cinnamon teal

It goes without saying that in photography we tend to go for the most color in our photographs. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing but when it comes to birds that can leave a lot out of the files. Male birds tend to have a more distinct color as they try to attract mates thus making them more impressive subjects to photograph. However, the females are just as important to the equation. This female Cinnamon Teal is a great example. The males are a very distinct red, it’s hard to miss them in all honesty. The females, while pretty, don’t stand out nearly as much. Both make for great subjects and if you’re just out for the morning or afternoon then why not spend time with both.

It may be a common duck on the west side of the Rocky Mountains, but for me it’s one that I’ve never been able to photograph. That changed this past weekend when I spent the afternoon down at one of the local ponds. I love working the ponds because there will always be those predictable birds to work with, in my case the Yellow Headed Blackbirds, and then there is the chance that you will be able to see something special.

Now I was shooting with the D5, 600f/4 with a TC-17E II and at times in High Speed Crop. This was as close as the male Teal came to me. He just wanted to feed, wasn’t interested in playing around. The female was more cooperative and came over for a little bit.

When it comes to working in a body of water, you really have to watch those foregrounds and backgrounds for pesky surface debris that when magnified are just really blurry dots. He liked this foliage for feeding purposes and I can’t say I minded all that much either.