http://www.BirdWatchingDaily.com 21February 2014; it’s Hotspot Near You
No. 178.)
The vast tract of rare rural land was
preserved in the uber-civilized and
developed Northeast corridor in the
name of nature. The result: Preservation
of a near-perfect environment for birds
and all manner of wild creatures. The
harrier I was observing on that particu-
lar day was a cold-months visitor from
the north, likely having ventured down
the eastern side of the North American
continent to winter in the comparatively
calmer environs of the mid-Atlantic.
In this magazine’s May/June 2018
issue, I offered advice for photograph-
ing hummingbirds in a backyard, and
in the most recent issue, July/August
2019, I reviewed the market for cameras
that would appeal to a wide range of
birders. In this article, I’ll give tips for
photographing familiar fast-moving
birds at different times of year —
species that you can use as “target
practice” for perfecting shooting
techniques for when less-common birds
show up.
That’s why I was in Mercer Meadows
in late fall and early winter: to hunt
harriers. In spring and summer, the
bird I seek out is the Barn Swallow. Each
species present unique challenges and
opportunities to the intrepid bird
photographer.
I start my annual quest for harriers
in late October here in the mid-Atlantic
region, and the search for f ledgling
Barn Swallows begins in mid-June, as
by then they are out of the nests and
often quite visible as they venture into
brush lands — if you know where to
look. Both species have unique charac-
teristics that make them ideal targets
for the active bird photographer.
Harriers can be spotted in all
manner of rural locations in fall, as they
favor hunting over now-brown fields
and marshlands. Another favorite
personal harrier haunt of mine in New
Jersey, besides the Pole Farm in Mercer
County, is the Edwin B. Forsythe
National Wildlife Refuge just north of
Atlantic City. The vast area includes
woodlands, coastal marshes, and a
miles-long wildlife drive that juts on an
elevated roadway far out into the
wetlands near the Atlantic Ocean.
The best locations to observe
harriers are on vast open spaces, thekinds found on such wildlife refuges or
on the shrinking number of privately
held farm tracts. Since the birds glide
over the landscape, often at a great
distance, super telephoto lenses are
needed to produce quality photographs.
I routinely use a 600mm lens, often
with a 1.4x or 1.7x teleconverter to
extend the reach. Given the narrow field
of view of super telephoto lenses at this
focal length, it’s easier to acquire harrier
sightings with binoculars.
These skilled hunters cover a lot of
territory in a short time, skimming
right above the deck on their quest for
small ground mammals. Once I spot
the bird, I begin tracking it with my
tripod-mounted camera and lens.
While it’s tempting to start clicking off
shots immediately upon seeing the
bird, experience has shown me that the
early distant shots are mostly unusable.
So, I’ll lock onto the bird and wait
while it inevitably draws nearer and
fills more of the camera sensor frame.
That’s when I can achieve higher-
quality images.
This year, the much-anticipated
mid-season arrival of my new Nikon
AF-S Nikkor 500mm phase fresnel lens
opened even more opportunities. The
lightweight lens (only 3.2 pounds)TEST SUBJECTS: Northern Harrier (left) and
Barn Swallow (below) offer challenges and
opportunities to birders who want to
photograph birds in flight.