Birds All March on the Battlefield 2

So, this title is going to get a lot of mileage. I know it’s kind of related to the month of March, but since I will be taking photos of birds throughout the year, the March will also be related to my journey through the Battlefield.

Eastern Meadowlark

I thought about trying to get into the Battlefield this morning, knowing that I sort of promised eight posts this month, but I wasn’t able to get out early enough in order to make it to work on time. As some of you may know, I work in Gettysburg, serving all of Adams County. I have the pleasure of going through portions of the Battlefield every day, twice a day, on my way to and from work. Since I couldn’t go this morning, I decided to go out after work. I was a little concerned, because there were a number of clouds in the sky and it was relatively chilly. On my way to my car, I also noticed that it was windy. The combination of clouds, cold and wind all go against taking clear photos of small objects.

Clouds reduce the sun (it’s also getting closer to dusk, which also significantly diminishes the light), which means that I’m either giving up on shutter speed, or ISO (sensitivity to light). If I go with the higher ISO, in order to have the higher shutter speeds, I lose some of the clarity in the image. Clarity is important, since many of the birds are very small and very skittish, which means that I am shooting them from a distance and having to crop into the image quite a bit. Slower shutter speeds, especially when windy, means that I really have to try and get the shot when the subject is nearly perfectly still…good luck with small, skittish birds that can get swept away by the wind, like a kite on the beach.

Eastern Meadowlark

Being that it’s cold, I get cold, especially since I’m dressed for work, not for the elements. Being cold, there is always the chance that I won’t hold the camera steady enough; however, Image Stabilization and faster shutter speeds help. The other thing is that getting photos of birds usually takes a bit of patience, and when standing out in cold winds one’s patience can quickly dissipate.

I already mentioned the wind, which, again, has the ability to impact my stability and that of the birds, or the trees they may be perched in.

Eastern Meadowlark

Regardless, I went into the Battlefield and made an attempt to get some photos for this series. I went to a couple of spots, one that I don’t normally go to, which did give me some potential shots. The sun continued to drop and I thought I would drive past a couple of spots that I usually cruise. I wasn’t seeing a whole lot of anything interesting and figured I would just head home. I slowly crept along one final section of road and heard the call of a bird. I scanned all the potential perching points and then spotted it. It was facing away from me and, since it was a good 25-30 feet away from me, I couldn’t tell what it was. Once I put camera to eye and zoomed in on the subject, I noticed the hint of yellow, snapped a few shots and hoped it would turn around; eventually, it did and I was able to get the rest of the shots you’ve seen.

Sometimes you just have to go a little bit farther.



Eastern Meadowlark
Stands only 9"-11"; approx. the size of a Robin