First morning of our annual Yellowstone Spring trip and had numerous Griz & Black Bears, Pronghong, Snowshoe Hares, Sandhill Cranes, Bald Eagles, Gray Wolves and so much more! Though there is snow on the ground, spring has sprung and I can bearly contain my joy!

It’s that time of year when the next generation is greeting the world for the first time. Birds and mammals young are incredibly vulnerable in their first hours. Predators know this and this time of year, are on the lookout for them. Actually, they are on the scent for them. Our footsteps, the path we make if we aren’t careful can lead a predator right to our subject. So, be careful, watch your step!

I’ve seen more bird species than I’ve photographed. With nearly 800 in my image library, I have a few but there are a lot more to be added. But it’s a challenge, you could say I’ve photographed all the easy ones. Easy here being defined as seen more often in more places. I’ve been fortunate to feed my passion for birds in 2022 going after species on my list and successfully adding them to the library. This week I was pleased to add one, not on my list that I last saw over a decade ago but had never gotten glass on until yesterday. The Veery is a small thrush that migrates at night south to South America in the fall and is just now getting back to its nesting ground. It’s a secretive bird that prefers the forest floor. It’s a busy place down there. This morning we saw one in the first soft light of the day. Grabbing the Z 9 / 180-400 off the tripod, I was able to get low and get a fortunate clean shoot of it in an uncluttered piece of the forest floor. I was so happy to have my Veery first photo!

I have two basic goals when I go after bird photographs, loving the situation and coming back with images. Today, we tend to travel to specific locations for specific birds. Often, there is some rarety(s) that are the target but can be elusive. Tunnel vision on that one species might garnish you with the photo, sometimes you come back with nothing. You can either chase it or, let it come to you with time and basic biology. The difference I think is loving the situation. There are many magnificent rare warbler species at Magee Marsh, then there is the Yellow Warbler. A gorgeous, goofy little warbler, they are pretty common. While waiting for the Yellow-throated or Black-throated Green, Blackburian, Bland & White, Magnolia, or other rarely seen, there is the Yellow Warbler everywhere. I’ve taken thousands of photos of the Yellow Warbler, looking for that uncommon of the common photo waiting for the other rarities to come through. The twofer here is, I sharpen my skills on the Yellow so when the Cerulean buzzes through, I can get the glass one it and the picture made. In loving the situation, I can do common.

With Magee Marsh out of reach for the last two years, I really dying to get back here because it is a magical place. And it did not let me down! Magee Marsh is an avian refueling station for warblers heading north right now. These little guys the size of your thumb dart around like a feather in the wind and the challenge is to find them. You first literally locate them in the forest, then continue to observe them hoping they come close, out in the open with a clean background, and then hold still for at least 1 second. They do which is the joy and fun. Shooting with the Z 9 / 180-400VR making acquiring focus and focusing so close to deliver a large subject size makes the whole process so much fun. Even in the rain today, Magee Magic was in the air!