The Major Challenge in Bird Photography

Let's be honest, bird photography is full of challenges, the lighting conditions, the environment, the location, the time and behavior of birds, all are challenges one has to overcome to get a good bird photograph. What makes it great is the background of the final image, most preferable is the Bokeh which means creamy, smooth, melt in your mouth background which makes the bird pop out from the image. Although that can be manipulated in post-processing with softwares, but originally, that smooth bokeh is desirable, but more often than not,it's hard to come by. Other challenges like lighting conditions can be overcome by using higher iso and fill flash but birds dont easily sit on where you want them to sit. They generally sit somewhere in the clutter what we call as busy background.

This otherwise perfect photo of the blue throated blue flycatcher (female) is ruined by the perch it chose to sit on. The wire fencing behind it makes for a bad busy background. The foreground also plays a vital role as it has to be non-invasive and free of distractions.Then again, it all depends on the birds. This following shot of the Asian paradise flycatcher (female) is supposed to be perfect, good light,perfect pose, eye level perch, but the wire fencing between the lens and the bird totally ruined the shot.

Anyways, the challenges and the ways to overcome them calls for adaptation on the part of the photographer, which in turn make them become better at their craft. I am also learning new ways to overcome these challenges. And, you've got to have patience, and a lot of it. Birds will come and sit on the perch you like, but only when they feel like it, other than when they are baited and lured in by food. When they do land on the perch, you've got to be ready.

This brown breasted flycatcher,likes to perch high up or inside leafy areas, and suddenly it was there at the ground level, but the mistake I made was that I forgot to crouch lower and isolate it from the background and create a smooth bokeh. In my defence I can say that I was not expecting it to come down to that place. Still, excuses don't make for better photographs, and I'll definitely try to get better result next time. Until then, keep reading and stay safe.