Today was a perfect illustration of what wildlife photographers go through to get a good image. I arrived in Central Park around 9AM. Since it was overcast I wasn’t too concerned with the lighting. Early morning and late afternoon are usually the best times for shooting but cloudy days allow you to photograph all day. Of course, you need something to shoot which brings us back to my original sentence. It was really slow today. By 11:30 David Speiser and Harry Maas (my 2 photog buddies) and I were already thinking about lunch. At 2PM we started talking about going home. Did I mention things were slow? Every hour or so a bird would show up and make us stay a little longer in hopes that something good would appear. It was now 4PM, the minutes ticking by ever so slowly. If it weren’t for Harry and David’s company I would have left by now. Finally, at 4:18 our tedium turned to excitement. A Worm-eating Warbler appeared and all you could hear was the constant clicking of camera shutters going off. Here’s the result. (Click on image for larger view)

Migration is well underway. It seems that birds are moving earlier than usual. There’s a joke in Central Park that if you ever find yourself in trouble (never had any in more than 20 years in the park) yell “PROTHONOTARY” and everybody will come running. The point of this is, birders in NYC will do almost anything to see one of these gems.
Today I was fortunate to not only see it but to photograph it as well. The bird never came closer than 40′ so pictures are not as sharp as I would like, but I’ll take it.

The star of the day, 4/21/2009, was a male Hooded Warbler. I was planning on taking a day off yesterday when I received a call from Art Lemoine. Well, you know how the best laid plans go. I immediately got dressed and headed into Central Park in hopes of seeing and photographing this fabulous warbler. You’ve got to strike when the fire’s hot. Fortunately, this individual was extremely cooperative and I was able to take numerous photos. If you’re interested in getting quality photos of these fast moving birds I’m available for hire and will show you the techniques I use. You can call or email me. My contact information is available at the top of this page.

I’m extremely honored and humbled to be one of 2 featured photographers for the Newark Museum’s exhibit entitled “Skies Alive! Bird Migration in the Garden State.” My very dear friend Kevin Karlson is the other photographer. The exhibit will be running for one year. If you find yourself near Newark I would highly recommend visiting the museum. There’s something there for both children and adults to enjoy. You can get more information at Newark Museum

A Yellow-throated Warbler has been visiting Central Park for the last 3 days. This bird usually migrates as far north as southern New Jersey. We find one in the park about every 2 years or so. When it’s seen, it becomes a very big deal and word spreads throughout the park. Birders, photographers and even curious visitors to the park stop and marvel at the beauty of this little 5 1/2″ bird. Here’s one of the images I took. More can be seen at my Gallery page. Just click the link “Gallery” above.

Migration is upon us. This is perhaps the most exciting time of the birding year. Some might say Nov/Dec is, because that’s when we find the most western strays, but I love the Spring migration. Central Park, here in NYC, is one of the premier locations in the country to witness this spectacle. It’s still early but here are a few of the birds that have found their way here after traveling hundreds to thousands of miles. Think about that! Louisana Waterthrush (left) and Pine Warbler (right) are 2 of our earliest warblers to arrive. stay tuned, there are many more to come.