I’ve never been a patient person. I feel a strong sense of urgency, get frustrated by delays, and often expect immediate results.
Bird photography is teaching me to slow down. In the field, I can stand still for a long time and wait for a bird to come closer. There’s no guarantee it will happen, and I’m learning to be okay with that. A recent morning at Stauffer’s Marsh Nature Preserve put that lesson to the test.
Stauffer’s Marsh is a 46-acre wetland preserve in Berkeley County, West Virginia. Its ponds, meadow, and trails give bird lovers plenty of places to stop and look. I arrived just before sunrise and headed to the pollinator meadow first.
The meadow was overgrown, with large trees around its edges. I like to find a spot, stand quietly, and give the birds time to get used to me. I returned to the meadow twice that morning and spent more than an hour there. I heard Gray Catbirds calling nearby, but I couldn’t get a clear view of one. Eventually, I moved on, disappointed.
At an overlook along the West Pond Trail, I spotted a Great Blue Heron reflected in the water. The sun was just rising above the trees. I made a few photographs that seemed promising, though I wondered whether I’d had enough light for a clean image. After another half hour with little activity, I headed toward the Connector Trail.
There, among low vegetation, thick shrubs, and tangled vines, I finally found the Gray Catbirds. I had been walking and waiting for more than two hours and had only one potentially good photograph to show for it. I took shot after shot, trying to find a clear opening through the branches.
Then something flew over me: a Green Heron. It landed on an angled branch in a tree about 30 feet away. I expected it to notice me and leave, but it stayed long enough for me to move around the tree and find a better angle. I missed the flight photograph, but I knew I had captured the heron on its perch.
I left Stauffer’s Marsh nearly three hours after I arrived. The catbirds had drawn me down that trail, and the Green Heron had appeared while I was still working for a clear shot. I’m glad I was patient, and I’m glad I stayed.
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