Just before Christmas last year, I noticed a brilliant male cardinal frequenting my back-yard bird feeders. Its blood-red plumage was breathtaking against the winter landscape.
Equally lovely was the spruce tree I had planted as a seedling more than a decade ago. The tree now stood about 20 feet tall, its thick branches providing cover for birds and other wildlife in all seasons.
I figured it would be nice to take an image of the cardinal perched in my spruce tree, preferably with a fresh snow covering the branches. A photo like that would make a great Christmas card!
So I devised a plan.
I moved several bird feeders closer to the tree. Cardinals generally are skittish birds, and a blind usually is required to attain a close-up image. I placed a tent-style photography blind near the tree and just left it there, knowing the cardinal eventually would get used to it.
Then I waited for Old Man Winter to provide the snowfall.
I watched for a week or so as the cardinal came and went, occasionally perching on the spruce tree. I paid close attention to its favorite perching locations so I could prepare for our eventual photo session.
Then it happened one night in mid-December. About four inches of snow fell that night. And it was a wet snow, the type that clings to everything. My back yard's dull winter backdrop, with its browns and grays, was transformed into a winter wonderland. Much to my delight, the green branches of my spruce tree were cloaked in white.
