peas planted!

▼

Sunday, September 21, 2008

chickadees enjoy the last sunflowers of summer

chickadee 1b2
chickadee on the sunflowers 2b2 perched chickadee on fall sunflowers 2

This must be one of the best days of the year for a chickadee. Abundant seeds. Warm sunshine. The chicks are raised and on their own.

This little guy was on the sunflower stems outside my living room window this morning. He didn't mind my camera too much and I got several close shots. He was making quiet chirps as he hopped and gathered seeds.

Today is the last full day of summer - tomorrow at 3:40 pm GMT is the autumnal equinox.
at

5 comments:

  1. SchnookieSeptember 21, 2008 2:11 PM

    These pictures are amazing! What kind of lens do you use?

    ReplyDelete
  2. kathySeptember 21, 2008 4:00 PM

    That's my macro lens - a Canon EF-S 60mm f2.8 Macro. It has a large aperture, which narrows depth of field and creates background blur, making the subject stand out.

    I was only about 3 feet from the chickadee with an open window and no screen.

    I also continue to practice using Photoshop to adjust the shadows.

    ReplyDelete
  3. SchnookieSeptember 21, 2008 4:29 PM

    Thanks, Kathy! You really do take gorgeous pictures! :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. vermontflowerfarm@outlook.comSeptember 22, 2008 7:44 AM

    Hello Kathy;

    Congratulations on being picked up by the Christian Science Monitor and also for writing a great blog which I just found. The chickadees in the sunflowers is dear to me as yesterday I started to pull about a thousand sunflowers now that they have been nailed by a heavy frost. We bought about 10 varieties from Johnny's Selected Seeds and lined a garden that runs along a river at our new nursery. The production was excellent and we sold a ton as cut flowers but now they have to go in preparation for another year. The birds and critters will get to enjoy the seed heads. I am not sure folks know how much it takes to pull up rows of big, well rooted sunflowers. Kind of like your pictures of "plot expansion" (Sept. 20)but not as dramatic. Keep up the good work and if you get to this part of Vermont next year, stop for a visit.

    George Africa
    The Vermont Gardener
    http://thevermontgardener.blogspot.com
    Vermont Gardens
    http://vermontgardens.blogspot.com
    Vermont Flower Farm
    http://vermontflowerfarm.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. jimmycrackedcornSeptember 22, 2008 9:39 AM

    Great pictures!

    ReplyDelete