November is an odd month in Michigan
because sometimes it can feel like summer still but it can also quickly turn to winter. This year, the trees took their good time to turn, and the backyard looked lovely, all dipped in reds, orange, gold and green. For the calendar, I first looked at the small birds, so the two Chickadees and the Goldfinch were potential choices. But then my eyes fell on the Redbellied Woodpecker lady, and I thought her size, the colors and detail would work a lot better. So that is why she is Miss November. My calendars are on sale this week, you can get yours here. Come good into the weekend!
Teen birds can be
very confusing, especially when you are just starting with birdwatching. They have the coolest patterns and colorations going on, and I have to say they are one of my favorites to see. It is fantastic that it is possible to see them even into fall. The calendar birds for August, September and October are teens. There’s a Rubythroated Hummingbird with just the first parts of the gorget appearing, a juvenile Cowbird morphing into adult plumage, and a teen Cardinal, still with lots of baby feathers and the characteristic brown beak.
Spring and summer
are my favorite seasons because it always feels like something new happens or visits every day. July is a major baby bird month, and just like in previous years, we had loads and loads of Blue Jays. I love baby Blue Jays because they are wonderfully adorable in looks as well as behavior. For the calendar, I started thinking about July with the beautiful sunny photo of the adult, lured by the vibrancy and detail. But then I looked at photos of the youngsters. All three are cute and quite typical but I found the “mohawk” one the most interesting to look at, so that was the choice for July. The calendars are on sale starting today (once approved by the website) and continue until Sunday. Get yours here.
Happy Sunday!
I am continuing with the introduction of the calendar birds. The choice for June was a tough one. I knew I wanted an Oriole, and since this season there was an abundance of them, I also had an abundance of photos. The wet Baltimore Oriole was my first pick because it is just such an unusual look and I loved the background and lighting. However, the bird is not entirely identifiable, so eventually, it was out. The “Tequila Sunrise” one is another favorite for the beautiful colors but somehow it lacked something. The final choice was an Orchard Oriole, and I chose it because I loved the gentle pose and felt like this beautiful bird deserves some attention.
You can get my calendars here.
The process
of choosing photos for my calendars is always a bit of a thing I love and hate. On the one hand, it is fun to revisit the year but on the other hand it is very hard to narrow a selection down. Usually what I do is go through older posts of the year and copy the ones I may consider into a special subfolder and then wittle things down.
Of these four, the immature male Rosebreasted Grosbeak and the Bluebird made the cut - they are April and May. The Grackle is an alternative I considered for March. I love Grackles in the rain but somehow I landed on the RWBB instead. The second Grosbeak I loved because of the slightly different coloring. It appears to be a female but I also see a tiny red dot on the fold in the belly and the vibrant yellow is a bit unusual. The photo is from May (the Serviceberry is blooming), and since I wanted the Bluebird for May (my birthday month), the Grosbeak was out.
You can find my calendars here.
Calendar birds - February and March
The birds for February and March in my calendar are an adorable House Finch on a frosty morning and a Redwinged Blackbird against a dramatic sky. I loved the light in both of these photos, it created a cool mood and made the birds stick out nicely. My calendars are available in four different formats with customizable spines in my shop here: https://tinyurl.com/wa8jmt44
Bird activity is a little slow
due to the mild weather, so I am not getting many good photos. Things will pick up again in time but this is just as good of an opportunity to introduce the birds in my calendar for 2023. You can get the calendar here: tinyurl.com/5xd4tmzw. The year begins with a Dark-eyed Junco. Many call them snowbird around here because they appear in fall and leave in spring, being something like a sign that winter is truly coming. They are entertaining little birds that I learned to appreciate even more with video footage because it enabled me to hear them up close too. For the calendar, I went with a photo that shows one in the sun because I loved the pose, the light and the clarity. The alternative was a snow storm photo. I loved that too but it felt better to start the year on a positive note. Have a great Sunday!
Happy Thanksgiving!
This year, I am thankful for health, nice weather, my loved ones (including kitty), all of you wonderful people, and the fact that I get to enjoy Grackles a lot longer than usual but not in the overwhelming numbers from summer. I see one at least every day, but upon closer inspection, it appears that there are several individuals. I wonder if they will now actually spend the winter here, that would be a first. I hope you are surrounded by good people and have a good meal today. If you are shopping for Christmas presents, consider my calendar, it is still on sale until tonight. Happy Thanksgiving!
Birds are still migrating,
bringing occasional fun visitors, like Grackles and Redwinged Blackbirds. The House Finch almost got me with his head marks, I thought it might be a Purple. But the stripes on the belly are a true sign for House.
Speaking of Redwinged Blackbirds - today, the promo sale for the calendar ends. There will be another one or two farther down the road but I haven’t made my mind up when.
I am happy to announce
that the 2023 calendars are ready and available. It always takes me a while to go through the photos and decide what to use, and this time around I was actually a bit nervouse because it felt like it was not really a great year, but in the end, I think I really like this calendar. The page that I am selling them through handles everything for me, from printing to payments to shipping, so if things go wrong, you will have to get in touch with them. They are made to order. There will be promo sales too, so it is good to check back there every now and then. I made five sizes in three formats. 12 x 12, three rectangle formats in different sizes (8.5 x 11, 11 x 14, 12 x 16), and a desk calendar. You can choose sizes and binder to your desires. I will talk about the birds and photos in the calendar as the weeks go on. I am so happy it is done, it is a bit of a reason to look forward to 2023. You can find the main shop page here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
2021 is coming to an end.
And what another odd one it was. The birds and you have kept me sane and happy, so I would like to take the opportunity to thank you all. I hope you come safe into the new year, hopefully the best we ever experienced. Love as much as you can, eat good food, don’t drive drunk and keep watching the birds. Here’s also the last bird from the Ostdrossel calendar, the wonderfully feisty Dr. Clara, the resident female Bluebird. She also had a bit of a rough year, and I hope 2022 will be a lot better for her. Guten Rutsch, as we say in German (“slide well into the new year”)!
The November bird
of the 2022 Ostdrossel calendar is a beautiful male Red-Bellied Woodpecker, and I chose the photo also because in it, you can see why they got their name. Yes, there is also a Red-headed Woodpecker, one of the most beautiful woodpeckers I have ever seen but only once had in my yard, but this is not it. Red-bellied Woodpeckers are regulars here, and we love them for their goofiness and beauty. You can get the calendar in several sizes here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel. The promo sale is still going on until January 1. 2022.
I hope
that you all had a Christmas that was as fun as the one I had. There was no snow, which was a bit sad, and it felt like the birds were all having their very own gatherings, bird traffic is slow right now. So today is another good day to introduce who is in the calendar. October is the “furry birb”, one of the resident groundhogs. They are not at our house and they make us laugh, so we tolerate them. Since the year is ending soon, I have added another promo in the shop that begins tomorrow and is good until January 1. Check it out here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
The September bird
of the Ostdrossel calendar for 2022 is one of my favorite MoDo photos. This silly bird was posing like for an iconic painting. The light and leaves make the look perfect. It is hilarious and beautiful at the same time. The calendar is available in several sizes and you can get it here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel. Have a great Tuesday!
The outside looks very pretty today,
we were gifted with snow over night! I am glad I got my little Santa Stop done yesterday (check the livestream to see it), and I love that there is more activity at the feeders today too, so hopefully there will be some fun new photos later. I still wanted to continue to introduce the calendar birds for 2022. I apologize for slacking a bit with that, but it has been busy. July and August are the months that burst with bird variety and baby birds. The July bird is the vibrantly looking and beautifully singing Baltimore Oriole, and August shows an adorable young Blue Jay. Be safe out there in the snow today!
If you are interested in getting an Ostdrossel calendar, you can get them here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
During these duller times,
I often think back on the year and more fun times, like June. June means that the Hummingbirds have arrived and the garden is coming along. I am still geeked out about Hummingbirds, they are so fascinating to me. So tiny, so fierce, so beautiful. And I love when I can lure them to the camera. The June bird of the Ostdrossel 2022 calendar is a Rubythroated Hummingbird, the only species we get here (apart from rare exceptions).
You can get a calendar here, they come in four sizes: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
It's Friday, and that is a good day
to introduce the May bird of the Ostdrossel 2022 calendar. It is an American Robin, and I chose this bird and photo for May because it is my birthday month, and I am in love with the clarity and light here. You can almost see the trees awakening with all this fresh and vibrant green. The bird is sitting on a bowl with an orange half and a blob of grape jelly that I put out in spring. I do it for the Orioles mainly, but many other birds enjoy it as well. If you want to try it too, choose grape jelly as natural as possible. Mashed grapes will work too. American Robins are the state bird of Michigan, and while they usually leave my area late in fall, some will also spend the winter in the state. Come good into the weekend!
My calendars are available here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
The month of April
in the 2022 Ostdrossel calendar is graced with a gorgeous Common Grackle. If you have followed me for a bit, you will know that I have a special love for these glorious birds. This I think is not Count Grackula but he is part of the family. They are seasonal visitors here, coming in spring, raising their babies and then moving south once it gets colder. They are smart, fierce, impressive and absolutely stunning.
The calendars come in several sizes. There is a link on my main page but you can also click here: Calendar shop.
And here
is the March bird of the 2022 Ostdrossel calender, a harbinger of spring, but also the announcer of a 10 day special sale of the calendars - a Redwinged Blackbird. I love these guys when they look sleek and relaxed but I always get a kick out of their puffed up state. Here, you can also see what gave them their name - the gorgeous red “epaulets”. You can find the calendars in three sizes in my shop here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
The selfie-expert
was back today to take a pic with a House Finch 😁 I think he is improving his skills, too! If you are still thinking about getting an Ostdrossel calendar, I recommend to check my shop from Nov 19 to 29 for a special promotion where calendars are a bit more affordable. You can find the shop here: https://www.createphotocalendars.com/Shop/ostdrossel
