Hi there,
I'm going to be re-designing my 'west facing' front garden (a new brick wall, wider driveway, and maybe a new hedge at the front and side), so want to plan this out with 'bird photography' in mind. I'm keen to get some advice on what feeders or other equipment I should consider within the garden, and any tips for getting close to the birds to get some nice photos. I've attached a picture of the garden to this post.
I have a back garden, but it's not very scenic (a close backdrop of semi-detached houses!) and the dog is in there a lot so chases everything that moves!
I'm a keen photographer (though I don't have a massive reach at the moment - Canon EOS 5D, 70-200 2.8 L IS Lens, & 1.4x Converter), but new to bird photography. My goals are to get the sort of photos that you see professionals taking, with those lovely blurred green backgrounds.
If I set this up right, I already have a decent backdrop in place in front of the garden (those tall trees in the distance in the attached picture). I've currently got fairly small conifers (all around 3-5 foot tall) in the front and side of the garden, though I would be open to suggestions to replace these with either faster growing conifers (like Leylandi) or another form of hedge all together.
When talking about feeders, I'm guessing that I'm going to need something free-standing as although I have lots of grass at the moment, I don't have much in the way of walls or fences to hang things on. I'm also keen to have natural looking items where possible so that any photos I do get look are 'natural' as possible.
And just to reassure anyone, I know that bird feeding isn't just for Christmas, so this is something that I will be keeping up long after I've got the photos an am hopefully moving onto to more advanced birding. I've got a small child (6 months old) so hope that he will grow up being able to see all sorts of birds feeding in the garden.
Thanks for any advice/tips,
Stephen
I'm going to be re-designing my 'west facing' front garden (a new brick wall, wider driveway, and maybe a new hedge at the front and side), so want to plan this out with 'bird photography' in mind. I'm keen to get some advice on what feeders or other equipment I should consider within the garden, and any tips for getting close to the birds to get some nice photos. I've attached a picture of the garden to this post.
I have a back garden, but it's not very scenic (a close backdrop of semi-detached houses!) and the dog is in there a lot so chases everything that moves!
I'm a keen photographer (though I don't have a massive reach at the moment - Canon EOS 5D, 70-200 2.8 L IS Lens, & 1.4x Converter), but new to bird photography. My goals are to get the sort of photos that you see professionals taking, with those lovely blurred green backgrounds.
If I set this up right, I already have a decent backdrop in place in front of the garden (those tall trees in the distance in the attached picture). I've currently got fairly small conifers (all around 3-5 foot tall) in the front and side of the garden, though I would be open to suggestions to replace these with either faster growing conifers (like Leylandi) or another form of hedge all together.
When talking about feeders, I'm guessing that I'm going to need something free-standing as although I have lots of grass at the moment, I don't have much in the way of walls or fences to hang things on. I'm also keen to have natural looking items where possible so that any photos I do get look are 'natural' as possible.
And just to reassure anyone, I know that bird feeding isn't just for Christmas, so this is something that I will be keeping up long after I've got the photos an am hopefully moving onto to more advanced birding. I've got a small child (6 months old) so hope that he will grow up being able to see all sorts of birds feeding in the garden.
Thanks for any advice/tips,
Stephen