Marsh Wrens are tough photo subjects.
They’re the epitome of a bird that’s “more often heard than seen” because they’re almost constantly calling (some call it singing but for me that’s a reach) but they typically stay buried in their preferred habitat of cattails and bulrushes. Even when one comes out where you can see it, all the nearby reeds usually throw annoying shadows on the bird and they’re so twitchy and fast they’re usually gone before you can get them in your viewfinder, much less in focus.
But I’m a glutton for punishment so I try anyway.
1/2000, f/5.6, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Two days ago at Bear River MBR this juvenile Marsh Wren eventually, after a very long wait, came out where I could see ‘him’. I like the setting and the early morning light but I’m not so fond of the shadow running up his side.
After a few moments he…
1/2000, f/5.6, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
moved further up the stem but that only made the shadow worse. Much worse. After this photo was taken, another photographer drove up behind me so I had to move my pickup to let him by. When I came back the wren was nowhere to be found.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
25 minutes later at another location I found this adult Marsh Wren completely out in the open with no shadows from vegetation on ‘his’ body. Even though he was side lit I had high hopes for takeoff and flight shots from this bird because the direction he was facing seemed to be clear of vegetation and I had plenty of shutter speed for action shots.
So beginning with this shot I made sure I had plenty of room in the frame to the left for him to fly into and fired off a short burst in the hope that my timing would be right.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
It was. In the next shot in the burst he’s starting to raise his wings at the beginning of takeoff.
But something went wrong with the next photo, the takeoff shot. Given what you can see in this photo, can you guess what it was? HInt: it had little to do with the bird and more to do with the setting.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I hadn’t even noticed that narrow leaf in front of him and of course, it ended up right in front of the base of his bill and ruined the shot. When I quickly looked at the photo on my camera screen I didn’t notice it either so I was excited about this shot during the long drive home, only to be disappointed when I got there.
So, you may be wondering. Since I had plenty of room in the frame to the left, did I get a flight shot of this bird?
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 1600, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I sure did but he was dreadfully soft. I’d have loved this photo if he’d been sharp.
So out of 167 photos I took of Marsh Wrens that morning I got a couple that I like reasonably well (similar to photo #3 above) but the rest will end up in the delete bin. And that’s the trouble with Marsh Wrens.
In case you’re wondering, yes, my title was inspired by an original Star Trek episode – The Trouble with Tribbles.
Ron
Autor Ron Dudley
