[normhead]

From yesterday.
K-1 and Tamron 300 2.8, and Tamron 2x TC.

First some of my furry friends.




Then a roll call of the feathered guests.












---------- Post added 05-11-20 at 09:13 AM ----------

the lens can shoot wide open and still be sharp, but f8 seems to be the sweet spot. Cell phone images as I am not near my IMac...

Thanks... what a beast.

---------- Post added 05-11-20 at 10:02 AM ----------

K-3 and Tamron 300 2.8 with the F 1.7x AF adapter.

We've notice this little meadow that seems to be some kind of bird sanctuary right behind out house. Yesterday I was out looking for the Broad-winged Hawk that's Tess photographed yesterday.


She took this image with the DA 55-300 PLM, and I thought, "maybe an opportunity to get out the heavy glass."

SO I bundle everything up, and position myself in line of site of the suspected nest. The hawk passed over but very high and very quiclkly. But meanwhile sitting in my chair, I kept hearing "knock knock knock" It was this guy.



I was still kind of far away, so I gave up on the Hawk, picked up my huge camera bag (big enough for the 300 2.8) tripod, K-3 with 60-250 and chair and moved 20 meters to get a better angle.


Better but still kind of far away.

There seemed to be some activity at a tree behind my back. It looked pretty ordinary, but there kept being birds around it.


It didn't take long before I decided to forget the hawk and move closer.


The above is one of my "make sure you get something before you try for the whole enchilada" images.

So then I sort of half tucked into some cover as close as I could get to the tree. From here, I got clear images of where the Sapsuckers had tapped the tree. I could also see that the discolouration on the tree was actually sugar maple sap that had run out of the tap holes and discoloured the bark, and made it quite wet. If you look close you can see actual globs of sap near the tap holes.

Male Yellowbellied Sapsucker, (red throat).


Female Yellowbellied Sapsucker (white throat).


Altogether there were four. They seemed to have a cycle, sucking up the new sap dripping down the tree, then flying away (probably to another food source) and coming back after the sap had had a chance to run a bit more.


Surprisingly (at least for me) I also saw Chickadees and Nuthatches drinking sap from the holes made by the Sapsuckers..


While there I also saw a pair of Purple Finches, a yellow rumped warbler couple and way up in the air the hawk, as well as the aformentioned Sapsuckers, Chikadees and nuthatches. I saw almost as many species as I did shooting from my blind at my feeders.

It's like a mini bird sanctuary in there.

---

Last edited by normhead; 05-11-2020 at 07:22 AM.

[bertwert]

Still plenty of snow up in the mountains - I'm quite liking this style of photo...

[bertwert]

Stumbled pretty close by mother bear this morning - she was hiding around the corner. Quick shot before my hand goes to the bear spray...

[Pentaxians]

Orange-headed Thrush, taken on February with my Kp, DA300 and TC 1.4.

[normhead]

Stumbled pretty close by mother bear this morning - she was hiding around the corner. Quick shot before my hand goes to the bear spray...

I'm convinced bear spray is a hoax.
Bears will mock charge and stop 10 feet away from you. Just close enough bear spray proponents will tell you it was the bear spray that stopped them. As my buddy Paul used to tell anyone who would listen. If you run into a predatory bear, you won't see him, or hear him coming. It will be over before you have time for either a weapon or bear spray.

[bertwert]

I'm convinced bear spray is a hoax.
Bears will mock charge and stop 10 feet away from you. Just close enough bear spray proponents will tell you it was the bear spray that stopped them. As my buddy Paul used to tell anyone who would listen. If you run into a predatory bear, you won't see him, or hear him coming. It will be over before you have time for either a weapon or bear spray.

I'm not sure I can agree with you there, though I do see where you're coming from -the majority of defensive charges are bluff charges. However a dose of bear spray on the first charge had been shown to stop following charges. In almost all situations I would recommend spray over a firearm for best defence. As far as predatory bears, the behaviour is such an extremely rare occurrence it's not worth stressing about. Anyways, I do carry a 'bear knife' too as a last resort in the worst case scenario.

[normhead]

Tess once bear sprayed her stomach by accident. What a disaster that was. Around our place "People sprayed 1, bears 0."

In 40 years, averaging 15 days a year in the bush, I've only seen the tail end of bears doing their best to get away from me. Campgrounds and garbage dumps however are different. However, I don't live in Grizzly country or polar bear country. When my son guided out west, he was required by his employer to have a shotgun with him.

[bertwert]

Tess once bear sprayed her stomach by accident. What a disaster that was. Around our place "People sprayed 1, bears 0."

In 40 years, averaging 15 days a year in the bush, I've only seen the tail end of bears doing their best to get away from me. Campgrounds and garbage dumps however are different. However, I don't live in Grizzly country or polar bear country. When my son guided out west, he was required by his employer to have a shotgun with him.

We see quite a few here (that was 4 just this morning), though most of the time when hiking they're running the other direction as you say. I do know people who have used bear spray and found it effective - I've only gotten myself with it, when practicing with an old expired can. After we had an aggressive bear here a few years back, which stole livestock and wasn't afraid of us whatever we did, we got a bear gun...

[bertwert]

Honeybees are getting quite active with flowers starting to pop up all over the place...

[Canada_Rockies]

We have two pair of white crowned sparrows visiting our feeders this year. This shot is taken with the M 400/5.6 on K-3 at 4:30 pm on a cloudy day, which limits the shutter speed, aperture and ISO settings. Our back yard is heavily shaded by a lodgepole pine forest to our south.
M400/5.6
1/60 @f/8
ISO 800
Manfrotto 055B tripod & LensMaster RH2 gimbal head.
Distance was 30m/33 ft.
Manual focus (duh!)
K-3 with O-ME53 eyepiece.

[normhead]

We see quite a few here (that was 4 just this morning), though most of the time when hiking they're running the other direction as you say. I do know people who have used bear spray and found it effective - I've only gotten myself with it, when practicing with an old expired can. After we had an aggressive bear here a few years back, which stole livestock and wasn't afraid of us whatever we did, we got a bear gun...

Ya, one or two bad bears can ruin it for all of them.

My neighbour in Perth Ontario came over and accused my dog of running his cattle. It was eventually discovered it was a bear running them.

[swip]

Canada goose goslings play fighting. First time seeing this. It lasted for about 15 minutes.



Lesser Scaups at the local pond.



Osprey


Killdeer


Palm Warbler

[luftfluss]

We have two pair of white crowned sparrows visiting our feeders this year. This shot is taken with the M 400/5.6 on K-3 at 4:30 pm on a cloudy day, which limits the shutter speed, aperture and ISO settings. Our back yard is heavily shaded by a lodgepole pine forest to our south.
M400/5.6
1/60 @f/8
ISO 800
Manfrotto 055B tripod & LensMaster RH2 gimbal head.
Distance was 30m/33 ft.
Manual focus (duh!)
K-3 with O-ME53 eyepiece.

I'm impressed the sparrow remained still long enough for 1/60s shutter to result in a sharp photo.

[luftfluss]

Canada goose goslings play fighting. First time seeing this. It lasted for about 15 minutes.

Nice selection of photos - a good day's shooting.

[WPRESTO]

I'm convinced bear spray is a hoax.
Bears will mock charge and stop 10 feet away from you. Just close enough bear spray proponents will tell you it was the bear spray that stopped them. As my buddy Paul used to tell anyone who would listen. If you run into a predatory bear, you won't see him, or hear him coming. It will be over before you have time for either a weapon or bear spray.

So much depends on the species of bear. Eastern black bears are regarded as shy and will avoid people, so "bear bells" will keep them away, making a lot of noise will drive one away, but all bets are off if it's a sow with cubs. Grizzlies are dangerous. They have ripped their way into a tent and killed one or more humans who thought they might be safe. Polar bears are totally fearless and totally untrustworthy. All mammals are suitable food. Polar bear cubs hand-raised in a zoo since birth, once they reach a certain age will attack any human within reach.