ART OF GEORGE WILLIAM VAN HUMBECK

This pesky female goldfinch kept showing up outside the window of my studio during the early spring in my beech tree. Each time I raised my camera she took off. She seemed to be quite the early riser and loved my tree but all too camera shy. Most of her visits were during the time I was painting "Before the Storm." It was during that large project I decided that my next painting should be small and of that small goldfinch.

It would seem that the male goldfinch gets most of the attention from artists, but with this early harbinger of spring and the fertile promises that holds, I knew this female was what I wanted. Besides my tree, I happened to notice one other spot she liked to visit, my neighbor's bird feeder. So with a longer lens on the camera I positioned the camera between the fence boards. Stealthy as I thought I was being, she was not unaware. Each time I positioned the camera she took off. It took some time before she realized I was no danger to her and I was able to get several good shots. The one that I chose to use said the most about our relationship. I selected a shot of her looking right at me. I haven't seen too many artist paint birds looking right at the viewer perhaps viewing this as unnatural. To me this was her natural character. I think I need a bird feeder.