White-crowned Sparrow on a fence railWhite-crowned Sparrow on a fence rail – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I try to take my bird photos with my subjects in natural settings and I spend a lot of time out in nature to do that but I’m realizing I need to include the “hand of humans” in my bird photos too because some species fit into the urban environment as easily as they do out in more natural areas.

This White-crowned Sparrow photo was taken in January while the bird was perched on fence rail at my friends Ron and Carol’s old house so it has meaning and personal appeal to me but I also like the contrasts of the darker background, how well lit the sparrow is and the weathered paint on the fence rail. The fence could be in town, in the desert by a home or up in the mountains near an alpine cabin, it really doesn’t matter much because the sparrow is willing to use it for a perch just as easily as it would use a branch, a rock or a shrub. I should be just as willing to photograph the bird where I find it.

Windblown White-crowned SparrowWindblown White-crowned Sparrow – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/4000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

This White-crowned Sparrow photo was taken on Antelope Island State Park last month on a breezy, chilly morning and I liked how the some of the sparrow’s feathers were sticking up because they were being blown by the wind. I like this photo because of the natural setting and colors and that it doesn’t have any visible touches from the “hand of humans”. There is also a little bit of fluff from a seed stuck on the sparrow’s bill that is hard to see at the resolution used for web presentation.

I love the photos I take of birds in natural settings but I will also be working at adding more photos of birds in urban environments to my portfolio because they also have appeal.

Life is good.

Mia

I realize that more people consider images of birds with man made articles like this fence as including the “hand of man” but I tend to think that is a little gender exclusive instead of inclusive so I use humans instead.