Building a better doghouse

I can't say how to put the bird on the perch, my mind is always racing on such things but ultimately the bird is still a bird. I suspect that there are some who have better answers to Bruce Miller's question than what I have come up with but it would appear that they aren't talking. I don't blame them for it though, it's the kind of thing that can make you good money with a workshop and I don't suppose I'd let that cat out of the bag for free either. And still, no matter how good the technique gets the bird will always be a bird.

So now that I'm done being cute, here is my own bag of goodies - my toolbox so to speak. Take what you want.

You can modify your Doghouse blind so that it will completely mask your every movement and that of your camera lens while at the same time allowing you a greater panorama of view, cooler conditions with better airflow, and line of sight to use Canon's ST-E2 for Strobist lighting of your bird on the stick.

Did I get your attention? Read on.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...82_tGNzx-S.jpg

The Doghouse has some advantages over the other popular blinds sold here in the US, most are familiar with how the squat shortness of the blind casts less shadow than the Outhouse in early morning light. But the advantage I appreciate most is the depth of the blind, from the front to the back door. It is just deep enough to allow for the tripod to be set up, heavily recessed, with just enough space left for the photographer on a chair. If your back is up against the door when you sit down then the setup is correct. Your tripod should be placed so that instead of two legs up against the front wall there should be just the one leg forward at the middle of the wall. You are between the two legs, snug between the camera and the back of the blind. With this recessed position no part of the lens I use (300mm f4L IS / 2x, your mileage may vary) ever comes close to the large window opening of the blind - it stays in the blackened shadows of the tent. Staying this deep in the blind allows shadow to mask most movement of photographer and camera, but many birds are highly sensitive.

The answer is a camo mesh curtain made from hunting blind netting.
For the curtain I cut a piece to fit the size of the interior of the blind, oversized slightly. Then I made a slot down the middle of the curtain for the camera lens so that I have curtains while retaining the mesh as one piece. Across the top hoops of the blind frame structure (and directly above the camera body) attach a bun-gee cord long enough to allow some stretch tension but not too much. Attach the curtains to the bun-gee with spring clips or mini clamps - two each side. The fall of the curtains can be adjusted by sliding the clips along the bun-gee. (I cut my curtain to allow enough material to come up and over the bun-gee for a double curtain along the top.) Take three or four more clips and attach the bottom of the curtain to your window flap so that it is now a skirt connected to the blind.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...42_QTQUw-S.jpg

This, in combination with the shadows, will mask any movement inside the blind to the satisfaction of even the most fickle thrush.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...91_JLf8a-S.jpg

I've had birds perch on shrubbery just outside the blind and even fly into the open window on a number of occasions - they just don't see you.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...03_scrfc-S.jpg

At least not until they enter the shadows of the blind itself.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...99_eHBWJ-S.jpg

What you get is a giant window to view the setup area (I never liked those European designs with just a snoot for the lens that don't even mask the movement), better air flow, and if you own the ST-E2 transmitter or other line of sight control for a flash strobe your new window now makes that possible to off set your flash for images like these:

http://kmhwildlife.com/Aves/Paridae/...68_wfmjt-S.jpg

As long as you are set up with one perch where your bird will be why not use Strobist technique to better light your subject. Yes, it requires more cooperation from the bird and discipline from you, but you gotta risk it to get the biscuit.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Aves/Mimidae/...96_szf5B-S.jpg

Pointing your shadow at the bird is a great practice, but not the only one if you have a satellite strobe. Setting up so that the sun is off one axis and the strobe is countering will produce more dimension, pop detail, and prevent flat photography.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Aves/Paridae/...27_yewg7-S.jpg

I don't like multiple catchlights in eyes so an easy fix in photoshop removes the artificial burst from the strobe.

This concept will work in any blind with enough depth and works great on the tailgate of my van for road running.


The cheap tripod is a fantastic way to position a perch, one I never considered and wasn't aware of when I had a thought of my own. My way is more expensive but is stronger, lighter, and not as bulky. I call it the Super Perch.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...36_2mrkt-S.jpg

The Manfrotto Super Clamp is a very useful tool, I would go as far as to call it indispensable. Every photographer should have a couple of these ingenious devices. To make the Super Perch I attach the clamp to a mini ball head and one of a variety of portable light stands and floor bases that are in my arsenal.


I'm sure there are some tricks to placing speakers that I haven't figured out yet. One I have used for the past couple of years is the hunting mask. With a mesh, camo hunting mask and a carabiner you have a bag for your mini speakers that will clip to your perch stand, branch, or just about anywhere you want to place them.

http://kmhwildlife.com/Equipment/k-l...20_U2rBb-S.jpg

When you are done with the speakers just coil the cable back into the bag for storage. I sometimes will use two sets of speakers with two cables to "move" my bird.

I have tried out a wireless speaker (the Cyfi) but the transmitter wasn't rugged enough, after going through several units I gave up. I believe that when someone does make a viable unit, wireless will be the way to go.


Add some of your own ideas or go have fun with some of mine.
Larger images at kmhwildlife.com

Hello Kevin,
I have enjoyed reading and viewing your post here on the blind and sound system. Both should be very useful to everyone who reads it.

Like you I have tried different speakers The Sentry S400 worked well but where I plug in the receptacle broke.
I am now using a JBL ONTOUR speaker system. I haven't used it in the field yet so I really can't make any comments other than the friend who sugested it to me has used it and it works very well for him. The Sentry S400 was an excellent speaker system for the money (Around twenty dollars) until it broke. It did give me quite a few years of use though. The JBL ONTOUR is a more expensive unit but smaller and more compact. One thing I'm not fond of is it uses AAA batteries where as the Sentry used AA batteries. The AA batteries are more capatible with my equipment than are the AAA batteries.

Could you share with us Kevin what brand and model speakers you use? I think many of the readers here might like hearing this information from you and others who engage the use of electronic callers.

Again a very good write up and very much appreciated.

Bob Walker
www.pbase.com/moosebob

Kevin, Thanks for sharing some really good information. It is appreciated.

Thanks guys, I'm glad to help.

The speaker I've used since 2008 is the Sony SRS-M30. I think I paid about $20-$25 for it and it uses 3 AAAs. They are very dependable but may or may not be out of production. I like them even better than the new set I purchased recently, the Sony SRS-M50. The new set cost about $50 and looked like they would be a better speaker but are not as strong. This new unit also takes 3 AAAs. The Cyfi was great when it worked but the transmitter that attaches to the iPod kept failing. I received several replacement transmitters from Cyfi at no charge but after the 3rd one died I quit fooling around with it. I do not know of a similar product.

With any set of birdsongs for playback you should definitely edit all tracks to be sure that you are playing just the songs. It really stinks to have a bird come in only to be put on guard with an alarm call.

I use a FoxPro Scorpion X1A wildlife caller.

You can check it out at: - http://www.gofoxpro.com/products/dig...roduct_x1a.php

It's not cheap but it's a great caller.

Dave Hassell.

That's slick Dave, I had forgotten about the gamecallers as most use their own proprietary sounds.
From what I read, I suppose I could put some of my calls in this unit and have a wireless system with several speakers.

How do you set yours up and how easy is it to use in the field?

Hello Kevin,
The unit holds 200 calls and I download calls from CD's to my PC and then edit them by using free software called Audacity. I edit out any unwanted calls, voices and other noises and save them into a folder. I then connect the Scorpion remote control to the PC with the USB connections and upload the calls to that. Then I connect the remote control to the Scorpion caller and upload the calls to that. All the software is provided by FoxPro except Audacity which can be found at http://audacity.download-latest.com/

It is very simple and very easy to change the calls when needed.

Using it in the field is also very simple. Just place the caller where you need it and then operate it with the remote control. Operating instructions/manual can be found at http://www.gofoxpro.com/InstructionM...corpionX1A.pdf The remote control has an illuminated screen so you can stiil use in in a darkened blind.

The caller is supplied with a thin cord to hang it but it is pretty naff so I replaced it with a 1 inch nylon strap with quick release connections so it can be wrapped it around branches etc.


Dave.

Thanks Dave

the only thing I don't like is that it would be nice to have more capacity than 200 calls. It's not a big problem unless you are setting up in a place like Manu in Peru, but every now and then you would have to shuffle some calls out to put some new ones in.

Thanks again for sharing that with us, it's a great idea.