This is a red bellied woodpecker who lives in my backyard. I've been chasing him for a couple months now and these are the best two shots of him that I've gotten as of yet. It is a very shy bird, always peeking out from behind trees.
Birding can be a very rewarding, yet extremely difficult, genre of photography. You must have one or both of two things... You must have excellent field skills, able to sneak up and wait for your subject to show up. Sometimes this involves erecting a blind so your subject cannot see you, other times this involves hunkering down and keeping extremely still. The other option is a very long lens. I shoot with a 500mm lens and ALWAYS wish it was longer. Especially when shooting smallish birds like these woodpeckers or other song birds you can never have a big enough lens.
This is one of the main reasons I prefer larger birds. Herons and Egrets are often massive, full grown have nearly a six foot wing span. They also are usually very tolerant of a person sitting in a car taking pictures. So find a bird, grab a bean bag, roll down the windows, and have yourself a party. On a side note, the other thing I like about herons and egrets is they will eat anything they think has a vague chance of fitting down its throat. Frogs, fish, voles, and ducks have all fallen prey to these wading birds. In short, grab a camera and go outside, there are more targets then you can even imagine!
