Snaphappy's 2014 project 365

snaphappy

Senior Member
Babies
Started to realize that she hatched a few.....
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Then she decided I was safe enough away to take little ones for a quick bite to eat and drink
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Yikes 14!!!
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
Then out to the garden for an evening dip
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I wish I didn't have to keep them fenced and netting overhead but the ravens would pick every single one off like I'd served gourmet candy :(
 

Marilynne

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
That's what happened to the baby Muscovy Ducks behind the flea market. The hawks and ospreys got all of them.
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
I'm amazed at how many mallards survive each year to become adults. We have 4 raven nests around our property and they all come looking for easy dinner. I have 50x80ft covered in old fish net to keep the Ravens out. 2 years ago they pulled apart and flew off with a full sized duck :( They are amazingly cunning creatures but not my favourites
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
Today I noticed a new bird I'd never seen around here before. It was hanging out up in my crabapple tree
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I later googled and amazingly enough found a match! I believe these are cedar waxwings. They weren't too bothered by me hanging out below but they sure know how hide where it is impossible to focus through the other branches. Today I learned patience and stronger arms as I waited and waited and waited
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
Barn Swallow yeah first time I captured one of these aerial acrobats on the ground
I know not great with the glare of the evening sun but finally not terrible
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Probably filling up on gravel I'm guessing but I couldn't believe my luck at actually have one land within 20ft and I had my camera
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Those black spots are some of the dozens of violet-green swallows and a few barn swallows who hang around here. Dozens in the air constantly but yet impossible for me to capture sigh
 

Deezey

Senior Member
You are correct! Awesome birds. They used to devastate my cherry trees. You would see them laying on the ground because they would eat too much to move. They put a capital G in gluttony.
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
Yeah they were eating up the petals but then both ends of our street are greasy with tent caterpillars :( The trees at the back of the field are empty so they'll be marching across my field at the moment and my tree won't stand a chance again this year :( Already tonight I went to open and close latches on the gates and barn and had to flick the caterpillars off yuck when you don't notice one and squish it it pops gross
So cedar waxwings will most likely move on tomorrow when the invasion hits us
 

snaphappy

Senior Member
Ok well Cedar wax wings stuck around and entertained me last night as they flew in and out of the tree snatching flying ants out the the air and snacking on them. I'm still amazed at the distance they could see them and then just grab them so easily. The lighting was much better than my earlier middle of the afternoon shots.

A huge THANK YOU to @BackdoorHippie because after reading through many old threads I read many references to auto iso. Remember 1yr ago I'd didn't know what ISO meant and so the options in the manual were overwhelming. When I went to class and learned the triangle I did everything from then on completely manual and while not that difficult changing the ISO every time a bird moves and changes the lighting takes time and I've missed shots I wish I hadn't. So I sat down and figured out how to try out this magical auto ISO thing that Jake referred to and yippee I didn't miss those swallow shots or even a few of the waxwing while I fiddled around. So yeah I went a bit snap happy :)

The first was taken mid afternoon and sky is kind of blah but the evening shot sky is much nicer
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The first isn't a great photo with it hidden behind the branch but the catch was interesting
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Sigh even at f16 both didn't end up in focus and they weren't very far away from each other. I have to do some more research on my lenses so I can figure out how to get it right.
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2 snack shots
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Light was fading on me but liked the pose with the flowers around
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snaphappy

Senior Member
Thanx Jake just wanted you to know that something you typed out sunk into my head and I found it very helpful :)

So I was correct those horrid nasty tent caterpillars marched across my field last night and all afternoon with I'm certain many more arriving tomorrow :( They're disgusting things and they are on EVERYTHING! Can't walk without hearing the pops as they squish and can't lean on anything ewwww Can't open a door or latch without first knocking them off and don't walk under anything because you can hear them dropping down ugh. Was taking duckling photos tonight and went turn adjust my 70-300mm only to find one crawling on my lens blech
One is no big deal
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Want to open my front gate??
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Yeah I won't be in the kids swing/fort taking night photos anytime soon
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Bye bye tree
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snaphappy

Senior Member
Adorable
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Peek a boo even though you're black I see you
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3 safe water pools but they all pile into the same one :)
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snaphappy

Senior Member
Heading back to the green house for a snack
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And coming back out to play in the water again with mom and 2 adoptive moms
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snaphappy

Senior Member
My kind of portraits
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She may only be an adoptive mother but I kept my distance because she is fierce!!
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Left her nest to have a drink (Welsh Harlequin)
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Adorable with some great bill markings
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snaphappy

Senior Member
Surprise
I found this little one fresh out of the egg while mom was having a bath
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So cute and couldn't allow it to get chilly so had to give it a snuggle while mom played in the water :) She wanted me to get away as soon as I brought baby back so I did and let them bond
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Mom has been off the nest so few times to take care of her needs that her feathers are a mess and she looked more like a drowned rat!
 
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