Small Birds with Big Personalities

[Marina Scarr]

This image is from one of my toughest shoots of a Downy Woodpecker nest from last Spring. Thanks to Cheryl Molennor for finding this nest esp b/c even after I had been there, I was unable to find it the next time. The tree was thin, the nest high, the light low, there was only a thin window through which to acquire a green BG, and these birds move very fast. This is the male coming in to feed the male chick.

Unfortunately, this tree was blown down in one of our summer storms last year. :(

Canon 1D3, Canon 500 & 2.0 TC @ 1000mm
F10, 1/400sec, ISO 640, Fill, manual mode
Feisol tripod, Jobu head

C & C always most welcomed and much appreciated.

[Grace Scalzo]

Marina, What a wonderful image. Parent and chick, feeding, great bg all make this a sweet image. I might remove one of the catchlights in the parent's eye but that's a small matter.

[dankearl]

Perfect comp and worth the effort.
The BG is very nice as well as the tree.

[Sachin Saraf]

I remember this story...This is beautiful capture...you did excellent job at lower SS with this fast moving bird...slight burning of tree trunk on left might help a bit IMO.

[arash_hazeghi]

very cute Marina! love the HA for both and nice colors. I might delete the 2nd catchlight for the lower bird. very cool

[Frank Schauf]

Beautiful and colorful image, great bg.

[PhilCook]

The title sucked me in ....lol...gotta love them small birds !

Lovely shot Marina. loving the peeking bird from the nest hole and a nice green backdrop to set it all off....yes to removing the second catchlight

[Ignacio Yufera]

Lovely scene and great composition, Marina. I really like the lots of space around the birds giving an idea of their small size. Great use of fill flash.
The only thing I miss is the name of the species! :)

[Daniel Cadieux]

Ahh, cute. I like the comp alot, and that little fella in the nest hole adds a whole lot more to what the thumbnail suggests! Great composition. I'd darken the top pale area (not eliminate, just darken a tad).

A couple of years ago I found a Brown Creeper actively building a nest in a nook under some peeling tree bark (no camera, on a walk with kids). The next day I got over there pronto...only to find the tree knocked own by a wind storm overnight. The only solace I had was that it was nature doing so on its own...

[Karl Egressy]

Great find and excellent captur, Marina. Love the interaction and the pose of the parent.

[vishaljadhav]

beautiful image, the composition is great,
you managed catch light in both the birds, classic

[Marina Scarr]

The only thing I miss is the name of the species!

Sorry, Ignacio. It's a Downy Woodpecker nest.

[David Salem]

Great shot of this Downy nest site. The parent with food and the baby poking his head out is perfect. Techs look great and you have set your self up for a nice BG. Well done