For many subjects we have to travel far and wide. After all, Lions are not everywhere. When I moved to Nebraska, I instantly felt like I was in a photography desert, but then again, even deserts have wonderful pictures in them. I could not find "my kind of" landscape scenes. But birds are everywhere. No special place is required. Of course, bird photography often requires long telephoto lenses, and those are not cheap. Nevertheless, Nebraska gave me a "birds are everywhere" mindset and that mindset is serving me well.

          On my African safari, that mindset played an important role in getting me images that I would probably not have had without that mindset nudging me to look for birds everywhere. One specific instance comes to mind. We were eating lunch at a little airport in the Serengeti. Safari vehicles were parked all over the place. People where moving about, just too thankful for a chance to stretch their legs and visit the much needed facilities. As usual, I was done with my meal, the group was scattered here and there. What was I going to do while I wait for everybody to gather to leave? Surely, there is nothing to photograph here!

          But wait, birds are everywhere. In fact, a case could probably be made that the airport's birds were used to a lot of people, are more tame, and cooperative as they seek to eat the crumbs left behind by well satisfied diners. They dash too and fro around people and did not seem to be bothered by them. That "birds are everywhere" mindset kicked in and I grabbed my gear.

These are not bad for minimal effort. Every time I look at these two images, I am reminded that birds are everywhere. Good images can be made all around us. All it takes is a mindset to always be on the lookout for them and to make use of every opportunity to shoot.