Goldfinch-palooza

In years past, I really used to lament that we didn't get goldfinches. I would see an occasional goldfinch on the clothesline, or on top of our lamppost, but more often, I would happen to glimpse something yellow in a faraway bush. This year, however, it's like Goldfinch-palooza at my house. I don't know what it is, perhaps the new feeder, but it now seems that I hardly see anything but goldfinches. (House finches, too, and the occasional Nuthatch.) Curious.

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Goldfinches Posing at the Feeder (HDR, Dry Brush Filter)

I like to call this a quasi-experimental photo, because I took several of my usual photo editing methods and simply blended them all together. When I first started editing the image in Paintshop, the image lacked the 'pop' I was looking for, so I went over to Photomatix to do its HDR thing. Well, then the image had just a little too much 'pop', so I toned it down a bit by layering the HDR image into the original image. Still not completely satisfied with some of the noise in the photo, I tried layering in a Dry Brush Filtered version of the image, coming out with the result that you see above: Goldfinches. They're posing at my feeder. (In their usual poses.) Thanks for stopping by!

Aerial Assault on the Bird Feeder (Dry Brush Filter)

Here, two male goldfinches were already on the feeder. As a third goldfinch made his approach from the air, the other two are clearly unhappy about it.(It didn't actually land but instead flew away.)

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Goldfinch (Sponge Filter)

No, that yellow sponge filtered thing featured in today's image is not Spongebob Squarepants; it's a goldfinch at the feeder. (Surprise! Ta-da!) I thought I'd try another filter with a familiar subject to see how it would turn out. Thanks for stopping by!

Goldfinch on the Feeder, Branch in the Background (Platinum Photo Effect)

Sometimes I like to use the Time Machine photo effects from Paintshop Pro for their old timey effect. Here, I went with the black and white Platinum photo effect, which was interesting when the main subject of the photo is a bright, bright yellow goldfinch. Taking the yellow out of the equation really changes the bird; the white has a different contrast with the black wings than the yellow does in the color version. Not as prominent in the picture are the fuzzy, out-of-focus branches in the background, which reminds me of some of the backgrounds that were used for the old grade school photo days.

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(BW) Goldfinches Looking in the Same Direction (Stamp Filter)

I'm not sure what this pair of goldfinches was looking at, but I liked how they both had their heads turned to face in the same direction. The goldfinch on the left had its head turned all the way around, looking over its back (!) to see whatever it was that the birds were looking at, which I thought was pretty cool.

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Another Pose, Goldfinch on the Pole (Stamp Filter)

This was another pose in which I captured the goldfinch. I processed the image as a layered stamp filter (9, 18, 27, and 36 -- layered together at 100, 75, 50, and 25%) and then layered in at 67% opacity the original colored image for the above result. The image almost has a comic book/graphic art feeling to it. Thanks for stopping by!

Goldfinch on the Pole (Dry Brush Filter)

Normally I don't find these bird underbelly shots to be all that flattering, or to make for very good pictures, but I think that something was redeemed in the image by the angle of the bird's head turning away from the direction in which the rest of the body is pointed. I think it adds some visual interest to the photo, as though something (out of camera view) has caught the bird's attention.

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A Feederless Goldfinch

As the truth is told, the feeder (which you do not see in this photo) is located directly under the goldfinch that is here pictured. I think it was waiting for an opening before flying down to the feeder to grab some seed. But, for a moment, I managed to take a picture of the goldfinch without a feeder. It was something different, anyway. Thanks for stopping by!

Goldfinch at the Feeder (Stamp Filter, Colorized)

I've been trying a few of these now, where I layer a few of the black and white stamp filter processed images, and then I layer in the original color image at about 67%. It mutes the color somewhat and also makes the darker parts of the image stand out. It's an interesting experiment. Thanks for stopping by!

Goldfinch with a Seed in its Beak, Looking Down (Dry Brush Filter)

There was something tender looking in this goldfinch image; I think maybe it was the inclination of the bird's head as it's holding the seed.

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Goldfinch at the Feeder (Dry Brush Filter)

This little goldfinch kept looking back over its shoulder occasionally from the feeder. I'm not sure if it was checking me out, or if it was keeping an eye out for other birds (that typically come and chase each other away from the feeder. The male goldfinches have sometimes been rather aggressive toward each other.)

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Quoth the Grackle (Stamp Filter, with color)

Once upon a morning, cheery,
Contemplating music theory,
Warbling a happy tune,
I surpassed the common loon.
From my yard, I heard the cackle
Of a dark, mysterious grackle,
Crushing leaves with crispy crackle,
Saying, "No, please, nevermore!
Your foul notes make my ears sore!"

Or something like that.

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Return of the Flicker

Here is one of my first images of a Northern Flicker that has returned to the area. (Several years ago, I saw a pair of flickers doing quite the intricate dance together on a tree. Haven't seen any of that quite yet.) Thanks for stopping by!

Duck in the Water (Dry Brush Filter)

This is a different duck from yesterday's duck (not that you could much tell from the photo,  but this duck was actually swimming with yesterday's duck.) I liked the color version on this photo, so I thought I would share. Thanks for stopping by!

Duck in the Water (Stamp Filter)

I'm pretty sure this was a duck or maybe a loon, but you really can't tell after the image has been processed with the stamp filter. One thing is for sure, it isn't the Loch Ness Monster, because I wasn't shooting anywhere near Loch Ness. ;) Thanks for stopping by!

Mourning Dove (Dry Brush Filter)

A number of years ago, I had a really cool picture of a Mourning Dove that I had processed on Photomatix (probably from 3 exposures). Unlike other birds - which seem to be in a constant state of motion, the Mourning Dove seems to actually hold still - long enough that one could the more easily get several exposures in order for merging together into an HDR image. The photo in today's post was also processed in Photomatix, although it was only one image. Seeing that I am seeing the Mourning Doves around a bit more, I might try to see if I can grab three exposures and recreate the experience of the HDR image that I created a few years ago. Thanks for stopping by!

Chickadee in Flight (Daguerreotype Effect)

Again, I'm not sure that such a picture would have been possible with the original daguerreotype imaging process, but... thanks to the wonders of the modern digital camera and post-processing techniques, voila! Thanks for stopping by!

Flying Finch Joining Finches at Feeder (Daguerreotype Effect)

Here is another set of photos like yesterday's photo; the first was processed in Paintshop and the second edited in Photoshop Elements. To get the original, the camera was shooting at ISO-3200 (lots of noise!) with an exposure time of 1/1000 sec. (pretty fast, but was still not quite quick enough to catch the detail that I would have liked to see in the flying bird). Thanks for stopping by!

 

House Finches (Daguerreotype Effect)

I don't imagine that such images would be possible using a true daguerreotype process, as the birds barely sit still long enough for the split second (usually quicker than 1/30 for best results) shot as it is. The first image is the version that was processed as a daguerreotype image from the RAW file in Corel Paintshop Pro; the second version was touched up in Photoshop Elements. Thanks for stopping by!

Teeter-Totter Nuthatch v. Woodpecker (Dry Brush Filter)

I've watched the woodpecker land and scare the other birds away (although, some of the birds have chased away the woodpecker, too...), but here we have a teeter-totter face-off between the woodpecker and the nuthatch. The nuthatch, having just come in for a landing, boosted the woodpecker up into the air. I'm sure that the feeder soon afterwards swung back in the other direction... Thanks for stopping by!

Male Goldfinch (Graphic Novel Filter)

Lately we have been seeing a lot of goldfinches at our feeder. We have other birds still coming, but... we sure have seen a lot of goldfinches. Thanks for stopping by!

Goldfinch Turning (Stamp Filter)

As the goldfinch on my feeder turned its head, I really liked the pose and decided to process and post the image for today's post. Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Mothers' Day Goldfinch (Dry Brush Filter)

There's nothing particularly Mothers' Days-y about this goldfinch (other than it possibly being a female, its color significantly muted in comparison to the male). So... happy mothers' day! Thanks for stopping by!

Knock, Knock (Dry Brush Filter)

With its claw lifted up to the feeder hole, and with its head looking inside, there was something about this picture that I thought begged the caption, "Knock, knock!" I wish I had a good woodpecker joke to go along with it... Thanks for stopping by!

American Gold Finch (Dry Brush Filter)

When goldfinches stop
for a visit to take seed,
the feeder depletes.

(Actually, it's when any bird stops for a visit that the feeder depletes, but here it's a goldfinch.)

Stamped! Woodpecker

It was cool to have something different visit my bird feeder, which is exactly how I would describe the bird in today's photo: Something different! (Yes, we've had woodpeckers around the yard, but I don't quite seem to catch them quite as often as the chickadees and the nuthatches.) Thanks for stopping by!

Blurry Chickadee on the Move

Happy May the fourth, everybody! Today's picture is a chickadee in motion, a sweeping blur of an image that I (1) dry brush filtered, (2) stamp filtered, and then (3) layered the dry brushed image into the stamp filtered image, resulting in (4) the moving image that you see above. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamped! Nuthatch at the Feeder

This bird I know for sure... it's the nuthatch back at the feeder. Here, I applied my stamp filter layering process to the image. Thanks for stopping by!

Female Finch Again? Mystery Bird (Stamp Filter)

Applying the Stamp Filter to this image doesn't much help in identifying the bird, but I like the shapes on the bird (and how the strokes of light in the background turned out.) Thanks for stopping by!

Female House Finch? (Dry Brush Filter)

I suspect that this is maybe a female house finch, but I cannot say for certain. There is something that seems slightly off -- maybe it's something about the color -- that makes me think that this might be something else. (Maybe it's the absence of the male?) Not sure. Hope you enjoy the picture. Thanks for stopping by!