Photographing Birds' Nests 145 



for that also gives too contrasty a negative with 

 no dehcate half-tones and poor detail. If the nest 

 is not already in the shade, where no patches of 

 sunlight fall upon it, then it must be shaded by 

 holding the focussing cloth, a coat, or some other 

 screen between it and the sun. Be careful, 

 though, that the screen does not show in the 

 picture. 



As can be seen from the foregoing, the ideal day 

 for nest photography is one that is calm and with 

 the sky slightly overcast ; but this we cannot always 

 have, nor would we entirely desire it, so we must 

 meet the emergencies as we find them. I have 

 done some excellent work in the pouring rain, but 

 this is hard on the camera unless it is thoroughly 

 protected, and the raindrops collected on the 

 foliage will show, and, even though shaken off 

 just before the exposure, are bound to collect 

 again before it is over. 



If the nest itself should be in a dark place 

 while its immediate surroundings are comparatively 

 well lighted, as will sometimes be found to be the 

 case, we can overcome the difficulty by the use of 

 the mirror. For instance, should we conclude 

 that about a minute would be the correct expos- 

 ure for the surroundings with the lens stopped 

 well down, then, with the mirror, throw a shaft of 

 light upon the nest for say from six to ten seconds 

 about the middle of the exposure, but be careful 



