637 - Huntley Meadows
Today we got dumped on, so I’m gonna dump on birds.
It started out as an innocent enough winter adventure. Lil’ rain, a couple birds, a big meadow… But before you know it we were getting snowed on like it was the Great Blizzard of 1888.
We were at Huntley Meadows in Northern Virginia, which was largely known in the photography community for its birding opportunities. Over 200 species live here, including a colony of beavers that helped make the place what it is today.
Now I didn’t come here thinking I’d shoot a bird. I’m gonna get flamed for this but I just don’t see the appeal of bird photography.
It’s a genre completely overrun by gear snobs, simply because the barrier to entry involves ridiculously expensive camera gear. This means you end up with a million “artistic” photos of centered framed birds sitting on a branch doing nothing.
Cool, you pointed a $6,000 setup at a bird 50 yards away. GET A PHOTO OF IT DOING SOMETHING INTERESTING.
Now don’t get me wrong, there are kings in this category. There’s people who actually know what they’re doing, creating amazing work. But they’re few and far between.
Well, I wrote all that and now I’m realizing I have a bird photo to post. Lord only knows how many replies I’m gonna get for this basic ass duck shot but at least they’re posed decently:
“Ducks of the Renaissance”
Taken with Sony a7rIV + Sony 24-105mm f/4 G
[ISO 800 ~ 62mm ~ f/7.1 ~ 1/250s]
End rant.
We kept walking along the meadow, and the snow picked up more and more. Now it was coming down in chunks, which did something neat to the photos. A built-in foreground for every shot:
One thing I’m realizing that I love about winter is the way that it simplifies the world. Everything is dead, so when you do see something interesting, it stands out more.
We walked a little further, but inevitably decided to head back as our “water-resistant” clothes reached their limit. Fun fact, you need to reapply water repellent spray to your gear every few years or it’s completely useless. I say that as I’m drenched to bone in a rain jacket.
Goodnight y’all.
