Blue Jay
I use the term ‘bird feeding’ because when I think of traditional ‘birding’ and ‘bird photography’ I think of birding enthusiasts dressed up in camouflage and hiding in bushes for hours on end. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! Never say never, but that’s just not for me at this point in my life. Why not have the birds come to me in the comfort of my own home instead?
Chances are if you don’t live in a skyscraper you can easily set up a feeder near a window and shoot through the glass. If I can do it, you can do it. As a matter of fact I was able to capture this photo of a Blue Jay the very day after I put up my feeder.
There are a few things to think about before setting up a feeder. First off, do you have a window that is easily cleaned? How clean the window is really affects your image quality. Make sure there’s no window screen either, or that it can be easily removed. On the other side of that window do you have a comfortable place to sit for long periods of time? The more comfortable, the better.
Photographically, keep an eye on where the feeder is in relation to the path of the sun. If your feeder is in the shade when your local birds decide to visit you’ll have light issues to deal with. Keep an eye on your background too, do you want a background that looks natural or one that contains that shiny red car in your neighbors yard? Luckily can usually situate the feeder so that a more natural background will be visible or you could always invest in a container plant that can be moved into position or just planted where you need it. Lastly on the photographic side, my next step is to make natural perches for the feeders. What would look better, a photo of my local birds perched on a commercially bought metal feeder or perched on what looks to be a tree branch? The tree branch for sure.
Safety is another concern. Keep your feeder a little out in the open, think of where a predator could hide (like cats) and make sure none of them can sneak up on your birds!
Squirrels Suck
Squirrels. Nothing strikes fear in the hearts of those who buy nice bird seed than ’squirrels’. I’ve got nothing against the little furry buggers, they need to eat too. But once they perch on your feeder not only will they keep your birds away, they’ll sit and eat and eat and eat. There are baffles, domes, tubes, powders and all sorts of home remedies to deal with squirrels. By far the best is a feeder that spins as soon as it detects the weight of a squirrel, hilarious yes – the price is not. Usually over $100. That’s a season of bird food for how sparingly I put it out.
Almost as entertaining is spraying your feeder pole with some good ol’ kitchen lubricant. Pam. If you want to save money, get the cheap off-brand stuff. At first all the neighborhood squirrels will jump on the pole and slide down with a suprised look on their faces. Eventually they’ll get the picture, or wipe off all the Pam from multiple attempts. I’ve found that Pam won’t last a full day and certainly not overnight. I have noticed that the grass is dying where I have the pole inserted in the ground. I only put feed out on the weekends, not only to keep the birds from being too dependent but because the weekends is usually the only time I have to photograph them. A spray of Pam each day in the morning and I’m all set. I will eventually need to get a baffle for the pole though.
Gardman USA
Two more thoughts. First, squirrels are smart. They can vertical jump a few feet and I’ve read that they can jump six to eight feet away off a shed or tree and land on your feeder. While I’m saving money by not letting them feast on my good seed, I certainly don’t want to replace bent and broken feeders from incoming squirrels. Second, if you set up a dedicated squirrel feeder elsewhere in your yard it may convince them to keep away. I have not tried this yet, but it sounds convincing.
There are many types of feeders, I won’t get into all of them but I’ll certainly tell you what works well for me. In my yard I have two feeder stands. They’re both Gardman USA stands. At a bout 6′ tall once staked to the groundthey’re really good entry level feeders that come with a seed basket, a tiny water dish and three hooks for hanging other types of feeders.
W1 'Winner'
To prove that long lenses are not required, I also have two Window Feeders – ever want to shoot macro bird shots? I find that the Droll Yankees W1 ‘Winner’ feeder is the best I’ve found. It’s adjustable to keep the bigger birds out (my local Doves have found the feeder so I need to shorten the base to make it smaller) and it doesn’t have a plastic back! Most other feeders use a plastic back for support, what good is that when you’re trying to photograph? Now you have a cheap piece of clear plastic blocking your view. The W1 uses the center brass support and suction cups to get around this. Is that brass center bothering you? Carve out a stick and wrap it around the center post. The dome above the feeder keeps out rain and the bottom tray has drainage holes. My plan is to sand the top dome to give the plastic more of a frosted look which should soften the light a little when I’m making photos.
House Finch in W1 Winner (Macro)
Depending on how close you want to get to the window feeder you can use a telephoto from the other side of the room or a macro lens to get up close. Instead of sitting still for long periods of time, purchase some two-way mirror film and cut a square to tape behind your feeder. As long as the outside is brighter than the inside you’ll be able to see your birds and they’ll just see a mirror reflection of themselves. Pull it tight and tape it to the window, you will lose probably one to two stops of light and the film will be reflective while you are shooting so be aware of that potential problem. The window film can be found at any Home Depot or other hardware store. Just ask for Mirror window film.
Northern Mockingbird
Two other feeders I have are a suet and a hummingbird feeder. The suet feeder is a cage for suet bricks. Since suet is fat and not found in the wild you need to convince your birds to try it by smearing some peanut butter to the suet cage and then sticking some bird seed to that. The hummingbird feeder is a simple hanging feeder. The glass is tinted red to attract the birds. While you can use commercial products you can make just as good feed at home. Boil one part sugar with four parts water to dissolve. Never add food coloring as this has been linked to tumors in birds. Make up a bunch, it keeps well in the fridge. I find 1 liter water bottles to be perfect, if you decide to use soda or juice containers, be sure to rinse them out well.
Now food choices will vary depending on your location. Don’t skimp on a book about birds found in your state!
Backyard Birds of..
Not only will this help with identification but it will tell you which birds eat which seeds and how to make your location desirable to each species. I really like the ‘Backyard Birds of‘ series.
You’ll soon learn which birds get chased off by other birds, separate their food between feeders. Even if you plan to only shoot on the weekends, keep the feeders full for a few weeks. While it took less than one day for a Blue Jay to find my feeder, it took about a month for Gold Finches. Patience is key. Set your camera up on a sturdy tripod, zoom into your feeder, focus and keep your hand on the shutter button or a remote release. Note that if you study tour birds you’ll find a pattern. Most birds will land on a nearby support before going straight to the feeder. Use this to your advantage. Keep your feeders cleaned, keep fresh water available. Standing water is better than nothing, running water (bubbler, dripper) is best.
One last note is to encourage birds to follow their normal migratory habits. Your local book will let you know when birds will be migrating to your state. For example Hummingbirds fly past Maryland in Spring and then again in Fall. There’s no sense keeping your hummingbird feeder out while they’re gone or you may help convince some slackers to stay behind.
-J