Re: [Leica] On Topic Bird Photography

[Doug Herr <71247.3542@compuserve.com>]

On Sun, 28 Feb 1999, Robert G. Stevens wrote:


> I will try to get some good pictures of the six or so Bluejays that have
been 
>in my back yard over the winter.  These are pretty small birds, unlike the

>bald eagles I have done already, so I will probably have to get withing
six 
>to ten feet of them to get frame filling pictures using my 400mm lens. Any
>suggestions from the birders on the list?

Robert,

With the 400 you won't need to get much closer than 10 feet.  For a blind
I'm using a 3-foot square, 6-foot high frame of PVC pipe covered by
green-ish cloth, with zippers for lenses in various places.  The LL Rue
blind weighs less than mine; either one will work quite well.

I don't think passerines will need more than a couple hours to become
accustomed to the blind, let us know how they do.  A winder or motor will
help once the birds become accustomed to the sound of it, but I don't think
it's essential.

Unless there's one particular spot that you know the birds will be coming
to you should not set up the blind and tripod in such a way that your field
of view and range of motion are limited.  For example, set up the tripod's
head as close to the blind's lens port as you can so that when you swing
the lens to one side or the other it doesn't bring the whole setup crashing
down.

My experience with Blue Jays is very limited and a long time ago but with
Western Scrub-Jays, Mexican Jays, Steller's Jays, Gray Jays and Clark's
Nutcracker I don't always need the blind if I'm patient enough and quiet
enough; without the blind I definitely prefer hand-held over a tripod.

If memory serves me well you have both the 400 f/5.6 with Televit and a 400
f/2.8 APO.  I'd like to hear which one works better for you with the blind.

Doug Herr
Sacramento