By: Sally Siko- Admin Birdwatching NC

Saw this post on Twitter a few minutes ago…

“Birding or bird photography is great therapy for me. What a stress reliever.”

I have to agree, it’s the best stress reliever ever and it is how I maintain a genuine love for photography despite the fact that it’s my day to day profession. ‬
‪Although I enjoy my job, with all the pressure that comes with marketing my business, answering emails, taking and processing 30,000+ client pics, personal lens time is needed to avoid the burnout of time spent indoors stuck behind a desk staring at a computer all day.

‪I love the idea of going outside somewhere new to take pictures with an end goal of finding a specific as-yet-unseen bird in mind.
Heck, the planning stages of the trips is half the fun! Nerding out on the latest species sighting reports and habitat data for planned outings makes me happy and eager for an adventure into an unknown area.
The research done beforehand that gives me the confidence to take that knowledge out into the field to test my skillset.
It’s a really nice feeling to go into a new place/habitat yet feel comfortable in understanding my surroundings well enough to find what I’m looking for. Even if it’s my first time stepping on to that trail.
And omg, just like snapping off an expertly timed photo, finding the target of my search is very satisfying for sure.
What a rush!

Better yet, in those times when those plans fall short (because nature is what it is, lol), there is always the potential to encounter joy in sighting something completely unexpected along the way.
In all honesty, my most memorable of birds are never the ones I’d planned on seeing.
Plus, I get to use a camera to share this passion for moments of discovery with all of you who appreciate the birds & the journey as much as I do.
It’s a vicious cycle and it’s freak’n awesome.

Today, I’ve got loads of useful random bird facts floating in my head, but I’ve got a lot left to learn.
And that’s ok.
Tbh, I like the fact that I don’t know all there is to know about birding. This just means that there is still a potential to grasp a better understanding what’s really out there in those woods and that there’s a ton of birds in places all over this world that I haven’t seen yet.
I suppose that if I had the financial resources and the time maybe I could accomplish that feat. No doubt, to see all the birds in the world would be an incredible accomplishment.
But to why would I want to hasten the completion of that journey?
The truth is that I hope I never see them all because I’m not ready for this lifer-trip to end.
But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try anyway.

How about you?
What motivates ya to get up early to go find birds?