Here’s the most recent addition to the list:

American Red Squirrel
South Burlington, Vermont
February 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/400s, ISO 800

Owen Jack Phillips

We’re settling into our new routine as a family of four, and hopefully I’ll be back to posting regularly soon.

It’s still cold and gray outside, but the cardinals have begun to sing reveille every morning.  I saw the first turkey vulture of the year on March 1st, my earliest ever siting.  Spring is coming, and I can’t wait for the arrivals and awakenings.

Gadwall
Shelburne Point, Shelburne, Vermont
February 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/400s, ISO 320, +1.7EV

There’s no real place to park anywhere along Harbor Road and the ducks only seem to use this cove when the rest of the lake is pretty well iced over, but it’s still worth a drive-by if you’re on a tour of the Shelburne and Charlotte lake sites in winter.

Breeding Barn
Shelburne Farms
January 2013
Tokina 12-24mm f/4 PRO DX at 12mm, f/9, 20s, ISO 640

The biggest thing I failed realize was the degree to which long exposures introduce noise- managing ISO, a small enough aperture for starbursts, and exposing for the moonlight was a challenge I didn’t fully understand until I started to look at these images on the monitor.  In retrospect I wish I’d preset the ISO lower and left the shutter open longer in general.  The few images where I did that had quite a bit less noise than the rest.

Bohemian Waxwings
Shelburne, Vermont
February 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/9, 1/640s, ISO 200

Driving down Bostwick Road with Asher this afternoon I spotted a huge flock of birds using a small mixed stand of conifers and a meadow seep.  This flock became part of one of the strangest checklists I’ll probably ever enter:

• Mallard (17)
• Red-tailed Hawk (1)
• American Crow (200)
• European Starling (100)
• Bohemian Waxing (467)!!!

And that’s just how many waxwings I counted in a photograph after the fact- I had estimated 400 in the field, and that number included a large number that was hidden down in the seep below the trees.  The actual number was probably more like 550.

Bohemian Waxwings
Shelburne, Vermont
February 2013
Tamron AF18–250mm f/3.5–6.3 AF Di II at 50mm, f/8, 1/250s, ISO 200

I didn’t find any Cedar Waxwings in the flock, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there.  The birds were attracted to the standing liquid water in the ditch (presumably a tile drain) between the trees and the road in the photo above.  There didn’t appear to be much fruit left in the red cedars, but they were festooned with waxwings all the same.

Bohemian Waxwings
Shelburne, Vermont
February 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/640s, ISO 200

Astonishing.

What I did not find was a single owl, despite being outdoors for the better part of six hours after dark.  Maybe it was too cold for them too.

Sugar Maple, Shelburne Farms
January, 2013
Tokina 12-24mm f/4 PRO DX at 20mm, f/9, 15s, ISO 640

Northern Saw-whet Owl
Monkton, Vermont
June 2010
Tamron AF18–250mm f/3.5–6.3 AF Di II at 250mm, f/6.3, 1/50s, ISO 400

This is kind of a lousy image, but a fascinating bird!  I spotted this juvenile sitting in a tree while mowing the lawn.  Northern saw-whets behave as though they were tame- I think it’s more likely that their defense/fear mechanism is to sit stock still.  They’re only about the size of a can of soda, but look at those feet!

I watched this critter for about 10 minutes before running in to get my camera.  It was still there when I returned and I managed to get a few shots, though none of them came out very well due to the dappled sunlight and the low light on the bird in the interior of a cedar.  I’d love to have another daytime encounter with a saw-whet.  It was a thrill to experience, and with my improved skills and better equipment I’d hope to get some better images as well.

I managed to get a few photos of the pine grosbeaks before I had to begin the busy weekend routine.  I’m glad I got this chance.  Who knows when we’ll have a pine grosbeak year like this again?

Pine Grosbeak
South Burlington, Vermont
January 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/640s, ISO 1000

Though they’re not terribly wary when they’re in a feeding frenzy, they are not easy to photograph.  They are constantly on the move, ducking and reaching behind branches and fruit, never stopping to pose or get out in the open enough for a clear shot.  Their coloration (at least the females and non-breeding males) is also smudgy and gray.  It always seems to look out-of-focus and noisy.  Also, their vent is brilliant white, which creates an exposure problem I wasn’t anticipating.  Of course, I’ve had very little light to work with as well, but that’s par for the course.

Pine Grosbeak
South Burlington, Vermont
January 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/1250s, ISO 1000

This last is handheld at 1/200s and pretty darn sharp!  I’m nothing if not sturdy.

Pine Grosbeak
South Burlington, Vermont
January 2013
Canon 400mm f/5.6L at f/5.6, 1/200, ISO 640

Tree Swallow
Dead Creek WMA, Addison
May 2010
Tamron AF18–250mm f/3.5–6.3 AF Di II at 250mm, f/8, 1/400s, ISO 200

This lens certainly isn’t tack sharp racked all the way out to 250mm, but a tree swallow in the sun is still pretty irresistible.