62 Wild Birds 



fixing it between the front fold of the focusing cloth and the 

 tent so that it hangs vertical, and effectually conceals the 

 operator when standing upright and setting the shutter. Peep- 

 holes are made to command all directions, and of course the 

 nesting bough to which attention is mainly given. It is con- 

 venient to make small V-shaped openings which can be pinned 

 up or down. A bird will sometimes detect some movement of 

 the eye when close to such openings, so that they should not 

 be made larger or more numerous than necessary. 



When a photograph has been made and the shutter is to be 

 reset, the vertical flap is released from the focusing cloth and 

 carefully drawn over the window, if the birds happen to be at 

 the nest, as when the female is brooding. Otherwise, if timid 

 or unaccustomed to the new conditions, the movement of the 

 hand may be a source of alarm. I have successively photo- 

 graphed family groups without disturbing them, when at a 

 distance of twenty -eight to thirty-six inches, after they had 

 learned to disregard the click of the shutter. When a window 

 in a different position is wanted, the old one is patched up and 

 a new one made. 



Photographic Screens. -The advantages offered by white or 

 neutral screens are most appreciated where no good natural 

 background is available, and especially when birds of dull or 

 spotted plumage are to be photographed against a background 

 which is spotted by foliage or by undesirable objects of any 

 kind, which strongly reflect the light. 



To be of much service the screen should be fairly large, and 

 with frame and supports it is too cumbersome to be carried in the 

 hand, except for short distances. Yet, one is often repaid for the 

 extra trouble involved in its use by a series of clear-cut portraits, 

 which could not be obtained in any other way. (See Figs. 1 1 , 1 6, 

 43-) 



For ordinary purposes a sheet of white cotton, seven to eight 

 feet long by six to seven feet wide answers well. This is tacked 

 on a folding deal frame, and erected at a distance of from five 

 to six feet behind the nest, or at a point sufficiently out of focus 

 of the lens. 



