Capturing amazing nature photography images doesn’t always require long hikes through the forest during the extreme heat of the summer, or traveling to bird migration destinations. With a little planning, you can set yourself up for success by bringing wildlife to your backyard!
Setting up a flower garden with a bird bath is a big draw for songbirds. Overall, the garden does not have to cover a large amount of space. What's in the garden is more important than the area it covers. Sunflowers will always attract seed-eating birds, and given their height, don't take up a lot of space. Common flowering plants like dahlias or daisies will bring in butterflies and hummingbirds.
What about birds that prefer a steady diet of insects? They will be attracted to your garden for two reasons. First, there are always insects crawling on and among your garden plants. Second, birds simply attract other birds. There is safety in numbers, so while seed-eating birds are enjoying your garden, insect-eating birds will visit because of the presence of other birds and to see what's on the menu. A good example is the image of the northern parula on a sunflower at the beginning of this blog. It was gleaning insects off of the flower stalk.
What will be the biggest draw to your backyard garden? The bird bath! This feature does not need to be extravagant. A simple bird bath with clean, shallow water is all that’s required. I've found this to be particularly important when summer temperatures extend into the front end of bird fall migration. Additionally, it's fun to watch birds splash in the water and equally fun to photograph.
If you’re a bird photographer, consider light availability when planning a garden area. Birds are most active in the morning and late afternoon/early evening. Know what light will be available during different hours of the day, and plan your camera settings accordingly. Also, give some thought to the distance and angle from where you plan to set up to shoot. For example, you wouldn't want to place taller plants where they may block your sight to the bird bath, or some of the shorter flowering plants.
Overall, attracting a diversity of birds to your backyard is relatively economical, garden planting and set up doesn't take a great deal of time, and it pays big dividends for birdwatching and capturing great images. My backyard bird garden has provided hours and hours of enjoyment and photo ops, and it has only five components. A brief description of my garden follows -
- A 5 ft x 8 ft herb garden supplemented with a mix of dahlias, sunflowers, and daisies. Any mix of flowers will do, but sunflowers bring in small songbirds (chickadees, titmouse, nuthatches), and will set you up for a great shot when they pull seeds from the flower head.
- A birdbath sits in the middle of the garden. Fresh water is added daily, and I clean it every two to three days during hot weather.
- A low, decorative border fence is on one side of the garden. This isn’t necessary, but birds tend to perch on this before going to the bird bath, and it’s a good set up for photographers. Note the American redstart image at the beginning of this blog.
- My bird feeders are about twenty feet from my garden. Bird feeders are not necessary, but if you already have them, or plan on adding them to your backyard, they do increase the chances of attracting a variety of birds.
- I have a couple of medium size rocks placed in the garden. The cool ground underneath the rocks attracts insects, which in turn attract insect eating birds such as wrens and brown thrashers. It's also a nice shot when a bird perches on one of the rocks.
I hope these simple garden ideas bring many birds and butterflies to your backyard and enhance your birdwatching experience, as well as yielding some great nature photography images! For inspiration, you can check out several bird photography images captured in my garden in the bird migration gallery, or in the giclee print section of my shop.