For the past several days, I’ve been lugging the 500 f4 with a 1.4 teleconverter (700mm focal length) on a tripod. Why? It is so heavy that I don’t like to carry it much, like I used to do. But, I wanted some better images of the Varied Thrush and the Rufous-backed Robin and 400mm focal length just isn’t enough. I’ve had some luck with the Varied Thrush but the Rufous-backed Robin has been hard to find. While carrying that combo around, I’ve had some other good photo opportunities and the results are so good, I will probably keep using the 500 f4, for awhile at least.
I now have lots of nice images of the Varied Thrush. Eastern Phoebe getting a drink. Female Red-shafted Flicker feeding on palm berries. And a male doing the same. This coyote has been eating palm berries too, off the ground. It spends a lot of time around the pond at the golf course. Here it is again, looking for trouble or maybe just looking something to eat beside palm berries.The coyote would find this a tasty meal if it could catch it. This is a Botta’s Pocket Gopher, the only species of pocket gopher found here. I just happened to see it pushing dirt out of its burrow. A hybrid Red-naped/Red-Breasted Sapsucker. A typical Red-naped Sapsucker would have a black band under the red throat, while a Red-breasted would much more red on the head and breast. Female Cassin’s Finch getting a drink from a puddle.
All of the photos shown above were taken with the Canon 500 f4 lens with a 1.4 teleconverter. As always, right click on an image to open in a new tab for a larger image.
