You can’t position flying birds, so watching for just the right moment to photograph 4 Tundra Swans in flight with pleasing wing positions against a beautiful background sky color provided a favorite late fall photograph (photo info: 600mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/3200 shutter speed, 800 ISO).

Looking ahead to the end of the year, on a windy Saturday after an overnight snowstorm I reviewed and copied all the digital photos I have selected and edited as the best photos I’ve taken throughout the year – day by day, week by week, month by month – into one computer file named “Best of ’23.” It’s a practice I go through each year, and I encourage you to do the same as we approach the end of the year. It was exciting to look at all my best photos at once, which amounted to a few shy of 600 photographs – WoW!

After following this American Goldfinch from flower to flower for at least 100 yards, it eventually perched on a few wild sunflowers, providing a particularly beautiful summer image of a popular songbird (600mm zoom lens, f-7 aperture, 1/1200 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

I’ve noted before that this has been one of the best years I’ve experienced for photographing birds, especially considering that I did a minimum of traveling out of my home range – aside from a trip to Florida. But wait, my year-end count didn’t include the Florida keepers, and it doesn’t include December’s best, yet; so there will actually be many more than 600 by the end of the year.

Making a mini-falcon look like a true falcon requires a trusting individual American Kestrel that permitted a relatively close approach and an extended photo period. Facing low into a strong wind in a Badlands landscape, the kestrel opened its wings for a moment to catch its balance, providing an exciting falcon image (600mm zoom lens, f-6 aperture, 1/1000 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

That considerable number of “best photos” is underlined by the fact that I’m improving as a photographer. And that’s one of the great things about photography, you are always learning, improving, and advancing as you enjoy every outing into the wild, or documenting the birds in your yard. Each photograph emphasizes the thrills and fun I had in the moment, and that enjoyment continues during the review and editing process when I see the results on my computer screen – our modern day digital darkroom.

It’s one thing to gain the trust of one bird, but it took the trust of 5 Redhead ducklings, individually and as a group, to continue resting in a tranquil setting that made this image so attractive. It also required finding a small opening among the tall cattails that surrounded the golden ducklings. Balancing the need for a wide aperture to keep all the ducklings in focus required using a slow shutter speed that still provided a sharp image. Note the feather lying in front of the closest duckling (600mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/320 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

It’s also testament to the great equipment used, even though my camera and lens combo are among the most economical on the market. But today’s digital equipment is absolutely remarkable for the quality of images they can produce, and I can’t say enough about how much I enjoy using my Tamron 150-to-600mm zoom lens, for its versatility and the quality of images it produces.

As a species that tends to prefer tangles of plants and underbrush, seeing a Mourning Warbler in the open is rare, even for a moment, but what really makes this a special photo is the degree of sharpness that shows the tiniest details in the feathers and other features of this small forest warbler (600mm zoom lens, f-6 aperture, 1/640 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

After using a 400mm lens for years, that extra 200mm the 600 provides really makes a difference too, and what has made using a 600 that possible is the built-in image stabilization feature, and the high-speed autofocus. In short, equipment, even the most affordable bird photography equipment, is a thrill to use and appreciate the resulting photos.

A concerted effort to document the development of a young loon became a mid-summer to early-fall photo endeavor that brought long-time friends together (Dave, Linda, Dwight, and Paul) and provided a memorable series of loon photos in west-central Minnesota. Sunny afternoons were a must as we shared time with a pair of Common Loons and their downy hatchling that developed into a beautiful fledgling in advance of fall migration. This photo was taken August 8th (210mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/1600 shutter speed, 800 ISO).

Another element in this year’s success is the diversity and abundance of birds I encounter in my home range, and it’s also a reflection of my dedication to searching out photo subjects, near home and by surveying surrounding areas for miles in each direction of the compass during birding drives. As a birder and as a biologist I have always covered a lot of landscape and it’s paid off.

Perhaps the most common bird of prey is no less attractive or dramatic than other raptors in flight across a cold blue sky during early spring migration. The extra-fast shutter speed effectively stopped the action of a downstroke of its wings to show the details of the markings on individual feathers (600mm zoom lens, f-8 aperture, 1/4000 shutter speed, ISO 400).

And then there are the birds! Each year is different, and this year was spectacular for birding in my corners of Dakota, and many birds were especially trusting of my approaches and presence, often allowing me to watch and wait and take a variety of photos to choose from – that was often the case – bird by bird, flock by flock.

Among a flock of 10 young American Golden Plovers intercepted by surprise in mid-September, this first-fall plover was chasing fellow migrants during a brief stopover along their route from the Arctic tundra to wintering areas in northeast Argentina (600mm zoom lens, f-8 aperture, 1/1250 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

The bottom line is that I was very, very lucky! I always emphasize the importance of luck in bird photography, but as some folks point out, we make our own luck, and with years of experience, adequate equipment, and making the most of an hour or more in the field during sunny days, I was especially lucky. Timing also has a lot to do with it; waiting for a sunny day, or sunny hour; timing photo periods during afternoon or morning hours. Keeping in touch with where the birds are and what they are doing day to day, week to week – it all adds up. So there you have it, a recipe for making 2024 a super year as a bird photographer – as a hobbyist or at any level you find yourself these days.

With thick feathers covering its feet down to its toes that act as snow shoes on the surface of deep snow, Sharp-tailed Grouse are one of the few year-round residents of the northern Great Plains (600mm zoom lens, f-8 aperture, 1/3200 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

As I provide the above year-end round-up, the main purpose of this article is to have an opportunity to share the best of the best photos I took this year. But because there are so many that I want to share and provide insights about, this will be “Part 1” of a 2-issue selection of photographs from 2023. Actually, “Part 2” is provided in my Editor Afield article in this issue. And I will follow through with “Part 3” of my Best of ’23 next week in the Bird Photography feature. I hope you enjoy the photographs; it’s been quite enjoyable organizing the images, and it has inspired me to do a little more traveling next year to continue my improving my photos and adding to my files of bird photographs.

With favorite photos of 6 species of grebes to choose from this year, this portrait of an Eared Grebe in full alternate plumage shows that sometimes a simple image can draw you into the bird’s world and see that it shows a lot of character and contrasting colors. Every bird deserves the attention of photographers, birders, and conservationists (600mm zoom lens, f-8 aperture, 1/1250 shutter speed, 400 ISO).

Please also let me share my best tips and techniques for photographing birds, which we recently published as a Bird Photography article a few weeks ago in the October 25th issue. You can refer to Birding Wire and Good Luck!

Article and photographs by Paul Konrad

Share your bird photos and birding experiences at editorstbw2@gmail.com