The Burrowing Owls are beginning to set up house ... preparing for mating season.
It's so good to see them again.

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[quote=mflowe]I recently updated PS to version 21.2.4. Now I'm getting the following messages: When I try to open a raw file>"Could not complete your request because PS does not recognize this type of file". When I try to open one of my jpegs> "Could not open because the file was not found". I still have earlier versions 2019 and 2018 and tryed them with same problem. I posted this question to Adobe forum but haven't received reply yet. Before I get on the phone with Adobe I thought I would try here to see if anyone has any advice. Thanks in advance for any help.[/quote

After upgrading to version 22 I had the same errors. Ended up calling Adobe. They took control of my computer remotely and disabled my graphics card in the preferences menu. All is fine now.

On a PC follow this: Edit > Preferences > Performance. Then on the upper right side uncheck "Use Graphics Processor"

I hope this helps.

Yesterday I took no photos of the nest. This morning I set up my lawn chair to observe for a few minutes before setting up the ladder and getting the camera, as is my normal routine. Shortly after I sat down momma hummingbird showed up, buzzed the nest a couple of times and left. I patiently observed for another hour and a half, yet she never returned. Very odd I thought to have absolutely no activity at the nest for that length of time. I thought maybe I had made her nervous, so I went in fixed myself some breakfast and a third cup of coffee. Continued walking outside and checking the nest from a distance of approximately 40' to see if she was sitting on it. No appearances. I finally decided to set up the ladder in such a way as to investigate the inside of the nest. Sadness overtook me upon the witnessing of a ravaged and empty nest. The side of the nest that I could not observe from the ground had been torn out (see photo). I have no idea of what attacked the chicks, but the robin's nest, approximately 3 feet above, was still fully operational and very busy. Possibly the robin was large enough to ward off whatever did so much damage to her neighbors below. Hawk? They're around. Squirrel? I've seen them in the back yard, but never in the front trees. There was a partially eaten cherry complete with pit directly below the nest on the ground. Could that be a clue? Or did that possibly come from the robins? Don't know. Have no other ideas. Will most likely continue to be one of Mother Nature's many secrets. I know I'm very disappointed that I've lost two little critters that I was so determined to document their lives from hatching to fledging. I was so enjoying our mutual time together and learning from them. I guess in the sad ending of this saga I documented their entire life, even though it ended a mystery.

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What a wonderful surprise greeted me this morning ... the second egg produced a hatchling. That is 5 or 6 days later than the first. I'm not as knowledgeable of hummingbirds as I would like to be, but that seems like a long time between the two. If you know more, I'd like to hear.

I had taken about 10 to 12 photos before I caught a glimpse of the second little one. What a great way to start the day.

First hint of a 2nd one

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Yep, definitely 2

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I don't want to bore anyone, but I'm committed to documenting this newly hatched hummingbird chick from birthday (July 3rd, 2020) to fledging. Some folks have a shown an interest in having the results shared. So here goes.

Unfortunately, my vantage point is very limited due to the tree canopy. It's like I'm shooting through a tunnel of ever moving leaves and branches. The little momma has chosen the location of her nest wisely and I refuse to prune or alter the tree in any way. The nest is approximately 11' above ground level and I'm shooting from an 8' stepladder, handholding the camera & lens about 3' foot above the top of the ladder, which makes it about even with the top rim of the nest. The ladder is set up approximately 20' from the nest to prevent stressing the bird.

Photos are being taken at different times of the day to at least have a variance in the ambient light. Will be using a 750mm equivalency, with more cropping than I would like. Depth of field is less than an inch.

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So far there appears to be only one that hatched, John. But I hope to follow it until he/she fledges.

Thanks Raz.
I've obtained the 750mm equivalency by combining a Nikon 200-500 with a Nikon D500 crop sensor body. There was also a fair amount of cropping involved. The most difficult part is patiently waiting while hand holding this combination about 2 feet above the ladder, resulting in the camera being about 10' in the air.
Have fun & thanks for looking,
Frank

I started watching this fascinating little bird June 20th. On July 3rd the first of two eggs hatched presenting us with a less than beautiful little critter. The photo of the nest was taken atop an 8' ladder while nest was unattended. From that point on, all captures were taken with a 750mm equivalent lens from a distance of approximately 20', to prevent stress on the new mother and family. I've been trying to document the development of the young bird. As a point of interest, I've always noticed that loud fireworks had drastic effects on dogs and cats, but I never even considered how a bird would react. On the 5th of July this little mother was noticeably anxious and stressed. So much so that I decided not to attempt any photographs that day. Attached are a few samples from the day of the hatching up to yesterday, July 6th.

Patiently waiting

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First glimpse of newly hatched hummingbird

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First observed feeding

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July 6th, 2020

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The photo was shot with a Nikon D500 and a Nikon AF-S 200-500mm. It's a great combination for wildlife and sports.

No tripod unless you count an 10 foot step ladder with a bean bag on top. But yes, it was a pretty stable platform to shoot from.

And from what I've read, after the chicks are born the nest will stretch to accommodate their growth. Mother Nature is so interesting.

I peeked when she was absent.

From what I've read, you are correct in the fact that spider webbing is used in the construction of the web.

Female Black-chinned hummingbird sitting on two eggs here in southwest Idaho.

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Went out looking for the wild mustangs … it was my way of practicing "Social Distancing". I found it most enjoyable.

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