Once you’re comfortable with the technical skills involved in operating a digital camera, you can begin to concentrate more on the aesthetic aspects of making works of art featuring birds as subjects. There are a number of established field techniques and rules of thumb that can help you jump-start the process. The Right Light The most important variable to consider in the field is lighting. You’ll get the richest colors and have the option of using higher shutter speeds when you shoot birds that are well lit, and a bird generally looks more striking in even lighting (not mottled sunlight). Direct sunlight also brings out feather detail better than ambient (non-direct) light. At the same time, when birds have both light and dark parts, it can be difficult to expose the darker parts without overexposing the lighter parts, so these birds sometimes actually expose better in ambient lighting. Much of nature photography is about waiting for the right light, and this is...