CITY BIRD-WATCHING SPOTS
Photographer Ilana Block’s Top 7
I met up with Ilana Block at the Technoparc early Wednesday morning. Within minutes we were observing a parade of birds.
“Those big white guys are great egrets,” said the Montreal photographer (who also happens to be my naturopath), describing what I would have called herons. “That little black-and-white guy is an eastern kingbird. They nest here.
“There’s a black crowned night heron back there. He’s gorgeous with his breeding plumage; he has a beautiful long feather at the back of his head — stunning. There’s a green heron in there that might move as well. Sometimes you’ve just got to wait.”
And so we did.
We were rewarded with mallards, Canada gee se flying out of the marsh and over our heads, a red-winged blackbird, northern flickers, green herons, a pied-billed grebe, tree swallows, song sparrows, a spotted sandpiper, ring-billed gulls, rock pigeons, yellow warblers, American robins and a gold finch. And this was apparently a quiet day — 185 species of birds have been spotted at the Technoparc in the last year.
Between bouts of chatting, Block quick-drew her camera with its hefty 100-400mm lens, and snapped away. She has learned a lot in the past 7½ years, during which she has gone from novice to awardwinning nature photographer.
As the daughter of a longtime nature photographer hobbyist (her father), you’d think she would have started sooner. It was while visiting her parents in Florida in 2010 that Block finally got the bug.
She joined the Montreal Camera Club in Westmount, where she began gleaning pointers from other members, and which for the past three years has crowned her nature photographer of the year and photographer of the year.
Though Block loves taking pictures of wildlife of all kinds, the green spaces around Montreal are rife with birds, which have become her specialty. At least once a week, she’ll get up before dawn or set out before sunset — “golden hour,” her favourite time to shoot — and head to one of her favourite spots.
ILANA BLOCK’S TOP 7 MONTREAL BIRDWATCHING SPOTS
Technoparc, St-Laurent: “Birds live
in the fields, and my favourite bird, the northern harrier, flies over the fields. It’s the most beautiful flyer. (The park) has got marsh for all the water birds, and forest. I shot about eight different species of owls there last winter.”
Parc des Prairies, Laval: “At 8 in the morning, the wood ducks arrive; they come in the spring and fall. I prefer fall because of the foliage.” Botanical Garden: “Incredible for warblers. It’s a big park, and all kinds of birds come in. It’s got incredible flowers and trees all over, and foxes.”
Parc des Rapides, Lachine Canal: “At the rapids, there are ducks, osprey, eagles sometimes; and in August, terns come and fish right off the peninsula.”
Angrignon Park: “There are owls here, a beautiful family that just a couple months ago everyone was photographing. There were two fluffy owl babies with big eyes, sticking their heads out of a hole. It was incredible.”
Île Saint-Bernard, Châteauguay: “Refuge faunique Marguerite d’Youville is unbelievable. There are a lot of deer there, mink, beavers, muskrats, all kinds of birds. In March-April-May, there’s scarlet tanager, which is a gorgeous bird — red with a black stripe — and indigo bunting.”
Mount Royal Cemetery: “Another gorgeous place, with all the flowers and trees. A lot of birds feed on the blossoms. Indigo bunting have been seen here — it’s a stunning blue bird: blue, blue, blue.”
10 TIPS FOR NEWBIE BIRD PHOTOGRAPHERS:
“Get out and shoot. Get a camera, any type of camera, and shoot.”
“Join a camera club. It’s a great way to learn.”
“Ask questions. I love sharing tips and teaching people.”
“I like (the image) to be sharp. Focus on the eyes, always. I like to have the bird looking at me and the background to be non-distracting.”
“I like to tell a story. I love interactions between birds.”
“Always have the sun at your back, so your shadow is pointing at what you’re shooting. That way the whole bird will be illuminated. You want your shadow to be longer than you. That’s when the light is perfect.”
“Have the bird moving into the frame. Don’t have the bird (with its beak at the edge) going out. Give it some space.”
“Enjoy what you’re doing.” “Respect the animals.” “Learn the camera.”