It was love at second sight!
I was standing in the kitchen, chopping up our first watermelon of the season, when I saw a flash of red fly past the window. Without stopping to think, I abandoned my sticky mess, gave my hands a quick rinse, and darted outside with my camera.
And there he was, a Scarlet Tanager! I had seen one of these beautiful birds a week or so ago, but I didn’t figure I would be blessed with a return visit.
This fellow started off with a quick dip in the bird bath…
…but he didn’t stay long as he was in no mood to share the water with a pair of intrusive doves who clearly had no respect for his personal space.
Next, he flew to a branch and surveyed the fountain to make sure it was safe and doveless.
He lounged in the water for several luxurious moments, then departed to the tree tops where he disappeared behind a cluster of leaves.
Now, I’ll admit, I know little of his personality (other than the fact that he is feistier than I first thought) but I am absolutely enthralled by his appearance. Call me shallow if you like, but it’s definitely love at second sight!
Backyard Bird Nerd 
That is one pretty bird! Tell him to stop by my house for a visit. 🙂
I will definitely pass along your invitation to him!
Nice show and very nicely captured!
Thanks so much!
So beautiful! Is your camera mounted on your birdbath?! How do you get such amazing shots! I’m smelling more artwork, lol! Thanks for sharing these!
Hmmm…mounted camera…good idea, but I’m not that clever! My family laughs at me for how quickly I can grab my camera and rush outside!
:))
So beautiful! What I’d give to spend an afternoon in your backyard! 😀 Don’t worry, I won’t do anything crazy like that, of course.
I would LOVE it if you were ever in the U.S. and came to hang out in my backyard. Consider yourself having an open invitation!
Beautiful captures Kathy! You are so like me, dropping everything to catch the moment, which would have otherwise be lost. I love the brilliance of the bird, it would take my attention likewise if it spun past me also.
My family is getting used to me giving some sort of exclamation, like “oh!”, then running out the door with my camera! 🙂
Wow, he is quite dashing — a veritable Antonio Banderas of the grosbeak family! 🙂
Good comparison!
Stunning photos!!
Thanks so much! 🙂
Send him my way please, Kathy. He is a beauty and your pictures are amazing.
He doesn’t stick around here long, so I would imagine he would be headed your way soon. 🙂
He’s a beauty! What a wonderful addition to your backyard friends!❀❀❀
I so wish he was a permanent resident…but I will enjoy his beauty while he is here!
As always, Kathy, really enjoyed this post and so many others here. This may sound a bit cheeky, but I’m wondering if you would consider adding the “Search” widget to your sidebar? I’d love to find all of your chipmunk posts, for example, and I believe that as long as you typed that word into a post containing a chipmunk photo, I should then get a list of all of the posts with a chipmunk. I have the box on my blog, and it was easy to add (and free), so if you’re not sure what I mean, you’ll find it at my place. Of course, you may not want to have the search box, which is perfectly fine, but since you have so many great photos and I’m a new artist, just thought I’d ask. Other readers may find it helpful as well. Thanks!
Hmmm…I think I will look into that. I think I have probably done a pitiful job tagging things, so I would have to go back and edit to include some bird names. Might be a good weekend project. : Thanks for the suggestion!
Search box added! 🙂 Good idea.
Yay!! Oh I hope you don’t mind me coming in here and drawing everything under the sun. I’ll get better; I promise! :))
Hi Kathy! I would like to paint a couple of these birds you photographed and post them on my blog. I will certainly name you as the photographer but I wanted to ask your permission first. Are you OK with this? 😊
I would be beyond honored! Can’t wait to see which ones you choose. 🙂
Thank you!
These photos are FAB-U-LOUS!!!! You outdid yourself, Kathy!! What a pleasure to view these super-great shots!!! We see these birds up north but they are always high up in the tree tops. What a gift to have him come down and take a bath in your backyard!! Thanks for sharing him with all of us. I just love all of these photos! (And I hope you get a few more visits! 🙂 )
Thanks! It’s hard to go wrong with such a stunning subject. 🙂 But you probably heard me squeal all the way in Michigan when he landed in the fountain!
I just started following you because of Jill’s painting of your tanager. What a beautiful bird! And your photos are stunning. I too take a lot of bird photos, but don’t get quite as close as you seem to except for my hummingbirds which are right outside the window at a feeder, although I do have to take them through the window which isn’t always the clearest shot. Thank you for sharing these! I am learning to blog and post pictures, but have many on Facebook to share with family and friends. I also am in a painting class with Jill and have been painting birds. Yours would make a lovely subject since they are so detailed and close. Beautiful!
Jill’s painting was sooooo good! And I am glad to have you following. 🙂