Sleeping birds

First of all, happy new year to all!!

What is the best way to photograph birds while they are sleeping or resting on one leg? One might think that a flock of birds sleeping does not offer much photography opportunities, but there is a way to make a few nice creations!

Sanderling sleeping – Lido Beach, Florida.
ISO 2000 | f/7.1 | 1/4000 sec. | Manual mode | AI servo rear focusing
This photograph was created with the Canon 600mm f/4 L IS II USM lens (Canon 600mm f/4 L IS II USM review) with the 1.4x extender, the Canon EOS 5D mark III on a gimbal head over tripod.

This is what I call sleeping on a cloud! This Sanderling photograph was created at Lido Beach, Florida, the day after Christmas day while visiting my mother in law.
First off, it usually yields better results to have the subject parallel to your camera. So, in this case a head angle parallel is better than a few degrees towards you. Second, try to have the head in one corner of your viewfinder for better framing. Third, wait for the bird to open its eye, which they usually do every so often wile resting. Note that I am not disturbing the bird, simply wait… Do you know how I created that dreamy part under the bird? It looks like it sleeping above a haze… Reach for a low shooting angle, and the out of focus sand between you and the subject should do the trick.

American Oystercatcher sleeping – Fort Desoto, Florida.
ISO 400 | f/7.1 | 1/3200 sec. | Manual mode | AI servo rear focusing
This photograph was created with the Canon 600mm f/4 L IS II USM lens (Canon 600mm f/4 L IS II USM review) with the 1.4x extender, the Canon EOS 5D mark III handheld.

This American Oystercatcher was created at Fort Desoto. On this one I created a mirror effect by having a second subject blurred in the background. When dealing with a flock, try to work on the sides so that it will be easier to isolate subjects. If you cannot, try to look for an interesting composition.

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Steven