Here's an experimental video of a a red-bellied woodpecker (and some red-winged blackbirds) I took using my iPhone 4s and my Swarovski Spotting Scope. I'm using my 25 - 50 zoom eyepiece on this one and I did do a wee bit of cropping to take out a small amount of vignetting. http://youtu.be/qwh6nhE9FdY
BirdsEye BirdLog App Review
I've long been a fan of the BirdsEye app, it allows you find out what's been reported to eBird and gives you an idea of birding hot spots all over North America. It's my favorite birding app of all the apps available--even over any of the field guides. It works on either an iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android. You need some sort of Internet access, either via wireless or the 3G network. There's been a rumor that the app would eventually allow you to update your sitings from the field directly to eBird and we waited and waited for an update. Those of us with iPhones even felt a wee bit of bitterness when it was announced that the app was available to do just that via the Android and not the iPhone.
Now it is available and boy howdy have I been giving it a workout. One thing to understand, this is a separate app called BirdLog that allows you to enter sitings to eBird from the field, it is a separate app from the original BirdsEye app that allows you to see what is being reported.
Pros of the BirdLog app:
You can enter in eBird sitings directly from the field, as it is happening if you wish.
Let's say you are bike riding on a series of trails and there's a pond that particularly birdy but there's no known birding hot spot there. You can go into "Submit Sitings" and will tell you where you are and even let you know if you are near a birding hotspot. This is also handy if you in someplace like Nebraska and you're driving around and getting birds at various potholes.
I personally don't like hunting down locations in eBird because you have to do it by county, rather than city or township and I think it's a pain the butt to figure out. This app does it for you.
It gives you a list of the most likely species.
It will keep track of how long you are birding in an area for you, so you can start it as soon as you hit the trail (alas, it doesn't keep track of how far you traveled, but there are other apps for that).
The app allows you to make notes, "Red-tailed territory display" or "nest nearby."
You can have more than one list going. I have two lakes that I do as a loop when I'm bike riding and I was able to have both lists going.
Cons of the BirdLog app:
It's separate from the original BirdsEye app.
Doesn't keep track of how far you travel on the trail.
Once you have closed out and submitted your list, it's difficult to go back in and correct it (you might as well do it at home on your computer). You can't edit the list from the app, it will take you into eBird via your phone's web browser and eBird is not set up to be viewed in a friendly way on a phone (at least not on my iPhone 4s).
When submitting sitings, it defaults to numbers, rather than letters, gently forcing you to count how many birds you are seeing. I tend for most species to enter in "x" because I don't want to count how many grackles, red-winged blackbirds or gulls I see on the trail. I think this is more my own personal issue. I so often have to count birds for work and when I'm watching birds for fun, my brain doesn't want to do it. You can still enter in "x" you just have to switch screens.
Best Uses:
Driving around on remote roads and you have no idea where you are. This is ideal for areas like Sax Zim Bog where you are mostly driving down the road and periodically stopping to find birds.
Keeping a running list of what you're seeing in the field.
I'm particularly looking forward to using this in birding programs with kids. I can let one of them keep the bird list and carry an iPad (a good hook for the kid who doesn't want to be in the woods in the first place).
I think this is a really cool app to use with kids at home. Why wait for the Great Backyard Bird Count or Project Feeder watch to notice birds? You could set up a day once a week and have your kids check off the birds in your backyard, you could even use it to keep track of what day you note when certain species arrive--like orioles or hummingbirds.
I worry some people think entering sitings to eBird is only for those who are hardcore birders and are out in the field, but backyard species are important too, especially as the globe's climate is changing and we will see more shifts in bird populations.
Here's an intro video that shows you how it works:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNliquYImFw&feature=youtu.be
I'm Not The Only One iPhonescoping!
My friend Tammy Holmer texted me a photo she took using her iPhone and her Swarovski spotting scope:
That's a pretty cool shot of an adult peregrine falcon, especially when first testing out the technique! And since I know this question will inevitably come up in the comments, here's a basic tutorial on iphonescoping. Tammy and I aren't the only ones. A quick search of iphonescoping shows BogBumper giving it a go and Monterey Seabirding coming up with an interesting adaptor using a flex tripod.
I'll be in Nebraska this weekend for The Rivers and Wildlife Festival giving a Techno Birding program on Saturday. I've done this program several times and every time I give it, the program is different because technology is constantly changing. I remember early on when I would give it, some would balk and say, "I don't want to take extra stuff in the field."
However, with the smartphones now, I take less in the field. I'm now just going with my iPhone, binos and scope. The phone as bird reference books, a speaker (if I choose to use bird calls for programs or personal use), a camera, maps and of course the ability to actually call someone should I need help.
I've been practicing with my iPhone and scope at bird feeders and I'm hopeful that I'll be able to get some fun shots in Nebraska this weekend and Tweet them or post them on Facebook. Are you iPhonescoping? If so, let me know who it's work for you. You can link to shots in comments or tag me in links on Twitter (@Birdchick) or post them to my Facebook Page.
Digiscoping With An iPhone Tutorial
By popular request I created a video of how I take photos using my iPhone and my Swarovski spotting scope (I use the ATM 80mm with 2- - 60 zoom eyepiece)--also known as iPhonescoping. A couple of things to keep in mind: I'm currently hand holding the phone, there is no adapter for this yet like their are for digital cameras. Meopta is supposed to have their adapter out for iPhones soon but I haven't seen it yet (they told me they would send me one early this year). But you can still get some pretty good photos hand holding your phone. Video is going to be a little shaky but without an adapter to hold the camera still--what can you do.
Note that I'm using a Mophie Case with my phone which gives a little "eye relief" to it. FYI Mophie cases are AWESOME! It's a heavy duty case that will charge your iPhone's battery. It has tripled the life of my crappy iPhone 4s battery. I'm a little bitter that I had to pay about $70 to correct an Apple issue, but I'm so happy to use my phone all day in the field that I've soon gotten over that expense. I can actually use my phone all day long without plugging it in. This includes taking photos, texting, sending photos to Twitter, surfing the net, Words with Friends (Scramble with Friends), Fruit Ninja--the works!
Also, note in the above photo that I have the eye cup twisted out halfway. I find this reduces the vignette (the black circle around your photos). Also, it prevents you from scratching your scope's lens with your iPhone or case--which is a heartbreaking thing to have happen and one of the reasons I hover like crazy when someone puts their digital camera up to my lens without an adapter. This also gives you a way to reduce some of the hand shake that comes with holding the iPhone rather than attaching it with an adapter.
Here's the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FSYKBbg69c
Boreal Birding & Digiscoping with an iPhone
I think I had the most fun at Sax Zim Bog last weekend since the great owl irruption of 2004/2005. An informal gathering of birders headed up and we started at Hasty Brook. I've known Lynne for some time and I've always wanted to visit. What a treat to start it off with her deck full of common redpolls. I wish we could have spent more time there, she's so lucky to have such a beautiful view to watch birds and animals go by--and incredibly sweet. Our group birded the crap out of the little daylight we have up here in winter and when we went back to her place, her husband was heating up a huge kettle of wild rice soup.
As much as I miss the birds who sing in the summer, I truly do appreciate living in Minnesota where a few hours drive north gives me a different set of habitat and birds. Redpolls are in abundance this winter in northern MN, which was actually predicted in the Winter Finch Forecast.
Huge flocks of redpolls would descend onto the roads to chow down on either spilled grain or salt mixed with snow. When they would take off, you could actually hear their woosh of wings.
We had a bonus in the car with us when we went, a guide for the bog by the name of Erik Bruhnke came along with us--for fun. He's a young kid trying to earn a living in birding--it was fun to go out in the field with someone so young and excited about birds. There are a lot of great guides up at the bog but the area is so popular they book up quickly, so if you're ever looking for one, Erik is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide. Some in our group had been to the bog several times before and had an idea of where to go, but having someone along who birds the area on a regular basis really helped get all the bog specialties that are being seen.
I used the day to compare digiscoping with my iPhone 4s vs my Nikon D40. I don't have an adapter yet for the phone so photos like the one above of evening and pine grosbeaks are taken by hand holding the iPhone up to my scope. Not bad at all! I've been playing with the camera app that comes with the phone but there's the Camera+ app, I like it because it has image stabilization and the ability to go into burst mode and take a crap ton of pictures all at once. It's handy if you are doing this without an adapter.
One thing I did learn about my iPhone is that it's not ideal for cold weather digiscoping. My fingers got so cold that the touch screen function ceased recognizing when something had been touched (it was about 10 degrees Fahrenheit when I took the above photo). I do have a pair of gloves that is supposed to work with the touch screen, but I have a screen protector and it doesn't work with the gloves. Also cold fingers can lead to shivering which also doesn't help image stabilization.
Can I say what a treat it was to get some quality time with evening grosbeaks (the above photo was taken with the D40, not the iPhone). I haven't been around a good sized flock for a few years so it was fun to spend time with these birds who look like like a goldfinch on steroids...though Non Birding Bill thinks they look more like Ed Asner. We're so lucky that the people who live on Blue Spruce Road just north of 133 in Meadowlands place feeders at the end of their driveway so people can enjoy a bunch of boreal feeder birds.
It's a great little spot to practice digiscoping. Lots of great colorful winter birds to get shots of like the pine grosbeak. They seem very used to the traffic.
White-winged crossbills were all over around the bog too. This one was part of a flock that was in the road. As we watched it, we picked up a tail of other cars. It's kind of a strange thing to bird around the bog. You want to get all the specialties and there are plenty of maps to be found of it on the Internet describing where to go, but at the same time if you see someone pulled over, you tend to pull over too to see if they have something you don't.
This is especially true when it's dusk and close to great gray owl time. One road had a recent report of great grays and around dusk there were almost 2 dozen vehicles slowly cruising back and forth, creeping along and watching, waiting for the elusive giant. I watched but I'm so spoiled when it comes to great gray owls. I remember driving and finding 50 in a day.
Fortunately a great gray owl was spotted and the birding paparazzi excitedly moved in to watch it.
It was far, lightly snowing and dusk but thanks to the timer on my Nikon D40 I was able to get an ok shot of it in the low light conditions.
All in all it was a great day of seeing some northern specialties (like the above rough-legged hawk). If you haven't birded the bog and live within driving distance, grab some friends and head on up. It's a doable day trip from the Twin Cities. We left the the northern suburbs at 5:30am and stayed til dusk then stopped for dinner. I got back to NBB by 9:30pm.
If you'd like to learn more, come to Birds and Beers on Monday. Lots of people will be happy to share tips (and maybe you'll find a birding buddy to go up). Also there is a Sax Zim Bog Bird Festival in Feburary which I haven't been to but I know lots of people who have gone and had a great time. Bird festivals a great way to get to know an area you haven't birded before.
Can You ID This Road Kill?
I found some interest road kill just now on my bird surveys. Let's use it as a contest! The first person to correctly id the bird in the comment section of this post based on these photos wins a giant loon coffee travel mug.
And here is what the other side looks like:
