And I am so glad this bird isn’t a raven (gulp, unless I misidentified, which easily could be). I’ve been humming Stevie Wonder song “Superstition” since the sighting earlier today and only while writing made the subconscious mental connection: Ravens as forebears of bad luck, or worse. But I’m not really superstitious—or wouldn’t be if not for the odd encounter.
While walking along Madison, approaching the alley between North and Campus in my San Diego neighborhood of University Heights, the flyer landed on a fence beside me. He seemed to want something, and I wondered if perhaps people feed him. Of course, the encounter could have been, uh-hum, an omen. The bird perched long enough for me to step back, pull out Leica Q2, and compose two shots (changing aperture between) before flying off.
The crow looks me over—curious, perhaps—for the Featured Image. Vitals: f/4, ISO 100, 1/1250 sec, 28mm; 2:12 p.m. PDT. I spent some time pointing and repositioning the camera, and still he stayed. Wearing sunglasses, I struggled to find the bird in the viewfinder. Times like this, I so wish for optical, rather than digital, eyepiece.
The two other portraits come from the same original. The first is the crop I prefer. The other shows a second bird. Vitals: f/8, ISO 100, 1/320 sec, 28mm; 2:13 p.m.