) to hike the Montlake Fill on the edge of Lake Washington and next to the University of Washington campus. Get this – we were hiking in short sleeves and sweating. NOVEMBER!!! What a day with temps well over 70 F.

These are the only two digiscoped photos that came out. Even so, they are a little soft. Since it was a sunny day I was able to shoot at ISO 50.

Nikon P4, Nikon Fieldscope 82mm ED, 30x wide angle eyepiece, tripod
f/4.4, 1/160 sec, ISO 50

Nikon P4, Nikon Fieldscope 82mm ED, 30x wide angle eyepiece, tripod
f/4.7, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Tags: Bird Photo, Gallery by David Dilworth
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Theler Wetlands
Belfair, Washington
October 6, 2010

On a nice day my son-in-law, my two grandchildren (5 & 2) and I like to go on bird walks. The closest trail system from my house is Theler Wetlands – less than 10 miles away. The trail is flat and popular with walkers, joggers and nature lovers. The trail weaves around through wetlands and along a small river that flows into Hood Canal.

As far as birding goes, it is a hit or miss affair. Part of this depends on the tide. When the tide is high there is little mud along the sides of the river. We like mud. Mud means peeps. Today was a slow day. As the ducks return to the Northwest, things will get more active. We did see a few Great Blue Herons, a Northern Harrier and some Killdeer. There were also some little brown jobbies, Cedar Waxwings and Spotted Towhees, but no photos worth keeping.

I only have two photos for the day – this unknown gull – maybe a Ring-billed juvenile and a dragon fly. Both were taken with my digiscoping system.

Nikon P4, Nikon Fieldscope 82mm ED with 30x WA eyepiece, and tripod
f/6.1, 1/420 sec, ISO 50

881

I suppose it isn’t kosher to use a digiscoping outfit for macro photography, but I have fun with it anyway.

Nikon P4, Nikon Fieldscope 82mm ED with 30x WA eyepiece, and tripod
f/5.3, 1/320 sec, ISO 50

Tags: Bird Photo, Field Trip by David Dilworth
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Titlow Beach
Tacoma, Washington
September 30, 2010

It’s hard to believe this birding and hiking area is right along the water in a residential section of the city. This isn’t the greatest photo as it is heavily cropped. It is always fun to find a Eurasian Wigeon among the American Wigeons that are often found in great numbers during the Fall and Winter here in the Northwest. I always scan the wigeons looking for that tell-tale red head.

Update for this posting – Len Blumin from Birdspix pointed out that this bird is actually a hybrid – a mix between the Eurasian and American Wigeon.

Nikon D80, Tamron 200-500 zoom at 500mm, tripod, f/6.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 400

Tags: Bird Photo, Gallery by David Dilworth
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Titlow Beach
Tacoma, Washington
September 30, 2010

From Titlow Beach you can see the Tacoma narrow bridges. A great little restaurant is located right on the water – Steamers. I love their beer battered halibut and prawns.

This Hooded Merganser was found in the same pond as the previous few photos. Remember, on a blog the latest postings are the first you’ll see, so I recommend that you scroll down to the bottom of the page (go to previous pages if needed) and work your way back up to the most recent posting.

Nikon D80, Tamron 200-500 zomm at 500mm, f/6.3, 1/100 sec, ISO 200, tripod

Tags: Bird Photo, Gallery by David Dilworth
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Titlow Beach
Tacoma, Washington
September 30, 2010

Titlow Beach is a pretty good birding site. There is quite a variety of habitats. You walk along the railroad tracks heading north until you get to a building and then you head into the woods on a trail or dirt road. The trails lead along the water. There are several, but they all head in the same general direction. You can keep your eye open for water birds and at the same time look for birds among the forested area. There are a lot of Madrona trees close to the water. Near a private boating club you cross over the railroad tracks on a bridge and walk up a road. At your first opportunity you can then head into a wooded area of mainly deciduous trees. Now you are on the east side of the railroad tracks.

A fitness trail is located here. You are now heading south. After a while you come to a pond. There are two good sized ponds just before you get to the playground area and grassy area where people picnic. There is a community outdoor swimming pool close to this location.

The next three photos were taken at the northern pond. I couldn’t get very close to the ducks, so this and the next two photos are heavily cropped. At the southern end of the pond I found the Mallards and got some closeups. This is not that difficult with park Mallards because they are often looking for a handout.

Nikon D80, Tamron 200-500 zoom at 500mm, tripod, f/6.3, 1/100, ISO 400

Tags: Bird Photo, Gallery by David Dilworth
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