Bearded Reedling / Bearded Tit (Panurus biarmicus)

I had a fantastic day today at Pensthorpe, with dozens of shots to upload over the coming few days. I wanted, however, to post this one early. It was one of those shots when everything came together beautifully; a moment and an image to treasure. I had spent hours sitting patiently waiting for a decent shot of a male Bearded Reedling. Somehow, though, nothing was working very well; the birds were staying deep within the reeds, the sun was forever disappearing behind menacing clouds and, when I did get the chance of a shot, there always seemed to be stray foliage in the frame, spoiling either the detail or the composition. Then, however, this chap jauntily descended down a convenient reed stem just as the light became perfect. It dwelled just long enough and the result is, I think, a lovely portrait of a fabulous little bird. Check back for more over the next few days.

Canon 1Ds MkII, Canon 100-400mm IS USM lens, 1/160th sec, f/10, 400mm at ISO 500