In the Field

Chatting it up: Northwestern Crows. Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 6, 2006.

Crows are among the largest of our songbirds and definitely hold their own when it comes to "chattiness" - they're almost NEVER quiet! In this image the crows almost appear to be talking to one another while looking at something outside the right side of the frame. Imagining them cat-calling at another crow doesn't stretch the imagination too much!

Photographing crows can be a challenge - mainly because with their near black plumage it can be tricky getting the exposure correct. In this case it was made even tricker because the strong sunlight produced numerous reflective highlights on both the birds' back and on their bills. So, I chose to expose this image to retain the highlights (i.e., avoid blowing them out) and then retrieve shadow detail in post-exposure processing.

The dramatic difference in foreground versus background detail here was both intentional and unavoidable. I intentionally wanted to isolate the crows from their background, so I chose a large aperture to limit the depth of field. But, I also absolutely needed a large aperture to maximize my shutter speed to kill the effects of camera shake - I shot this image while hand-holding a very large telephoto lens as we cruised by them in a moving Zodiac inflatable boat. I could NOT have captured this shot without using a Vibration Reduction (VR) lens.

Behind the Camera

Chatting it up: Northwestern Crows. Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 6, 2006.

Digital Capture; Compressed RAW (NEF) format; ISO 200.

Nikon D2X with Nikon 200-400 mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S VR lens @ 290 mm (435 mm equivalent with digital conversion factor) - hand held (VR turned to "On" and in "Active" mode).

1/800s @ f4; -0.67 stop compensation from matrix-metered exposure setting.

At the Computer

Chatting it up: Northwestern Crows. Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 6, 2006.

Details to follow.

Conservation

Chatting it up: Northwestern Crows. Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 6, 2006.

Ten percent of the revenue generated by this image will be donated to Raincoast*.

Species Status in Canada**: This species is not designated as at risk.

The Northwestern Crow (Corvus caurinus) is smaller and has a lower-pitched voice than the American Crow. The species status of the Northwestern Crow is under considerable debate - some consider it a distinct species, others believe it to be a subspecies of the American Crow, while others even think that the Northwestern Crow and the American Crow constitute a superspecies.

As its name suggests, the Northwestern Crow is found only on the northwestern portion of North America...on a coastal strip centered on British Columbia and extending into Alaska to the north and Washington to the south.

Currently the Northwestern Crow is not considered at any risk and they are not under any form of human management (misguided or otherwise!).

*The Raincoast Conservation Society (and Foundation) is an effective and efficient organization that has been fighting for protection of this unique habitat. If you are looking for a meaningful way to contribute to the conservation of this amazing ecosystem, Raincoast will provide maximal "bang" for your conservation dollars.

**as determined by COSEWIC: The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada