Birds in Nature - images of wild birds by Richard Ditch

Subject: Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)
Place: Brigantine National Wildlife Refuge, NJ, USA
Date: January 1994
Equipment: Nikon 8008, 400/5.6, 25 mm extension tube, car window
Film: K200
Exposure: aperture preferred center weighted meter, natural light, no flash fill
Scan: Minolta Dimage; 85% of frame (cropped on right for balance)

Commentary: Another chance encounter with a close bird, and another example of a small bird photographed with a modest focal length. This was taken from the window of a 15 passenger van full of birders not wanting to linger for a common species. This bird was very close to the edge of the dirt road as it exits the pine woods at Brigantine NWR - so close that I had to remove my 1.4x converter and put on the 25 mm extension tube instead. I was surprised that the catbird waited long enough for me to do this. I wish I'd captured the bottom of the tail in the image - this scan was made with the slide out of the mount for maximum content.