LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Wrong Lens, Bad Lighting



For some time now I have been trying to photograph one of our Pileated Woodpeckers feeding a fledgling.  I watch and wait, watch and wait.  More often than not the woodpeckers will slide to the other side of the tree for the feeding itself.

I was caught unawares the other day and grabbed the camera when I noticed a fledgling on the tree.  So here it is; bad photography but a sweet moment in time.  There was a time when I would not have dared put such photographs on my blog.  But regular readers know that I am a reasonably competent photographer.  If you are not a regular reader, click on the label "birds" and you will see some much better photographs.
 
 
 
Parent and child.  The youngster on the left, almost as big as the parent.

 
 
 
Ready to feed

 
 
 
A blur of motion as the little Pileated gets fed.

It's still raining every afternoon here.  Our plants in the front yard look like a jungle.  Bits of mildew appear on the screen porch.  We are praying there are no hurricane remnants to hit us this year.  There just isn't anywhere for the water to go.  The weather is wreaking havoc on the tourist industry, especially hiking,  kayaking and tubing.  The waters are just too high and dangerous and most operators were closed more days in July than they were open.


15 comments:

Carolina Linthead said...

Beautiful bad photography, lol! I hate when that happens...wrong lens, wrong set-up, nothing to do but snap away and pray for a miracle. You got one...yay! Thank you, dear bloggie buddy :-)

The Bug said...

Aww - sweet!

I'm wishing for dry weather for you for a while!!

troutbirder said...

A special moment indeed. We rarely see the huge woodpeckers in our woods though I saw the red bellied variety do the same things several weeks ago. Sadly I'm thinking of taking down all our feeders as they have been come a magnet for our neighbors "outside" cats. Without Baron to keep them at bay its hopeless, the woodpeckers are especially vulnerable and in spite of our complaints the lovers just make excuses...:(

Rae said...

I like your photos. I am not much of a photographer and I envy those that are. Hoping for your sake that there are no hurricanes or storms that affect your area this year.

Busy Bee Suz said...

What a sweet capture! We have finally ended our daily rains....hopefully the drying out will start for your area too.

Ms. A said...

You finally got it! YAY! I know you've been trying FOREVER!

Arkansas Patti said...

Patience pays off. How neat to catch such a feeding. I never see them here and to see them feeding a fledgling would be amazing.
Special moment.

Anonymous said...

Those topknots look just like Bozo the Clown's "do."
Anybody who could post the hummingbird photos you did last week shouldn't worry that your bird photography talents would be in question.

Vicki Lane said...

Great pictures! We have lots of pileateds around here but I never manage a good picture.

Appalachian Lady said...

Those are wonderful photos--pileateds are very hard to catch. Usually by the time you grab your camera, they are gone.

NanaNor's said...

Hi, I know what a fine photographer you are and these photos capture a wonderful bit of nature-so thank you. I have more bad shots than good and hope that my skill will improve-although it doesn't help that when I get ready to take photos, the view is always a bit blurry because I can't shoot and wear glasses. Oh well, such is life.
Our weather has been so weird this year.
Have a great afternoon & evening.
Hugs, Noreen

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

We have an abundance of blue jays by the feeders and for the first time I saw young ones. Difficult to get photos of parent jays feeding them as they keep moving and so I can appreciate your frustration as well. You are right in seeing that the young ones are as large as the adults.

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Troutbirder - Just one more reason for you to get another dog. Are you reading this, Ms. T?

Rae - I don't know what we would do with all the rain from hurricane remnants. Maybe I should start gathering the gopher wood.

KB said...

Some times those blurry photos are the sweetest when you manage to capture a moment like that one! Heart warming and wonderful.

Janet, The Queen of Seaford said...

My photos of the hummers are not great either, the nest is so far away and zooming in and then cropping the photo...super grainy. I love seeing the ones you posted. Our sightings of Pileateds are fleeting.