Daily Archives: May 25, 2016

Yellow Birds

Last Wednesday, I headed for South Padre Island hoping to photograph some of the last of 2016’s spring migrant warblers.  It was just about the end of the migration but a handful of warblers, hummingbirds and catbirds were still resting and foraging in the Convention Center thicket.

These shots were made in the shadows at a water feature without the aid of photogenic perches.  Fortunately, the yellow birds exposed well, even on dead limbs.

Click on a photo to enlarge and sharpen it for better viewing.

Ever try photographing a redstart in low light...a constant twitch, twitch, twitch.
Ever try photographing a redstart in low light…twitch, twitch, twitch.

Most of these photos were shot at 1/160th to 1/80th of a second; pretty slow but you work with what you find.

Magnolia warbler looking for water.
Magnolia warbler looking for water.

 

Nice bird (Magnolia Warbler), bad perch.
Nice bird (Magnolia Warbler), bad perch.

 

Beautiful but shy Mourning Warbler.
Beautiful but shy Mourning Warbler.

 

Mourning Warbler, same perch, different head position.
Mourning Warbler, same perch, different head position.

 

Yellow Warblers bathing
Yellow Warblers bathing

 

Bath before the long flight home.
Bath before the long flight home.

 

Male Yellow Warbler bathing.
Male Yellow Warbler bathing.

 

Not bad for a "bird on a stick".
Not bad for a “bird on a stick”.

 

Yellow Warbler male among the limbs.
Yellow Warbler male among the limbs.

 

Yellow Warbler with a hint of orange in it feathers.
Yellow Warbler with a hint of orange in it feathers.

It was a tough afternoon, shooting into thick, shaded cover, but those yellow birds made my day.

Larry