Today’s Image | House Finch
Today’s Image | House Finch This House Finch’s feathers are all puffed out to keep warm. Winter is definitely close at hand. Note: I post an image most days at hankconrad.com.
In Search of Snowbirds | House Finch
Northern Illinois | 1/28/2019 12:15 pm Local Time | Light Snow 29°F Moderate Winds
In Search of Snowbirds | House Finch House Finch are easy to bring to your backyard. Just fill your backyard feeders with small, black oil sunflower seed. If House Finches discover your feeders, they might bring flocks of 50 or more birds. Actually, my backyard feeder is a general outdoor bird feed which contains some sunflower seed. They show up by the dozen in the winter. Once they are close, winter background help separate them from the background.
The Back Story Small birds like this House Finch can be challenging to capture even with a long, fast lens. The Nikon 1 V3 with the 70-300mm lens allows for a 810mm effective focal length. It’s a long, not so fast lens at f5.6, but a very sharp lens. Still, it takes some practice to get a tack sharp image shooting handheld. For more insight, see Nikon 1 V3 for Birds | a 7 Image Story.
Quick Facts…
| Male House Finch … rosy red around the face and upper breast | |
| Habitat | Woodland edges, city parks, backyards, farms etc. |
| Range | Year around in Northern Illinois |
| Nest | Wide variety of sites: conifers, palms, ivy on buildings, cactus, holes in structures |
| Diet | Vegetable matter; mostly weed seeds and seeds, buds, berries, flower parts, & small fruits. |
| Behavior | Gregarious birds seen on feeders or perched high in trees. Sometimes, they feed on the ground. |
| Size | Length: 5.1-5.5 in | Weight: 0.6-0.9 oz | Wingspan: 7.9-9.8 in |
Last Snow Birds | House Finch
Last Snow Birds | House Finch House Finch love small, black oil sunflower seed. My backyard feeder is a general outdoor bird feed which contains some sunflower seed. They show up by the dozen in the winter. For the whole story with all images, see Last Snow Birds | a 7 Image Story.
Last Snow Birds | a 7 Image Story
Last Snow Birds | a 7 Image Story The snow storm this week will likely be the last of the season. Spring is only a few days away. The snow on the trees melted by the afternoon. These images are of common, local birds. Still, capturing the falling snow in the photos make them a bit different.
Male Cardinal Cardinals seem to like winter. A Male Cardinal’s brilliant red body can cheer us up, particularly when viewed against the falling snow. Cardinals don’t migrate and don’t molt into a dull plumage. They stay breathtakingly beautiful against winter’s snow.
Dark-eyed Junco The snowfall makes a nice background for a Dark-eyed Junco. The Juncos are common around here and stay around all winter. They seem to like the nearby woodland areas, but also hang around the bird feeder, particularly in the winter when it snows.
Bird Branch Where is the bird? Well, there is no bird. It flew away. Still, I just like this image. It’s about the budding tree and snow showers.
Sparrow Sparrows are very common and plentiful in northern Illinois. Many folks don’t pay much attention to them. They can still make a nice photo.
House Finch House Finch love small, black oil sunflower seed. My backyard feeder is a general outdoor bird feed which contains some sunflower seed. They show up by the dozen in the winter
Each image will be posted individually this week with a bit more narrative under category Last Snow Birds.
Click any image below for a slide show.
Nikon 1 V3 for Birds | House Finch
Nikon 1 V3 for Birds | House Finch Small birds like this House Finch can be challenging to capture even with a long, fast lens. The Nikon 1 V3 with the 70-300mm lens allows for a 810mm effective focal length. It’s a long, not so fast lens at f5.6, but a very sharp lens. Still, it takes some practice to get a tack sharp image shooting handheld. To bring these cute colorful birds to your backyard, fill your backyard feeders with small, black oil sunflower seed. If House Finches discover your feeders, they might bring flocks of 50 or more birds. Actually, my backyard feeder is a general outdoor bird feed which contains some sunflower seed. They show up by the dozen in the winter. For the whole story with all images, see Nikon 1 V3 for Birds | a 7 Image Story.
Hank Conrad © 2023
