Blinds are good in the winter and might be good in summer (I'll find out soon
)...I'm beginning to think they're no good during the migration. It was raining and to keep the camera dry today I sat in the blind. But although I could hear a lot of warblers passing just to the south of the blind through the underbrush, I never managed to spot
one, much less take a pic of it. So today, blinds are totally overrated, ownedbycats!
The grosbeaks were actually stalked--I take a slow step forward, snap a picture, take a slow step forward, take a picture...until the bird flushes. I keep the camera up to my face (so heaven forbid I've missed something on the latest poop patrol, cuz I can't see the ground
) and if I see signs that the bird is getting ready to fly, I stop until it calms down. I can usually get within 30 feet of birds that have seen my performance many times before. These grosbeaks had not, but I still got within about 45 feet
The pictures are pretty close-cropped. I'm glad you enjoyed them, ownedbycats.
A further adventure awaits, although I'm not sure when we'll get around to it. hubby bought me a tree stand. I want to put it up in one of the oaks the warblers and grosbeaks frequent and see if I can get any good pics from up there. I won't be able to look down though because I have this pathological fear of falling from a tree!