Birds in Nebraska and Iowa

[Bill Anderson]

Try to keep the ISO as low as possible on overcast days by adjusting the shutter speed and aperture setting. The tripod and cable release will certainly help. If it is a rare bird or activity that you have captured, you just have to make do with what you got. No one here is going to complain.

I have put in enough shutter time with my various camera, lens, and teleconverter combinations to know high how I can push the ISO settings on each one in various lighting conditions and still get a decent photo after cropping.

 

[Terry O]

In my experience with 1.5 or 2X multipliers you have to expect some loss in performance. This image looks pretty good to me, particularly being hand held. Btw, I don’t usually consider a sunny day my friend, photo wise. Too bright and often too contrasty to get a really optimal exposure. Just my opinion, of course.

 

[Bill Anderson]

In my experience with 1.5 or 2X multipliers you have to expect some loss in performance. This image looks pretty good to me, particularly being hand held. Btw, I don’t usually consider a sunny day my friend, photo wise. Too bright and often too contrasty to get a really optimal exposure. Just my opinion, of course.

Terry is correct about bright sunlight. There is a (rare?) condition of light overcast when the light is diffusive and just right for bird photography with no back lighting or shadows.

 

[Tom Z]

ISO down(640), Apeture preferred f8. Very rare in a neighborhood is the Cedar Waxwing. I was sitting on the deck watching the Oriole feeder and out of the corner of my eye, first one then 2.

 

[Terry O]

ISO down(640), Apeture preferred f8. Very rare in a neighborhood is the Cedar Waxwing. I was sitting on the deck watching the Oriole feeder and out of the corner of my eye, first one then 2.View attachment 47744View attachment 47745

One of my favorite birds. We get them occasionally here in the Edmonds area.

 

[Tom Z]

3 birds from an Iowa State Park called Preparation Canyon about 60 miles north east of Omaha. Most birds deep in the trees and no sun but bright cloudy day. This the Loess Hills of western Iowa. Loess is a particular type of dirt(soil) common to this area. Big piles forming bluffs at the edge of the Missouri River.

 

[Tom Z]

I believe these are orchard orioles

 

[Bill Anderson]

Any guesses as to the ID of the blue bird with the black skullcap in the first photo? The woodpecker looks like a red-headed.

Both the Audubon Society and the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology excellent websites for ID-ing birds.

Orchard oriole

Orchard Oriole

Most common in the Midwest and South is this small oriole. It favors open areas with scattered groves of trees, so human activities may have helped it in some areas, opening up the eastern woodlands and planting groves of trees on the prairies. Orchard Orioles often gather in flocks during...

www.audubon.org

Orchard Oriole Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The Orchard Oriole swaps the typical flame-orange of other orioles for a deep, burnished russet. Hopping among riverine shrubs or scattered trees, male Orchard Orioles sing a whistled, chattering song to attract yellow-green females. The smallest of North America’s orioles, it gleans insects...

www.allaboutbirds.org

Red-headed woodpecker

Red-headed Woodpecker Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The gorgeous Red-headed Woodpecker is so boldly patterned it’s been called a “flying checkerboard,” with an entirely crimson head, a snow-white body, and half white, half inky black wings. These birds don’t act quite like most other woodpeckers: they’re adept at catching insects in the air, and...

www.allaboutbirds.org

Red-headed Woodpecker

This striking and unmistakable bird was a favorite of early ornithologists such as Alexander Wilson and Audubon. Often conspicuous because of its strong pattern, harsh calls, and active behavior in semi-open country, it tends to occur in small colonies. Although it migrates only short distances...

www.audubon.org

 

[Tom Z]

That would be the Gray Cat Bird. Makes interesting noises that some times sounds like a mew.

 

[Bill Anderson]

That would be the Gray Cat Bird. Makes interesting noises that some times sounds like a mew.

Thanks, Looking at their breeding range, we don't get them west of the Cascades.

Gray Catbird Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

If you’re convinced you’ll never be able to learn bird calls, start with the Gray Catbird. Once you’ve heard its catty mew you won’t forget it. Follow the sound into thickets and vine tangles and you’ll be rewarded by a somber gray bird with a black cap and bright rusty feathers under the tail...

www.allaboutbirds.org

 

[Tom Z]

One of the things I like to do is look on Google Earth. A place name came up near a small town north of Lincoln NE. The Jack Sinn wildlife management area. Reading a plaque mounted on a rock in one of the small parking areas, we find that Jack Sinn was a Nebraska Game and Parks Commissioner a number of years ago. There many acres of land set aside for wildlife. Some fields and some wet lands. Saw this little bird there. The Dickcissel named for his song.

On the way back from the 40 mile one way drive we stopped at Memphis State Recreation Area and saw a mess of geese and a Blue Jay. We have Blue Jays around the house but they don't sit as still as this one did.

 

[Terry O]

Super interesting shots. Its really nice to see birds that we in the Pacific Northwest don't get.

 

[Bill Anderson]

Super interesting shots. Its really nice to see birds that we in the Pacific Northwest don't get.

I echo Terry. I mistook the Dickcissel for some kind of grosbeak as we don't get it out here.

 

[Tom Z]

Any thoughts on this one. Medium size, won't sit still for better picture

 

[Bill Anderson]

Looks like a kestrel, the smallest member of the falcon family in North America. They like perching on wires and are very difficult to photograph close up. Best bet is to use your car as a blind.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Kestrel

 

[Terry O]

I definitely agree with Bill!

 

[Tom Z]

Thank you both. I am getting more alert to some of the different ones as I drive down the rural roads with my camera on my lap. Could be a country song in there somewhere.

 

[Tom Z]

Took a journey north of Iowa into northern Minnesota. Found some young Loons on the Lake.

 

[Bill Anderson]

Good find on the loons.

 

[Terry O]

I enjoy seeing the results of your “drives down rural roads”. Loons are among my favorite birds. Thanks for your efforts.