Black-capped Chickadee

Gallery: AvianPosted August 29, 201070 views6 comments

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

Last week was pretty bleak: some close calls but nothing very interesting resulted. So much clean up machinery at work in the local parks doesn't help. Looks like the summer is over! This shot was taken in mid May. I like the worm: it makes me wonder why these birds don’t have a bit more color in their feathers from ingesting such colorful tidbits.

7D, 400mm f/5.6: ISO 500, 1/500 s, F/8.0, handheld, 8.6 MP, NR using Topaz DN5, some exposure adjustment, sharpening.

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on August 29, 2010 at 8:29 PM

Steve,

I like the worm too and how it echoes some of the colors in the background. The background has a painterly feel to it and lends a nice mood to the image, even though the grapevines are OOF it does give a sense of the habitat this bird was in. I like how you were able to get a hint of catchlight in both eyes despite the black cap. I might allow just a touch more room on the right side of the frame if you have it. Nice detail and good exposure too.

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by Buck Ward on August 29, 2010 at 10:36 PM

I live too far south for chickadees, but I think they are very appealing little birds. A good photo. The caterpillar makes it special.

Registered on December 8, 2003, 96 Posts, 1917 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on August 29, 2010 at 11:41 PM

an intriguing shot, Steve. something about the lines of all the branches appeals to me here, as does the caterpillar in the bill. although you've got light in both eyes, I do wish that we could see one of the eyes a little bit better.

Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on August 29, 2010 at 11:56 PM

They do seem to like the green caterpillars, Steve. We had a pair nesting here and that was about 80% of what they were hauling in. Very nice pose and I like the clear view of the prey. Lack of a catchlight doesn't bother me much in this one.

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on August 30, 2010 at 10:27 AM

Steve,
I really like the pose and the expression of this Chickadee with the green worn in the beak. Very nice image!

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Steve Balke on September 1, 2010 at 7:43 AM

Thank you all for your very interesting and helpful comments. Several of you mentioned the catchlight situation with this image. I considered increasing the exposure of the faint catchlights present. However, the eye is so important in bird photography that I really prefer to error on the side of too little post processing rather than too much. In this case the eyes are visible....but you need to look hard!

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments