Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM, tripod, gimbal head, SB800, at 420 mm, 1/250s, f/8, ISO200,
It was another day with plenty of sunshine but very low temperatures. We go through a lot of bird food at the moment but who want’s to blame the birds or the squirrels, who eat probably as much as the birds do.
It doesn’t happen very often that a woodpecker poses like this and this Downy did it for only a few seconds. Most of the time we see their side profile or the backside. I wanted to make this kind of a shot since a long time and today I had my chance. I was glad that the flash light was on camera already. A right dosed flash fill throws in a little bit of extra light, just enough to give the feathers some structure and to reveal the subtle colors on the front side of this Downy Woodpecker.