Waxwing Explosion


Posted by Jim Neiger on Mon Jan 31, 2005 8:05 am

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Image
St Cloud, FL - Canon 10D, canon 100-400, hand held, 1/250, F5.6, ISO 400, AV mode -1/3

I spent about 20 minutes sneeking up to the tree where a flock of Ceder Waxwings were feeding on berries. I was just getting close to the spot where I wanted to be, when some kids on bikes came by and spooked the birds. They all exploded from the tree at once and I got this shot. I almost threw this one away, but something about it appealed to me. See if you can count how many of the Waxwings have berries in their mouths.
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by Griffin on Mon Jan 31, 2005 8:11 am
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Extraordinary! :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

Cascual count: 4.

Thanks for sharing.


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by Herman Blockx on Mon Jan 31, 2005 8:18 am
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i like this one very much as the shot is so different from the usual waxwingshots!

at lsat 5 with berries!
 

by eagle43 on Mon Jan 31, 2005 9:00 am
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:shock: :shock: :shock: Never seen an image of them in a flock. Thanks for sharing. I count six.
Congrats!!!

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by Kristi Graham on Mon Jan 31, 2005 9:10 am
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Well, this image certainly appeals to me as well because I am obsessed with trying to get a good shot of this species! :)
I'm sure there are more cw's with berrries especially if they had some help from a few robins...i've never seen a group of birds strip a tree as fast as these guys...
Here's my observation...
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by Jim Roetzel on Mon Jan 31, 2005 9:30 am
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I love the shot
waxwings are a favorite bird
the masses of color and movement is just great

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by Bob Boner on Mon Jan 31, 2005 9:42 am
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I especially like the right third where the BG is not competing with the images of the birds. Thanks for sharing.
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by E.J. Peiker on Mon Jan 31, 2005 9:54 am
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That's about 10x the Waxwings in a single shot than I have seen in my life. Cool shot.
 

by Christopher Dodds on Mon Jan 31, 2005 10:00 am
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Fantastic behavior shot. Great sense of movement.
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by chriscove on Mon Jan 31, 2005 10:37 am
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This is just great. I love the many different angles the birds are flying. I am glad you kept this one.
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by Paul Skoczylas on Mon Jan 31, 2005 11:01 am
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Cool!

I don't see many waxwings here, but I guess they migrate through--a couple times last spring I saw trees full of them in my local ravine while walking my dog. Easily a couple hundred birds spread through two or three trees, all singing away! (Too high for a decent picture, though.)

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by Mike Wilson on Mon Jan 31, 2005 12:12 pm
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Very interesting action Jim. I am with EJ on not seeing many of these birds. This really tells a nature story here. I count 5 with groceries. I love the fanned yellow-tipped tails.
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by Fero on Mon Jan 31, 2005 12:23 pm
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This is amazing, I like it a lot!
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by RAmoruso on Mon Jan 31, 2005 1:39 pm
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Great shot Jim. I really like the action - this is a keeper.

Came across a large flock a few weeks ago when I was at I-Drive at a conference in the parking lot. Only ended up with some nice singular shots even though I tried some blurs and groups. You were definitely in the right place at the right time. Since some of the commentors indicated not seeing many, I will upload one of my images at a later date.

Thanks for posting this one.
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by Cindy Marple on Mon Jan 31, 2005 2:25 pm
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This is very different and appealing, I would be keeping it! There's enough of a combination of sharp and blurred to make sense of it and make it work for me.
I count 7 with berries, one that Kristi missed.
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by Scott Fairbairn on Mon Jan 31, 2005 5:50 pm
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Another great image Jim! The colours are superb. :)
 

by Marius on Mon Jan 31, 2005 7:02 pm
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I counted 10 birds with berries! That was fun! Thanks for sharing.
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by KK Hui on Mon Jan 31, 2005 8:12 pm
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Well, you should be glad having this one, Jim!
Lots of actions in one frame ... :roll:
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by Tomasz on Tue Feb 01, 2005 12:05 am
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Absolutely amazing, Jim! Love it!
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by photosbyvito on Tue Feb 01, 2005 12:32 am
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awesome jim! lol, that's about 20-30x the amount of waxwings i've seen in my life :-p

they must've really exploded to get a blur like that at 1/250th!

nice shot :)
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