If you feed them, they will come.... Part 2.

Well... I had been planning on doing something else for today's entry, but the persistant snowfall has changed my plans. We've already had about 8" of snow today, and it's still going strong. That, coupled with very unreliable power service this evening has persuaded me to feature the back garden again.

This is what it looks like outside right now... well, it would, if the sun were up! I actually took this shot two days ago, but it looked just like this in the dark when I took the dog out a few minutes ago. It's still snowing mind you. They say we'll get anywhere up to 30", which seems incredible for lowly Washington, DC.

Well, I did actually manage to take a few photographs as the snow was falling this afternoon. This little red bellied woodpecker came by for a feed. I was amazed he stayed long enough for a picture, to be honest, as they are perhaps the most nervous birds in the area. But they are also just about the most beautiful birds too, and certainly my favorite. They will fly off at the twitch of an eyebrow though, so photographing them up close is very difficult. This one just flew into view as I was preparing to photograph a bluebird, which you can see, out of focus, in the background. Other than pressing the shutter button, I didn't move a muscle, so the little chap didn't fly away... but did keep a wary eye on me, as you can see.

The bluebirds were out in full force again today. We had over a dozen at one point, but never in a place easily photographed, sadly. You always have to be patient with wild animals... and let them come to you, rather than the other way around.

Nuthatches are really quite tame, and tolerant of human activity... not nearly as flighty as woodpeckers. They love to hang upside down too, which makes for interesting photography, and fascinating viewing. I love to use shallow depth of field when I take bird photographs, as it really makes your subject pop from the screen. I think this was at F5.6 at 400mm focal length and roughly 7' away... so really only the bird is in focus.

This female cardinal sat for quite a while during the snowfall.... it was wonderful to watch her. She'd occasionally flit back and forth between where the seed was and up to her perch in the dogwood tree.

And finally I close with a jenny wren... they are such sweet little birds, full of character and charm! Cheaky too!