For instance, it allows me to take fabulous photos of my surroundings if the are static. Throw in a different light and fast movement, however, and it turns me into a raving, longshoreman-like curser.
Folks who know me know that I am a man of very few words. Spoken aloud, at least. Catch me trying to grab a shot of a fast moving warbler in a series of moving branches and there you will find me at my wits end, grinding my teeth and mumbling under my breath to no one but the birds and Nature.
Such was the case out at Rainbow Springs yesterday just after our banding demo went bust, thanks in part to a slew of Red-shouldered Hawk busting up the party and the remaining birds just feeding too high in the treetops, unwilling to make any foray down to our level.
We folded up the nets and I decided to take a walk out on the nature trail just beyond our setup to see what I could see. I ditched my camera bag and cooler in some dense foliage and headed out down the yellow trail.
Pure early Florida. Pines and oaks surrounded by scrub and palmettos. Just like I remember as a boy in this upper Central Florida habitat. Still quiet, though.
As I reached the edge of a clearing, an Eastern Phoebe was flycatching near an old pine tree among the old pasture land. A White-eyed Vireo called off to the south.
Eventually, I reached the fork in the trail and a House Wren began scolding and was soon joined by some Carolina Chickadees up in the oaks.
Nice find.
Later, I discovered a Pine Warbler searching the branches and noticed that there was a lot of activity up in the nearby oaks and pines. A House Wren jumped out of the brush and was scolding quite loudly.
I followed its path and found myself surrounded by over 100 birds. Mainly Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. These were soon joined by more birds including Pine and Palm Warblers, Downy Woodpeckers, Eastern Phoebes, Eastern Towhee, Carolina Wrens, Blue-headed and White-eyed Vireos, and a stray Catbird or two.
A remarkable experience.
However, the auto-focus was not up to the challenge. Every time I tried to get a clear fix on a bird, it decided instead to focus on distant vistas or any breeze-born speck passing by. I was relaxed by the birds but getting totally stressed by the fact that I couldn't take any shots of them.
Granted, the lighting was horrible as a strong cold front was passing through and causing an extremely flat choice of light and shadow. This problem with the lens has been ongoing for ages, though.
Once I get a new camera rig to prove it is not systematic to this rig, I will have to deal with it for now.
Until I actually snap the thing off of the camera body, as I have been close to several times, I can only live with the fact that I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by such beautiful birds even if I cannot get the pictures that I think I can get.
Sigh.
Time to go look at the springs and relax.
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