Memorable Photos: Four Waxwings in a Row

         In 1996, I had a herd of angora goats and a lot of very poor fences, so I couldn’t really let the goats out to roam freely around in the pasture.  What I ended up doing was to play shepherd and herd my goats every day after I got home from work.  It was something I came to enjoy, because it gave me time to unwind after a day at the office.

        I would herd the goats down to the pasture behind my pond and let them stuff themselves with whatever vegetation they desired.  I would just stand around with my whip, which I would snap if some goat was acting up.     

        One afternoon as I was standing beside a grove of alder trees, I happened to glance over and spotted a nest packed to the brim with four fledgling cedar waxwings.  They were getting so big, that they were taking up all the space in the under-sized nest.  I realized that they would probably be leaving the nest very soon.  Always eager to take an interesting photo, I cemented in the back of my mind, the idea of returning with my camera to take a photo.

        Unfortunately, I totally forgot about the crowded nest of waxwings until a few days later.  When I did finally remember, I immediately grabbed my camera and headed down to the alder trees.  When I got close to where I had seen the nest, I quietly removed the regular lens from the camera and attached the telephoto lens, so I wouldn’t have to get really close to the young birds in the nest.

        With the camera ready, I crouched low and slowly and quietly crept up to where the nest was perched.  When I got to where I figured I was close enough for the shot, I quickly stood up, swung my camera into place in front of my eye, ready to snap the picture, but what I saw through my viewfinder was an empty nest.  The waxwings had already left.  

        “Damn,” I thought, “I waited too long, and missed the shot.”

        Full of frustration and disappointment, I stepped back from the tree.  At that point my eyes happened to rise up above the nest and there on a branch, I saw the four young waxwings, all standing rigidly straight and perfectly still like soldiers at attention.  They were all in a line trying to blend in to the scenery, hoping not be noticed. 

        I aimed my camera and got, not the shot I had originally came for, but one that was much more interesting.

View my paintings at:  davidmarchant2.ca