Birding or Photography

Mountain View, California, May 2026

I love both birding and photography and always carry my camera when going out birdwatching, esp., as I want to document any unusual or rare birds that I come across. Also getting photographs helps with identifying some difficult to separate species once I am home and have all the time to look at the details from the comfort of my home desk. I also however like to also just take nice photographs of birds that are aesthetically pleasing.

Increasingly as I try to get better at both activities, I find that doing them together is often conflicting as one activity can easily distract from the other. Does it not happen once in a while that you finally find that perfect shot of your local favorite, that has been eluding you for some time, and at that very moment, a rarity just comes out for a quick glimpse and you miss it? Vice versa when it comes to getting good photographs while birding, if you keep chasing birds, you are never able to concentrate on catching the right moment for your photographs.

So increasingly, when I set out from home now, I first clearly determine whether birding or bird photography is my primary objective for that trip. If it is birding, I will still carry my camera for documenting birds. But if it is photography, I would first choose a location that I have already staked out and for which I have planned the kind of photo I might want to capture. I would already have studied the birds at that spot and I would also look at the weather and the time of the day to judge what kind of light I might get.

Here is a nice clean perch, that I found, which has been attracting a variety of birds near where I live. It always gets studio-like lighting in late afternoon and I keep going back to it now for some photo only trips! Same perch, similar time of day, three different days and three different birds!