Day 248: Relearning the Alphabet: The Letter "M"

"M" for Migratory Birds - The American White Pelican

'Tis finally the day of the pelican!

@Swati:  This one is for you!  I have a few more that didn't turn out too bad, but I am ready to crash right now.

I apologize that you have to do a bit of scrolling to get to the last one, but I hope you enjoy the pictures. A better camera would have been much more beneficial, but these turned out OK, I thought!

Day 96 - By the river

Day 83 - Dusk descends by the St. Lawrence River

I finally got to see the Baltimore Oriole that had been eluding me of late.  And not only did I see the male, but the female as well.  I didn't get very good shots since I had to use a very high ISO to get a half-quick shutter speed and also, these birds generally sit high up on trees.  So, a 250 mm lens is definitely inadequate.

The female Baltimore Oriole is more subdued in colour than her male counterpart

The male has much brighter plumage.  I'm just so grateful to him for sitting in one spot long enough for me to adjust, aim and shoot.  These birds are extremely hyperactive and don't stop for more than a couple of seconds on a branch.  I think their level of activity comes down a couple of notches in the evening. 

;-)

I also spent a considerable amount of time near the birdhouse where some Purple Martins and house sparrows are nesting and peacefully coexisting.  Here are a few shots from yesterday and today.

Day 79 - Panning

I have to admit these photos were taken yesterday, but I took so many of them, I figured I could cheat for a day.

Practising this for my flying bird shots - I clearly need to spend a lot more time on this.  Ambient light was very low, since these photos were taken in the lengthening shadows after 7:30 pm in cloudy conditions, so I had to use a very high ISO to be able to crank up the shutter speed.

I hadn't realized then, but now I see the reflections of this group of people standing and watching the birds.  Would have been nicer if my bird had been in sharp focus.