Photographing Nesting Birds

This morning on a walk not far from my home in Lexington, Massachusetts, I found a Red-bellied Woodpecker’s nest! It’s that exciting time of year when birds in New England are nesting or preparing to nest, and us photographers have chances capture the associated bird behavior, which is always special.

Just remember whether you are photographing or just observing nesting birds, be super sensitive to the birds’ well-being. Pay close attention to their behavior, and make sure you are at a distance where the birds are comfortable approaching to swap incubation duties or make food deliveries to chicks. As long as you do it responsibly, finding and observing nesting birds is a very rewarding way to enjoy spring!

Below are a few images of nesting birds I’ve had a chance to photograph close to home over the past couple years. I’m excited to see what new opportunities this spring will bring!

Featured Image: The Landing

A tree swallow comes in for a landing at its nest opening as its mate looks out, ready to swap. The great thing about photographing birds visiting their nests is that you get multiple chances to capture the shot you are after. The timing is tricky of course with small fast moving birds like this. The approach is basically to fire a burst of images as you see the bird come in for a landing. I usually don’t even look through the viewfinder in situations like this, but frame up the shot on a tripod, and then watch the movements of the birds, and start firing early as they approach so I don’t miss the shot. The goal is to catch the wings in a nice position like this, and the extra bonus of the mate peering out really makes the shot.

A Few More Nesting Birds from New England

A male pileated woodpecker visits its nest in a dead pine to feed its ravenous chicks.

Barn swallows nesting in a barn in southern Massachusetts made for a fun and easy to shoot subject, since they were accustomed to people and horses coming in and out and paid no attention to me with my camera.

This bluebird is delivering food to its chicks in its nest in a dead white birch tree, in an old woodpecker hole. Woodpeckers create nest cavities used by many other species of birds.

Here you can see the same nest from a different angle, as the male bluebird enters with food.

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For you photographers out there, are you keen to get out and do more bird photography this spring? If you are working on mastering your camera skills, I have a course for you called “Birds, Camera, Action”. Or perhaps you are ready to get more creative and take your photography to the next level? I have a course for you called “Getting Creative”

As always, thanks for tuning in, and for your support of my work and the causes I support. Spring is here so be sure to get out and enjoy it!

Warmest regards,
Tim Laman

Happy New Year 2024

As we start the new year, I’m taking a few moments to look back and reflect on a some highlights from the past year.  It has been a rewarding year of great adventures and conservation photography projects.  I’ve selected a few photos to share as a little visual review of the year.  Thanks for following along, and hope you enjoy it!

A Few Highlights from 2023

5 Feb 2023:  On the way to Antarctica on a Lindblad/National Geographic Expedition trip I found myself in a Zodiac surrounded by swimming King Penguins off the coast of Macquarie Island.  Not having an underwater camera housing with me, I trusted in the waterproofness of my iPhone, submerged it and fired as fast as I could.  This is one of the resulting shots.  And yes, the phone still works!

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12 April 2023:  On assignment for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology I filmed the work of the organization Natura Mexicana and their efforts to conserve the endangered Scarlet Macaws in the Montes Azul Biosphere Reserve in southern Mexico.  Our conservation film to help spread awareness about their work will be coming out in 2024.

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7 June 2023:  At night on a beach on the north coast of West Papua, I filmed a Leatherback Sea Turtle as she covered her eggs after laying.  This was on another Cornell Lab expedition where I led a team documenting the biodiversity of West Papua from coast to mountains for a film that was shown at the COP28 meeting in December.  You can see the film here:  www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPb1CQWty60   We will be sharing more from this project in the months to come in support of our Indonesian partners as they work to conserve the forests of Papua.

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16 July 2023:  I returned to Gunung Palung National Park in Indonesian Borneo to continue documenting the biodiversity of this refuge of lowland rainforest biodiversity, working with my wife Cheryl Knott’s team.  Stay tuned for a new National Geographic magazine article coming out in early 2024.  This is the female orangutan Berani, with her baby born in December 2022.  Learn more about the work in Gunung Palung and how you can get involved at www.savewildorangutans.org

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15 Aug 2023:  I led my first Underwater Photo Workshop in the spectacular Raja Ampat Islands based at the Papua Explorers resort with Zafer Kizilkaya.  It was a great experience and we will do it again in 2024.  The reefs of Raja Ampat are healthy, and the photo opportunities are amazing.  Come join us!  www.papuaexplorers.com/underwater-photography-workshop/

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20 Nov 2023:  I decided it was time to share some of my experience and knowledge about wildlife photography with others, and I created and launched my first online course:  Bird Photography Masterclass.  

The more photographers we have out there documenting the natural world and building appreciation for it the better, and I believe I can help by sharing the approach that has worked for me, and that I have developed over the years.  While I do teach some in-person workshops, the medium of an online course seems like a great way make my teaching available to a wide audience.  You can learn more at masterclass.timlaman.com. 

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Thanks for joining me on my adventures over the past year.  As you see from my photo captions above, several of my 2023 projects haven’t reached fruition yet, so stay tuned in 2024 for further developments.  And of course I’ll keep you posted on new projects as we get further into 2024.

I hope you are as excited about what lies ahead in 2024 as I am.  All the best for the New Year!

Warmest regards,

Tim Laman

PS.  As of right now, there are three opportunities to join me in the field on photography trips in 2024.  See below, and don’t hesitate to reach out to my studio email if you have questions (studio@timlaman.com). 

1. Norway’s Fjords and Arctic Svalbard:  May 15 - June 1.  www.expeditions.com
2. Raja Ampat Underwater Photography Workshop:  Aug 11-21.  www.papuaexplorers.com/underwater-photography-workshop/
3. Upper Amazon Aboard the Delfin II:  Nov 9 - Nov 19.  www.expeditions.com

The Stunning Harlequin Ducks

My new online course “Bird Photography Masterclass” has launched, and I’m happy to say is getting some very nice reviews.  For example, Penny A. says:

“Excellent! Highly recommended for all levels of photography!  It was an honour to be taken step by step through Tim’s creative process using his stunning images to highlight each point, and culminating in a true masterpiece!  I loved every minute of the course and can’t wait to get outside and practice!  Thank you!”

It’s nice to get the positive feedback and know that I’ve created something that can help other photographers improve.  One of my motivations for creating the course is to help the next generation of photographers with the tools to elevate their craft.  Birds are such great ambassadors for protecting wild places, and as former Cornell Lab of Ornithology director John Fitzpatrick is fond of saying “Birds can save the World!”.  So the more of us out there photographing and sharing the wonders of birds, the better.

If you happen to know a wildlife photography enthusiast who might benefit from my course, please consider giving it as a gift.  Its now super easy to do from the course website.   

The Waverider

With the arrival of winter, Harlequin Ducks gather along the coast of New England where they occupy a unique niche in the rough inter-tidal zones along rocky shores.  They appear completely impervious to the rough water as they dive and forage among breaking waves and rocks.  I made this portrait of a male cresting a wave at Halibut Point, a State Park on the peninsula of Cape Ann in Massachusetts.  This certainly has to be one of the most spectacular North American duck species.  What makes this shot for me besides the beautiful colors of the bird and background water, is the curtain of water is breaking over the duck’s chest in this shot.  It ads that little extra something that makes an otherwise straightforward portrait special.

More Harlequin Duck Action

The Harlequin Ducks often hang out in small groups like this trio of males coming into the surf zone to feed.

Flight shots are always fun to try for, and here I was able to capture a group of five males and one female flying together.  For this shot, I used a relatively slow shutter speed of 1/180 sec to add blur to the background.

The other way to shoot birds in flight, is to use a high shutter speed to freeze the motion like I did in this shot as a male Harlequin came in for a landing next to a beautiful little wave catching the light.  Shutter speed here was 1/1500 sec.

BEHIND-THE-SCENES

This was the location and my setup for all the above shots.  I got as close to the water as I could without getting into the spray zone, and shot with my 400 mm f2.8 lens and a 2x converter (thus 800 mm) with my Canon R6m2 camera.  A gimbal head on my tripod made for an easily balanced lens and smooth tracking of flying birds.  The red face is courtesy of the wind chill!

Thanks for tuning in to my adventures.  Enjoy the holiday season everyone, and don’ t forget to spend some quality time in nature, even if you live in the wintery North.  It’s well worth it!

Warmest regards,

Tim Laman

PS.  If you haven’t checked out the film about Papua’s forests that was just shown at the COP28 conference, it is now available to the public on the Cornell Labs Youtube channel at this link:   https://bit.ly/COP28PapuaForestFilm

Kestrel Landing - Capturing the Moment

Dear Friends,

Every image has a story behind it, and as I worked on creating my Bird Photography Masterclass over recent weeks, I came across many images in my archives that sparked memories.  Birds are creatures of habit, and one of the “tricks of the trade” in wildlife photography is being a good observer, and anticipating what birds are going to do.  “Capturing a moment” in bird photography isn’t just a matter of luck.

This series on the kestrel landing didn’t make it into my course, but is a classic example of how being a good observer of bird behavior can help you anticipate and enjoy an interesting moment of action.  I think this is something that all fans of watching birds and other wildlife in the field can appreciate, whether you are a photographer or not.  Honing our powers of observation makes for greater appreciation and enjoyment of our time in nature.

Kestrel Landing

I shot this image a few years ago while on assignment at the Annenberg Center at Sunnylands, in Palm Desert, California, where I was photographing birds on their property for an exhibition in their visitor center.  I roamed the property daily, and soon became familiar with the haunts of certain individual birds.  This kestrel is one example.  I often saw him perched in the same trees, and as he hunted around the property, he often returned to some of the same perches.  A simple shot of the bird perched wasn’t very interesting, so I had the idea of getting him coming in for a landing with wings fully spread.  One day when I saw him using this particular perch, I decided to stake him out when the sun was in a position to create nice backlighting on his wings.  Once I framed my shot with my lens and camera on a tripod, and focused on the landing spot, it was just a matter of waiting him out, with finger always poised on my cable release (less tiring than having my hand on the camera all the time).  He made a circuit to several other perches as he hunted, but eventually came back to this one.  When I saw him approach, I hit the trigger before he entered the frame and fired a burst at 12 frames per sec.  You can see the full sequence below.  The other frames aren’t worth keeping, but I succeeded in capturing the peak moment with wings and tail spread catching the light just a moment before he landed.  

The Kestrel Landing Sequence

Here is the sequence of images that came before and after the “keeper” shot.  For the camera nerds these were shot with a Canon 1DXII, 400 mm f2.8 w/ 2X, 1/2000 sec, f 8, ISO 1600.  The key thing being the 1/2000 sec to freeze the motion.

Shot 1:  Entering the frame.

Shot 2:  The keeper shot.

Shot 3:  Just landed, but awkward position.

Shot 4:  Perched and rather boring.

If you are a wildlife photographer and interested in checking out my new course  BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY MASTERCLASS - THE CREATIVE PROCESS, you can visit the course website to learn more.  You can even sign up to watch one of the eight lessons for free to get a sense if the course is right for you.  

Thanks for tuning in as always.  Whether or not you take a camera on your walks in nature, see if you can learn the habits of your local birds and anticipate their actions.  It can be very rewarding.

Warmest regards,

Tim Laman

PS.   If you haven’t ordered your calendars yet, there is still plenty of time to get them before the year end.  Check out my six different bird-themed calendars HERE.

Bird Photography Masterclass is Live!

It’s been a long time in development, but I’m excited to announce that my new online Masterclass is live!

I saw a need that I could fill - to help all bird photography enthusiasts learn to concentrate more on what’s important - framing you shot - not obsessing over camera settings.   

Yes, you need a basic understanding of photography and how to operate your camera.  But most cameras these days can be pulled out of the box, set to auto mode, and make decent exposures.  But you still need to have the idea of how to frame you shots!

That’s where my course comes in.  I have distilled the essential Creative Process that I use to create strong images.  These methods have worked well for me for twenty-five National Geographic assignments and helped me capture over twenty winning images in the Wildlife Photographer of the year.

I focus on birds in the course, but really the principles apply to all wildlife photography. If you are interested, you can learn more and enroll by checking out the link below.  You can also send it as a gift (just an idea).

Also, I know you realize it’s that time of year, but don’t forget that my annual holiday print sale is in full swing!  If a print isn’t in your budget, you might be happy to know that we now offer many other products, from mugs and coasters to puzzles and tote bags.  They all feature my images thanks to our printing partner.  Just visit the store and select any image to explore your options.  

Pileated Woodpecker Landing

A male Pileated Woodpecker comes in for a landing to deliver food to its chicks.  In terms of my approach to bird photography, this shot is a classic example of anticipating and pre-visualizing the image.  In other words, I observed the travel path of the bird as it flew to the nest, and saw how I could frame it nicely between the two trees as it came in for a landing.  In my new Bird Photography Masterclass, I take successful images like this and break down my process of creating them.  This image was made only a few miles from my home in Massachusetts, but I share stories and images from all over the world as well as my backyard as I teach students how to improve their creative process in bird photography.

A Glimpse Into My Bird Photography Masterclass

Here is a sneak peak into a small section of Lesson 1:  Anticipation and Pre-visualization, in which I share my thought process around anticipating the final image before it happens, and how to plan accordingly.  These are all frame grabs from my online course.

You are invited into my studio, where I review and analyze my best images, supporting shots, and failed images to give you insight into my creative process.

I share a supporting shot, to set the scene of where I am working on a particular image, and to introduce the subject and the challenges of the desired final shot.

I share how I chose the framing for the anticipated shot.  Camera settings are shared when relevant.

Frame one of the final sequence of the male approaching the nest.

Frame two of the landing sequence - this is the keeper shot.

Frame 3 of the landing sequence.  The optimal position is past…

 At the end of each lesson, Key Takeaways are shared for handy reference.  

If you are curious to learn more about the class, the link below will take you to a website with a short video introduction, and details on what I cover in the eight lessons in the course.  While I do assume that you have some basic understanding of the fundamentals of photography, I think that this course can benefit photographers of all levels.

Thanks for tuning in.  Happy Thanksgiving if you’re in the USA!

Warmest regards,

Tim Laman