Laura

I have a regular sit spot on my back deck where I frequently photograph the birds who visit my feeders and the surrounding woods. Before and after visiting the feeders and/or the bath, they typically perch in nearby trees, bushes, brush piles, or the shepherd's hooks in my garden that hold hummingbird feeders in the spring and summer. As long as I stay seated and relatively still, the songbirds don't seem to mind my presence. Although, to be sure, I have had the easiest time gaining an audience with our neighborhood Red-shouldered Hawks. They visit my backyard frequently, and they appear rather indifferent to me, which has allowed me to get some great photographs. Of course, I still maintain a very reasonable and respectful distance, but I've found the Red-shouldered Hawks allow me to move around with greater ease and stay a bit more conspicuous than the other birds do.