WINGSCAPES

Best BirdCam Photos of 2009! - Video Category

We have been surprised and delighted by the brilliant photography and videography that has been contributed to Wingscapes.com over the past two years. Thank you to everyone who has contributed! To celebrate the arrival of our new line of cameras, the Wingscapes staff wanted to recognize some of our favorite shots taken by users of the Original BirdCam.

We'll start off with the "Best Video" category. First up, a Wingscapes hummingbird montage:

Next, we'll go "down under" for a clip of this bathing Noisy Miner submitted by Elli from Tasmania, Australia:

Check back soon for additional posts that will feature the "Most Unusual Species or Behavior," "Most Beautiful Photograph," "Photo Gallery User Favorites," and "Overall Favorites" categories as well as to see who will be named "Birdcammer of the Year."

New Wingscapes Cameras Are Here!

Thank you for supporting Wingscapes and believing in our products! We are very please to announce a new product line-up just in time for the holidays. Whether you are looking to upgrade your BirdCam or give someone a gift you know they'll love, we hope you enjoy these cameras!

 

The Audubon BirdCam is similar to the Original BirdCam - easy to set up and use, takes motion-activated photos and videos with sound. Key differences are more megapixels and no timelapse feature. And best yet, it's only $159.95! Hopefully this lower price will make the BirdCam popular with families as a great way to introduce children to the joy of birding.

Next up is the BirdCam 2.0, which is our highest performance BirdCam yet! It has a whopping 8 megapixels for crystal-clear images and stunning details. Plus, it features a flash for nighttime and low-light operation. If you want to spot owls or nighthawks, this BirdCam fits the bill and is only $199.95. 

Many of you have sent us great ideas for the timelapse feature of the Original BirdCam. Thanks to your ideas and inspiration we have developed a timelapse-only camera. The Timelapse PlantCam ($79.95) automatically takes still photos or short video clips at set time intervals. The camera can be set to automatically stitch together photos to create a timelapse movie so you don't have to fuss with software. Plus, it has the same rugged, weatherproof casing as the BirdCams.

Timelapse Video of Kitchen Extension

Thanks to Kerry Buckley for sending us this awesome timelapse video of a kitchen extension. The video was taken with the original BirdCam on TIMELAPSE mode set to take a photo every 5 minutes. The construction lasted from June to October, but has been neatly packaged in a 2 1/2 minute video.

Kitchen Extension Time-Lapse from Kerry Buckley on Vimeo.

And for you timelapse fans, don't forget about the new Timelapse PlantCam from Wingscapes! It will be added to the website and on sale soon!

Belted Kingfisher footage on YouTube

Before thanksgiving, I wrote that I was going to try and get good BirdCam images of a Belted Kingfisher that lives at my in-law's lake place. I'm pleased to report that the BirdCam succeeded and I've uploaded some great footage of a female Belted Kingfisher to YouTube. Watch as she bangs this little fish she caught against the side of our fish feeder. I guess to kill it before she swallows it?

I love this bird. We often see them flying low across bodies of water or perching along the shore, but they are wary and difficult to get close to. This is my favorite way to use the BirdCam,...to get close to birds that do not visit feeders.

If you haven't checked out the Wingscapes YouTube channel, we have some cool, close footage of Purple Martins, Barn Swallows (feeding chick in a mud nest under a dock), a Heron, and a variety of backyard birds. See: www.youtube.com/Wingscapes

Of course, we also have a video gallery on our site: www.wingscapes.com/videogallery

The photo at right (taken with Nikon SLR) shows the fish feeder that this Kingfisher was perched on. You can see how I have used the BirdCam Mounting Arm to mount the BirdCam. To use the Mounting Arm in this way, I removed the base-plate (used to attach the Arm to a feeder pole) and threaded a nylon webbing strap through the base of the Mounting Arm. You would do the same to attach the Mounting Arm to a tree. (I prefer a 'rachet' style strap because it really lets you get the strap very tight.)

VIDEO!!!

I've posted some great videos captured by the BirdCam prototype at a remote web page. We had always planned for the BirdCam to take both photos and video, but for some reason, I expected that the most common usage would be for still images. After having time to test the cameras and play with the video function, my mind has changed about this.

The videos reveal so much about behavior, I really think people are going to be fascinated when they start reviewing candid scenes taken in their backyards. There are many ways the BirdCam enhances the bird-feeding/-watching  hobby...and video does an amazing job of showing how much more is happening on their feeders every day than most people realize.

Take a look at these shots...cardinals yelling at other birds, doves chasing off mockingbirds, Carolina wrens - everywhere, but usually alone - dark-eyed juncos have a shy "where's waldo" presence...enjoy!

KEEP IN MIND...
These are early test shots. Some are overexposed and most do not have sound. Both of these issues have been resolved and will not be a problem with the final BirdCam.