Top 10 Hardest Birds to Photograph

The Top Ten

  1. Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

    "WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT WAS RIGHT THERE?"

    The undisputed champion.

    Tiny. Hyperactive. Tail flicking every 0.2 seconds. Lives in the highest branch possible. Never stops moving. Ever.

    You don't photograph Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

    You negotiate with it for temporary mercy.

    Difficulty: Biblically Accurate Suffering

  2. Great Crested Flycatcher

    "HEARD: yes. SEEN: absolutely not."

    You hear the loud prehistoric squeaking for six straight months.

    The moment you lift your camera? Gone. Vanished. Ascended.

    Difficulty: Insane

  3. Great Grey Owl

    "Congratulations! You photographed a tree with eyes."

    People fly across continents for this bird, only for it to appear 800 feet away at dusk behind snowfall.

    Difficulty: Nightmare

  4. Night Parrot

    "Australia's greatest practical joke."

    People literally thought this bird was extinct for decades because it refused to participate in reality.

    Difficulty: Legendary

  5. Wilson's Bird-of-Paradise

    "National Geographic lied to you."

    To get those famous shots you need:

    perfect light

    perfect timing

    impossible jungle conditions

    approximately seventeen years of emotional endurance

    Difficulty: Insane

  6. Resplendent Quetzal

    "You traveled internationally for this silhouette."

    One of the most beautiful birds on Earth.

    Also one of the best at hiding in fog at the exact second you arrive.

    Difficulty: Brutal

  7. Common Yellowthroat

    "Congratulations on your excellent photo of grass."

    Lives permanently inside swamp vegetation and only reveals itself when your autofocus gives up spiritually.

    Difficulty: Brutal

  8. Ruby-Crowned Kinglet

    "Here is one blurry pixel and 17 leaves."

    The bird equivalent of caffeine. Constant motion, zero patience, and somehow always behind one branch.

    Difficulty: Very Hard

  9. Belted Kingfisher

    "HAHAHAHAHAHA" (flies away at Mach 12)

    One of the loudest birds in existence and somehow still impossible to photograph well, unless you enjoy taking pictures of telephone wires from 400 yards away.

    Difficulty: Very Hard

  10. Brown Creeper

    "I am bark. You are hallucinating."

    You finally find one, and it immediately spirals around the opposite side of the tree like it owes the IRS money.

    Difficulty: Very Hard

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    Summer Tanager

  12. ?

    Hooded Merganser

    13. The Contenders

  13. Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

  14. Northern Parula

  15. Pied-Billed Grebe

  16. Green Heron

  17. Spotted Sandpiper

  18. White-Eyed Vireo

  19. Yellow-Throated Vireo

  20. Barn Swallow

  21. Northern Rough-Winged Swallow

  22. Chimney Swift

  23. Purple Martin

  24. Pileated Woodpecker

  25. Ostrich

    The ostrich, or common ostrich, is one of two extant species of large flightless birds native to Africa. It is the only extant member of the genus Struthio and belongs to the family Struthionidae. In 2014, the Somali ostrich was officially recognized as a separate species from the common ostrich.

  26. Bald Eagle

    The bald eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle. It is the official national bird and a national symbol of the United States of America.

  27. Cassowary

    Cassowaries are ratites in the genus Casuarius and are native to the tropical forests of New Guinea, nearby islands, and northeastern Australia. They are large, flightless birds known for their striking blue and black coloring and helmet-like casques. Cassowaries can inflict serious injuries with their... read more

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