After Dalton took me out birding (see: Spark Birds), I quickly began looking at birds closer, listening, and documenting them more. According to eBird, I had only 9 birds on my life list prior to seeing my spark bird, the Northern Hawk Owl. After that my numbers quickly multiplied, finding more and more species. 

Currently, with 149 species documented in the United States, and 157 species in the world (thank you, Kenya), I now consider myself on the edge of being an intermediate birder. For reference, Dalton, my friend, has 862 species, and Ed, who I birded with during the 2024 Christmas Bird Count, has seen 4,050 species over all 7 continents. Clearly, I have a ways to go if I want to be considered a pro. 

Fairly recently, I decided to add to my capability as a birder. I managed to find a decent camera for cheap on Facebook Marketplace. Over the past few months, I have been able to experiment with different settings and whatnot. True to cheap ways to have fun, I have not been editing these photos. Purely by spraying and praying, I'd say 1 in 30 photos turn out to be quality enough. Below are some photos that made the cut. (Dog for funsies)