Passer domesticus (House Sparrow)

Passer domesticus (common name: House sparrow)

I loved the way this sparrow was sitting on the fence as if it was admiring the view of the lake. The long focal length allowed me to take this shot without getting too close which would alarm the bird. Shot at Lake Volvi, Thessaloniki, Greece.

Photos by George J. Reclos
 
Shooting Data:

Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Tamron SP AF 180mm f/3.5 Di Macro 1:1
Sensitivity: ISO200
Shutter speed: 1/125, f16 Aperture priority
Flash: None
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS2, levels adjusted, Smart sharpening added and resized. Some of the pictures taken at the Evros Delta and Dadia forest are oversharpened intentionally, to make the main subject more "visible".

House sparrow

Sparrows are amongst the birds I like most. Small, playful but still always suspicious and ready to fly away. Until the purchase of the 500 mm lens, getting a descent photo of them was limited to occasions in which the bird was eating, usually close to other birds. With the long telephoto lens, the limits have expanded considerably and include any sparrow within a distance of 20 meters. This one was sitting on an electricity wire about 12 meters from where I was sitting. When I raised the monster lens it got nervous and never took its eyes away from me. When the flash fired it flew away. Luckily, the shot was perfectly in focus. The second one was shot on another occasion with almost identical settings.

Photos by George J. Reclos

Shooting Data:

(Top)
Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Nikkor ED 500mm f/4 P
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/1000 sec - f/4, Aperture priority mode
Flash: SB-800 in i-TTL mode
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS2, levels adjusted, smart sharpening added and resized.

(Bottom)
Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Nikkor ED 500mm f/4 P
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/1250 sec - f/4, Aperture priority mode
Flash: SB-800 in i-TTL mode
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS2, levels adjusted, smart sharpening added and resized.  

House sparrow

We found this sparrow on Mount Hymmetus, in Attica, enjoying the joys of coming spring. As it saw us approaching it started moving from branch to branch and kept looking at us. We did not want to disturb it but as the branches were still bare the opportunity of taking some good photos was too good to be missed. We stayed motionless for a bit until the bird felt safe enough to come to the front branches, nearer the sunshine. There was our chance ....

Photos by Marina Parha and George J. Reclos

Shooting Data:

1. Camera: Nikon D300
Lens: AF VR Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 D ED @ 400mm
Sensitivity: ISO 800
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/2500 sec - f/8, Aperture priority mode
Flash: SB-800 in i-TTL/BL mode
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS4, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized. 

2. Camera: Nikon D300
Lens: AF VR Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 D ED @ 400mm
Sensitivity: ISO 800
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/2000 sec - f/8, Aperture priority mode
Flash: SB-800 in i-TTL/BL mode
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS4, levels adjusted, sharpening added and resized.