This Instructable was inspired by the Kiteman Bird Challenge. I wanted to enter using pictures I visualized taking from my yard and pictures I have taken in the past. I titled this Very Novice because I knew nothing in the beginning about this adventure but I learned a lot about trying to take pictures of wild life. I thought it would be a piece of cake. So follow through and you will see what I have learned and read about a couple of experiences I had.

Step 1: First Day

My first day of bird watching was a very interesting day. I tried to take a lot of pictures but it was fairly uneventful. Did I see any birds? I sure did! I saw a humming bird at my kitchen window and ran for my camera. Tooooo late. Bird was gone before I got back. I found evidence of birds and even discovered a perfect peep hole to spy on them! I even spotted a bird nest! I was outside quietly walking to take a picture of one dove. Too late, then I turned around and 2 flew from the rooftop just above my head! Too fast! My camera does not snap to take the picture when I hit the button. It has a delay and that is why I missed out so often.

Lesson number 1.

When bird watching make sure your camera is fully charged and hanging around your neck ready to take a picture when needed.

Step 2: Day 2

âDay 2 was better but it sure was not what I had envisioned! Taking good quality pictures of birds is very challenging! Now remember I have no bird watching experience and went into this cold. I did learn birds are most active during the early morning hours and late in the afternoon. Today, very early in the morning, I heard grackle birds making quite a fuss! A couple of them were flying and diving and making a noise like they were upset about something. Unfortunately I got no pictures of this ordeal and never figured out what the fuss was all about. They were flying between our house and the neighbors house back and forth for about five minutes. It was humorous even though I did not get any pictures of it.
Grackles are messy birds and most people do not like them. My husband will not leave the dog dish out during the day because the grackles eat the dog food. They dip the dog food into the water dish to soften it and they teach their young to do it also.

videos of grackles: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45deobOJA2g and here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV1AWkP7CkY&feature=related and here are swarms of them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFDhrI5nLRM&feature=related and here are an amazing swarm of starlings a must see video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vhE8ScWe7w&feature=related

Step 3: Day 2 Late Afternoon

By late afternoon on day 2 of my bird watching experience I was disappointed! I did not get any pictures that would make good news even on Instructables! But you have to give me credit for trying so hard. Here are a few of the pictures that I did get.

Step 4: Day 2 Evening

It was getting late and the birds were roosting. I found a couple of birds roosting in the elm tree. I decided it was too late to capture any great pictures so I decided to do a little moonlight bird watching. I wanted to see if these 2 birds were going to roost in the same spot all night. I took pictures up to 3 am and they did not move to a different limb as the pictures will show. Every-time I took their pictures they opened their eyes as if to say " Get that light out of our eyes or we will poop on your head! " No . . . . they didn't but I was beginning to worry about it.

Step 5: Middle of the Night

The birds were roosting and I was bored and disappointed that I did not see any really pretty birds like a Cardinal, Blue Jay, Mocking bird, or I would have been happy with a sparrow! I decided to go to utube and see if anyone filmed any good birds there. This was truly a highlight of my night! I learned a person can hand feed a an Alaskan Hummingbird! I saw all kinds of birds. A cat and and owl that were best friends! I know a lot of you do not like to watch videos but these are really good. They are short also. Here are links, all worth watching.

Hand feeding an Alaskan Humming bird: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUEZkwJulBY&feature=fvwrel

Owlbert the cutest baby owl: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpLciLSlJkI&feature=related

Worlds most distinctive bird: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TorB5rskKiI&feature=relatedhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZcwfRl2Wp8

Holding a wounded Cardinal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZvacOMSis0&feature=related

Cat and owl best friends: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iqmba7npY8g&feature=related

A blue jay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=BXMLiGyu5t8

Northern Cardinal Singing just watch a minute or two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=M7Tt-0IPviU

A Male Baltimore Oriole: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rl0rJ5h4Wzs&feature=fvwrel

Eastern Meadowlark Singing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tibaw36C7mY&feature=fvwrel

Rose-breasted Grosbeak: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NixrHvecZ8c&feature=related

Red-winged Blackbird: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3QicOAiBXk&feature=related

One of my faves frontal courtship of a tragopan satyra: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=7l79rgG9bDk

Dancing bird very funny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=MPWOZZIzDyo

Very interesting Curassos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v7smwA_I74&feature=related

Barred Owl Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fppKGJD3Y6c&feature=fvwrel

Mama feeding her babies at Walmart: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjVsA5oT-Sw&feature=fvwrel

Beautiful cardinal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veYraHY04j4&feature=fvwrel

Baby Cardinals growing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7OtDjnsGbo&feature=related

Baby cardinal hatching: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpgjeFqmgYw&feature=related

Blue robin eggs hatching: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xxvGNmBEDg&feature=related

Swans hatching: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJa8Tp7xBD4&feature=related

Documentary about a rare duck this one is long: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcdolbS7VzY

Step 6: Day 3

By day 3 I came to the decision that birding was a lot like fishing or catching flies. You can see the fish and the flies until you reach for the fishing pole or fly swatter! Birds are the same way when you try to catch their picture! Today I managed to get a few more pictures but nothing that my mind's eye wanted to capture! I had 4 doves at the bird bath and did not get a picture of it. I saw a sparrow and did not get a picture of that either.

Step 7: Day 3 Late Afternoon

By late afternoon on the 3RD day I still did not capture a nice picture of a bird in flight. If you look closely at a small speck somewhat like a piece of pepper that would be a bird I tried to get in flight. I did capture some nice clouds though. All of the pictures I got were either Doves or Grackles. Grackles are the most fun because they strut a lot and have a lot of personality. They are quite aggressive though.

Step 8: Grackles

In November 2010 we spent three months at a cabin in Waco, Texas. Well, it was not exactly a cabin but a house we started building for our son while he went to Baylor for his PHD. Anyway we had gone into Waco and after we finished shopping at Walmart, this is what we saw outside. I had never seen anything like it before. I just so happened to have my camera and took pictures. This happens every year in Waco. As we left Walmart and drove down town the roofs were lined with birds everywhere. I wished this contest had been in late October or November! I imagine there would have been a lot of entries with beautiful pictures and stories to tell. Here is a video I found about grakles in Austin, Tx: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5JnwnTua74&feature=related

Step 9: Babies

I was visiting my sister in Texas a few years ago and on her front porch was a wrens nest. I tried to take a picture of them and this is what I got. I always enjoy visiting her place because she lives in the country and there is always something to see and experience there. She has guineas that roam as they choose. She has a few birdhouses that my mom no doubt made. I even found a dragon fly!

My girlfriend lives out in the country and every year wrens build a nest on her front porch. She always buys a nice large flower basket and hangs it under their nest so if a baby falls it has a chance to live. I don't think it has happened but if it did; I think it is quite possible for a bird to pick her baby up with her beak and put the little bird back into the nest, if not at least she could give it food and water until it could fly away.

Step 10: Called My Son

I called my son and was telling him about my birding experience and how I did not capture the pictures that I had envisioned. He told me that his wife took some awesome pictures that I could share in this Instructable. I learned that she was in the right place at the right time, using the right camera AND she takes a lot better pictures than I do! Here are her beautiful pictures, kind of like the ones I had planned on taking.

Step 11: Bitter Lakes

Bitter Lakes is the place to be in the fall if you are a bird watcher! Here is the link:
http://www.birdingisfun.com/2012/06/birding-at-bitter-lake-national.html

The first picture is a picture I took of my monitor of the Bitter Lakes website . The other pictures were taken about 7 or 8 miles from Bitter Lakes at the Bottomless Lakes. They look very much alike because the pictures I took were at the Pecos river.

Step 12: Sunshiine's Final Thoughts

The past few days were enjoyable even though I did not get fantastic pictures. This Instructable was fun to create and in the future I would like to plan bird watching for the next contest. I hope to have a lot more pictures as well as more experience.

When we move sometime this winter I plan to plant shrubs, trees, and flowers that will attract different birds. I am going to have the dogs in an area where birds can feel safe. I will replenish the feeders everyday. I will have several bird baths available as well as water. I will take videos as well as pictures. I kind of wished I had taken videos for this contest but I was afraid people would not watch them. I will make a lot of bird houses large and small. I will buy a tripod! Watching birds requires a lot of patience and quick reflex!

In closing I would like to thank our instructables company, sponsors, authors, readers, and members; for making this community a great success! Many hours and hard work has been put into making this place the best DIY on the Internet. Have fun and thanks for stopping by and hope you have fun birding!

Sunshiine