Bird studies with a camera

by Frank M. Chapman

American Museum of Natural History,

New York city, March, 1900.

CONTENTS

	PAGE
Introduction	[1]
What is bird photography?—The scientific value of bird photography—The charm of bird photography.
THE OUTFIT AND METHODS OF THE BIRD PHOTOGRAPHER
The bird photographer’s outfit	[6]
The camera—The lens—The shutter—The tripod—Plates—Blinds—Sundries.
The methods of the bird photographer	[26]
Haunts—Seasons—Nests and eggs—Young birds—Adult birds.
BIRD STUDIES WITH A CAMERA
Bird photography begins at home	[40]
The Chickadee—a study in black and white	[47]
The Least Bittern and some other reed inhabitants	[62]
Two Herons	[76]
Where Swallows roost	[89]
Two days with the Terns	[106]
Percé and Bonaventure	[128]
The Magdalens	[146]
Bird Rock	[152]
Life on Pelican Island, with some speculations on the origin of bird migration	[191]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

		PAGE
1.	Gannet, Murres, Puffins, and Razorbilled Auks	[Frontispiece]
	Tailpiece. Young Baltimore Oriole	[5]
	Initial. Long-focus camera and telephoto lens	[6]
2.	Lens test No. 1	[14]
3.	Enlargement of the bird in test No. 1	[15]
4.	Lens test No. 2	[16]
5.	Enlargement of bird in test No. 2	[17]
6.	Lens test No. 3	[18]
7.	Enlargement of bird in test No. 3	[19]
	Initial. Young Great-crested Flycatcher	[26]
8.	Spring	[27]
9.	Summer	[27]
10.	Autumn	[28]
11.	Winter—four pictures (Nos. 8–11) from the same point of view	[28]
12.	Nest locality of five species	[29]
13.	Nesting site, nest, and young of Marsh Hawk	[30]
14.	Young Marsh Hawks and nest	[31]
15.	Young Great-crested Flycatcher	[32]
16.	Young Baltimore Orioles and nest	[33]
17.	Wood Thrush on nest	[34]
18.	Chestnut-sided Warbler on nest	[35]
19.	Catbird scolding	[37]
	Initial. “Fairview”	[40]
20.	House Sparrows and Junco	[41]
21.	Junco	[42]
22.	Female House Sparrow and nest	[43]
23.	Screech Owl	[44]
	Initial. Chickadee	[47]
24.	Chickadee on ground	[49]
25.	Chickadee taking piece of bread	[50]
26.	A bird in the hand	[51]
27.	Chickadee at nest hole	[54]
28.	Chickadee at nest hole	[55]
29.	A Chickadee family	[58]
30.	A Chickadee family	[59]
	Initial. Red-winged Blackbird	[62]
31.	Least Bittern’s nesting site	[64]
32.	Least Bittern’s nest and eggs	[66]
33.	Least Bittern mimicking surroundings	[67]
34.	Least Bittern mimicking surroundings	[68]
35.	Young Red-winged Blackbirds	[71]
36.	Least Bittern eating her eggs	[73]
37.	Least Bittern on nest	[74]
	Initial. Where the Night Herons feed	[76]
38.	Five Night Herons’ nests in swamp maple	[79]
39.	A view in the Heron rookery	[80]
40.	Night Heron feeding	[81]
41.	Young Night Herons in nest	[82]
42.	Young Night Herons leaving nest	[83]
43.	Young Night Herons on branches	[84]
44.	Great Blue Heron, nests and young	[88]
	Initial. Tree Swallows on wires	[89]
45.	Hackensack marshes in August	[91]
46.	Marsh mallows	[93]
47.	Wild rice	[94]
48.	Tree Swallows on wires	[97]
49.	Tree Swallows in tree	[100]
50.	Tree Swallows on wire and at pile	[102]
51.	Swallows in the road	[104]
	Initial. A corner of Penikese	[106]
52.	Nesting site, nest, and three eggs of Common Tern	[110]
53.	Tern hovering above nest	[111]
54.	Nest and eggs of Tern on upland	[112]
55.	Tern’s nest and eggs in drift débris	[113]
56.	Young Tern hiding on rocky beach	[114]
57.	Young Tern hiding in the grass	[115]
58.	Tern alighting on nest	[116]
59.	Tern on hillside nest	[117]
60.	Tern’s nest and hatching eggs in seaweed	[118]
61.	Tern about to feed young	[119]
62.	Tern brooding young	[120]
63.	Tern on beach nest	[121]
64.	Tern on beach nest	[121]
65.	Tern on upland nest	[122]
66.	Young Terns about four days old	[123]
67.	Young Tern about a week old	[124]
68.	Young Tern, second plumage appearing	[124]
69.	Young Tern, further advance of second plumage	[125]
70.	Young Tern, stage before flight	[126]
	Initial. A Percé codfisher	[128]
71.	Percé Rock from the north	[131]
72.	Percé Rock from the southeast	[134]
73.	Splitting cod on Percé beach	[136]
74.	Young Savanna Sparrow	[137]
75.	Gannet cliffs of Bonaventure	[140]
76.	Cornel or bunchberry	[142]
77.	A ledge of nesting Gannets	[144]
	Initial. Grosse Isle	[146]
78.	Nest and eggs of Fox Sparrow	[148]
79.	Young Guillemots	[150]
	Initial. The Bird Rock light	[152]
80.	Bird Rock from the southwest	[153]
81.	North side of Bird Rock	[156]
82.	A corner of the Rock	[160]
83.	The landing at the base of the Rock	[164]
84.	The landing on top of the Rock	[165]
85.	Kittiwakes and young on nests	[168]
86.	The lighthouse, keeper’s dwelling, and other buildings	[169]
87.	Razorbilled Auks and “Ringed” Murre	[170]
88.	Puffins	[172]
89.	Murre’s egg	[174]
90.	Young Murres and egg	[175]
91.	Kittiwakes and young on nests	[176]
92.	Entrance to Puffin’s burrow	[177]
93.	Puffin’s nest and egg	[178]
94.	Young Puffin on nest	[179]
95.	Leach’s Petrel on nest	[180]
96.	Young Leach’s Petrel with nesting material	[181]
97.	Young Gannet	[182]
98.	Gannets	[183]
99.	Gannets on nests	[186]
100.	Gannet on nest	[188]
	Initial. Young Pelicans in nest tree	[191]
101.	Pelicans on ground nests	[197]
102.	Interviewing a group of young Pelicans	[198]
103.	Among the Pelicans	[199]
104.	Head and pouch of Pelican	[200]
105.	Pelican’s pouch from above	[201]
106.	Newly hatched Pelicans and nests	[206]
107.	Young Pelican in tree nest	[208]
108.	Young Pelican, downy stage	[209]
109.	Young Pelican, wing quills appearing	[211]
110.	Young Pelicans, stage preceding flight	[212]

BIRD STUDIES WITH A CAMERA

WITH INTRODUCTORY CHAPTERS ON THE OUTFIT AND METHODS OF THE BIRD PHOTOGRAPHER

INTRODUCTION

What is Bird Photography?—Bird photography, as I would encourage its practice, does not mean simply photographing birds; it means the use of the camera as an aid in depicting the life histories of birds. A picture of the bird itself is, of course, of the first importance, but any fact in its biography which the camera can be employed to portray is within the province of bird photography.