Bird feeders offer opportunities for winter photographers

The first real frost of the season nipped more than the edges around our house last night. That frost provided a gentle reminder that it was time to get the camper on the truck ready for winter. It seems an abrupt end to a great year to “go for it” photographically in the Maine woods.

In addition to my usual pursuit of Maine’s moose herd with a camera, I’ve also targeted loons as part of two projects, one a video for Down East Books, the other a book for Willow Creek Press out of Wisconsin. But since it’s high time for loons to be heading for the coast, it’s time to think about where to shoot this winter myself.

Would you like to photograph wildlife in a warm place this winter? Have you ever thought about photographing birds from the warmth and comfort of your own home? You might be surprised to learn that some of the best wildlife photo opportunities exist literally right in your back yard.

Maine has a variety of overwintering birds, not the least of which is the friendly little chickadee. We’ve also got grosbeaks, blue jays, nuthatches, English sparrows, house finches, doves – even cardinals and orioles in some southern Maine or warmer coastal locations. Depending upon where you live, you might have a chance at quite a selection of photographic targets. When we lived in Hampden, we even had ruffed grouse come to feed in the backyard.

Most folks enjoy feeding birds in their yards, but not many plan their feeding to offer a photographic opportunity. With a bit of advance planning now, you can attract birds to the right places for the best chance to photograph them through an open window.

First, consider the light. Where does the sun come up? Where does it set? Plan to set up your feeder for the best light on the birds. I prefer to have side or front lighting at the very “sweetest” light times of early morning and late afternoon. Those are also often the times when the most birds come to feed. Place your feeders close enough to a window on the good light side of your home. And keep in mind what the background will be.

Next plan on how you can photograph out an open window without freezing out the house. Your preparation will depend upen the type of windows that you have. Rollouts or sliding windows present more of a challenge than do doublehungs that you can slide up for only the bit of opening that you need. For larger openings, tack rigid cardboard and a heavy blanket over most of the opening. Hang an old sheet over the part where you poke a telephoto lens out through a slit in the sheet. You can often see out through the translucent sheet, but the birds can’t see in.

Most birds like to have a perch to fly to near a feeder. Since I want to shoot natural poses in natural settings, I provide an assortment of branches for the birds to perch on. I nail these along the edge of the back deck or stick them into the ground before it freezes.

Some birds land on the same branch almost every time before they visit the feeder. Others go to a particular branch after they leave the feeder to work on their seed, especially the chickadees. Favorite perches often seem to be slightly higher than the feeder. The birds seem to enjoy a sense of security from an improved ability to sight predators.

By experimenting with placement, you can fine tune the perch positions that work best for both you and the birds. If you have the right trees growing close enough to your home, plan to work with then too.

I tack an “18 percent” gray card on a branch so that I can use it as an exposure guide. All camera meters are designed to guide exposures for scenes that reflect an “average” amount of light. An “average” scene reflects light similarly to the 18 percent gray card.

I set my exposures to photograph birds in the same light as the gray card according to how light or how dark are their feathers. A male cardinal requires the same exposure setting as the gray card. A female cardinal in bright light might require “stopping down”, or closing the aperture a half a stop so as not to wash out her lighter and more reflective feathers. A raven might require opening up a full stop to get detail out of their darkest of feathers.

You can purchase a gray card from some camera stores. Ask your local camera store to order one for you if they don’t stock them. The rest is right at your fingertips. Get ready now to go for it this winter, right there in the comfort of your own home!