During the last couple of days I’ve tried to get as close as I can to some of the more common birds that visit the feeding station.

I worked with a 500mm lens with a 1.4 converter, which meant dealing with fairly slow shutter speeds in an attempt to keep the ISO fairly low (never more than 400). Working this close and keeping a ‘fine grain’ really begins to define the feather structure, something that is not apparent in the more environmental shots that show the birds in relation to their environment.  At times the birds where at the minimum focusing distance this combination of lens and converter allowed, about 12 feet. The depth of field is also incredibly narrow and at all times the eye was considered the most important part to get pin sharp.