Transition To Winter In Kentucky

With the onset of a deep plunge of arctic air into the Ohio Valley and fall colors waning there is still plenty of color left to look at.  Most of the leaves have fallen and trees reveal the birds that hid in the foliage all summer. Many of the male song birds transition to spectacular fall colors.  This is a perfect opportunity to become a better photographer before next chase season.  Time spent at a local park or just outside your house will pay off next spring when we start rolling road again in search of Mother Natures awesome power.

Trust me there is nothing that Drake and I love to better than chase storms.  Well guess what there are none and won't be for quite a long spell.  I'm not a forecaster but anyone can see the writing on the wall.  This is going to be a cold long winter for most in the eastern United States.  Doing some wildlife photography can keep you skills sharp til next spring.  Trying to take a picture of a nervous birds is fast paced.  You'll learn how to manipulate you camera quickly to get the settings just right.  That means you'll be shooting in manual.  That's right manual.  If you really want to know how to use a camera you must be able to operate it using manual setting.  I used to be one of those guys that shot in auto or some other preset.  Once I forced myself to go manual I've never had it on auto again.

Some gear you might need considering you have a decent DLSR camera.  First you'll need a telephoto lens.  Most are pretty affordable in the 55-200 to 300 mm zoom range.  On sunny days I suggest a UV filter and a lens hood.  One of the most important items in the bag is a lot of patients.  Birds just don't come to hangout they come to feed so you'll be on their clock.  Other tips are position birds feeders around your house.  Food is scarce during the winter season and some black oil sunflower seeds are just the ticket to get about every song bird in the area to your feeders.  Works like a champ!!  Another trick to getting really sharp photos is a chair and a tripod.  You're going to have to be still anyway so you might as well be comfortable.  One with a ball head instead of the standard tripods work very well.  It allows you to adjust the tension to wear it's just tight enough to hold the camera steady when shooting in continuous mode.

So instead of complaining that spring can't get here soon enough get out there and learn.  While doing so you just might find another hobby that you enjoy.  For all the predator hunters, sometime this winter I'll go over some tips on how to get coyotes, hawks and owls really close.  It's a little more technical but a ton of fun.