There are many sub-groups in the general category of birders. There are "bird-watchers", "Backyard birders", Twitchers (who chase birds all over the world), non-listers and "Listers". Listers are somewhat obsessed with counting each and every species that they have ever seen and are driven to add to the mounting LIST of their sightings. Among listers are those who will only count County, State, National, Continental, or World birds or have separate lists for each category. And then are those like me who not only count species we've seen, but also count the birds that we have photographed. To be counted, the photo must be of a suitable quality so as to leave no doubt as to the identification of the bird. The rules are self-imposed and the judgment as to what constitutes a "qualifying" photo is strictly up to me, the photographer. To date, I have photographed over 500 species world-wide. But the list that really counts in my own mind is the ABA, or North American list. I am gradually closing in on 400 North American species and each new species captured by the camera brings a certain sense of accomplishment or even elation. The most recent was a bird I have been trying to photograph for several years. We've seen the bird, but either it was too distant, or the bird was heard and not seen, or the quality of the image was not acceptable. And so, when I got the images I was looking for at a local county airport, I was more than satisfied. The quarry was the elusive Upland sandpiper. For whatever reason, I finally found the birds at close range, in low grass, and with nice light. You can't find the right conditions all coming together like this all that often, and that is one of the things that makes "photo-birding" such a challenge and at the same time so rewarding. Well, we've successfully captured this species, and so now it's on to the next.
