A lot nature photographers try to get as close to their subject as possible to get it nearly frame-filling. Nothing wrong with that, it shows the beauty of the bird, its nice colors or maybe even the structure in the feathers. These pictures can be really nice, however they rarely tell anything about the bird, apart from the way they look like. I always like to give my subjects some space. In some case empty space, but if possible I like to show something of their habitat, or of the way they live.

This picture is a good example of that. Dippers live in fast flowing streams, often dipping under, going over the bottom of the stream in search for food. In this picture that’s all visible. You see the Dipper sitting on a stone, but also the stream and even a bit of the forest. To me, pictures like this are a lot more valuable as those frame-filling record shots. But of course, that’s up to everyone’s own taste.

ps. not too many new pictures lately as the weather in the Netherlands hasn’t been all that great the past weeks…