Natural Beauty

[Photosoph]

Just a few minutes ago, a bird (a thrush) crashed into one of the windows of our house; it died a few moments later. But as I stood holding this bird, and seeing all the colour and detail of its feathers, we got the camera out and took a few pictures.
I'm an artist, so though the death was tragic, it was natural; and being able to see the wings and structure of the bird up close is an excellent opportunity for being able to draw realistic birds better.
After taking the photos, I put it in the garden and laid a few flowers atop it. I know it may not mean much to the bird in the end, but I respect life; and a bird is one of God's creations.

But I thought I'd share the photos of the bird with you; you can really see the natural beauty and detail God has put into making such a beautiful creature.
I was amazed by its wings as well, especially the inner wing. I thought they would be thicker, but you can see the thin pink skin there; I thought it would have been covered over with a lot of feathers. But you can see muscle and even bone shape through the layer of muscle there.

(Btw, these photos are clean. But please let me know if you find them offensive, and I'll make sure to do something about it).

[Esoteric]

Wow, those are exceptionally thin feathers. A pretty bird, indeed. It's always sad when something like that happens. It reminds you that all things die in all sorts of ways. At least you were able to appreciate it, and make some use of the situation.

[Photosoph]

Definitely. Because we have a backyard with fruit trees very close to the house, sadly it's not the first time something like this has happened. However, a lot of the time the birds are just stunned and recover quickly.
But seeing birds up close, even if it's under such sad circumstances, is so amazing for me. Like I said, the detail on the feathers that you can never see so far away, and even the eyelids and feet... they're all so stunningly beautiful. Even if it appears to be just a 'brown bird' from far away, you can really see the colours and patterns on its feathers.

[Tenshi no Ai]

Aww poor birdie v_v... I like birdies^^ So pretty and cute, even the dull coloured ones. Opening up the wings reminds me of my own albino budgie. I remember a long time ago when I used to take her out of the cage often (not anymore since she injured herself alot by flying into the white walls >_<), and a couple times I would gently lift up a wing and fan it out, because of the pretty white colour^^ I remember it reminding me of angel wings or something. It is amazing the detail that goes into some creatures^^ And like the hairs on our heads, He knows all the feathers, scales, whatever the animal has, on their bodies.

[ChristianKitsune]

Aww how sad!! I cant believe it died...are you sure it's not just stunned lol?

That is indeed a very awesome looking bird. God is amazing, ne?

I love the verse in Matthew about how he created the birds ( I can't remember what bird was mentioned.) But God is awesome. He allowed creatures to soar above us in beauty. Hah... God is such an awesome artist.

[Photosoph]

I have a friend whose budgie often flies into their walls too. ^_^" Poor things; I guess they can get a bit confused inside.
An albino budgie? Cool! Even the normal ones look cool, but an albino one must look beautiful. ^_^ The normal green ones, and the blue ones too, have such soft, lovely pastel colours on them.

That's true; God truly is an amazing artist.

He allowed creatures to soar above us in beauty.

That sounds so poetic. ^_^

I'd like to say that the thrush wasn't dead, but unfortunately its chest wasn't moving: it wasn't breathing and there were other signs that it had expired. However, if I'm wrong, then it's out in the open, so it'll be able to fly off. I really hope that's the case, but unfortunately don't think so.

[Yahshua]

Oh that poor poor bird I feel so sorry for it's death.

[KeybladeWarrior]

Rest in Peace Mr. Bird.

[Mega.EXE]

*Sniff* that's sad

[RedMage]

Not one bird falls to the ground without His knowledge.

[mitsuki lover]

Instant Cat food!

[Evangeline-San]

I agree! It is truly beautiful to be able to see a birds wings up close.
Poor thing.
Thanks for sharing! ^_^

[That Dude]

That's cool. The only thing I'm wondering is why you didn't cook up the meal that God dropped right outside your window

[Photosoph]

Ew.... >_<
Well, we do have cats... but they already kill enough birds and rodents as it is. ^_^" Even though they get their cat food too.
No prob, Evangeline. I love pictures of bird wings up close; seeing all the detail is both good for drawing and really beautiful. ^^

[That Dude]

Sorry but I just had to.

[Fish and Chips]

Reminds me of that one Calvin and Hobbes strip when they come across a dead bird in the forest. Spotlight of seriousness for the series.

[Photosoph]

No problem T.D . XD
Haven't read much of Calvin and Hobbes... but whenever I come across a dead animal, usually a bird, it usually makes me go serious and think about things for a while.

[Doubleshadow]

Wow, how bittersweet in it's beauty. I have time to contemplate birds up close between watching our barn swallows and rescuing birds from our male cat. We got them to control the mice in the barn, but only the female cat mouses. Trust it to the woman to be the one to actually know how to do her job.

[Photosoph]

So true! Actually, I think I've heard elsewhere that the female cats tend to do more mousing than the males...
Barn swallows? You're so lucky! I love swallows, and have seen pictures but have never seen one in real life. I still love them though. ^_^ They can be so beautiful and they're such acrobatic fliers.
In fact, some species spend practically their whole lives on the wing. And that includes sleeping in flight (short bursts of sleep, I'm guessing), and eating etc. They're amazing.

ANYWAY... our cats do the same thing: catch the birds around our house. It is a shame.

[mitsuki lover]

Not if the birds have been a nuisance and eat the cat's food.

[That Dude]

Soph you need to visit the plains of the USA. You'd see all the Swallows your heart desires.

[Photosoph]

Nah, our cats eat inside.

Aw, yet another reason to go over to the USA! XO If/When I finally visit the states, I'll definitely have to spend at least a week and a half there seeing all the sights. ^_^

[That Dude]

Just make sure to let me know if you are coming to America. If I'm anywhere near where you are visiting I'll be there.

[Photosoph]

Definitely. ^_^ And I'd love to plan it to coincide with an anime convention; that'd be great too. X3
I think I'd need more than a week and a half to do everything I'd want to do, lol.

[Esoteric]

[quote="Photosoph"]Definitely. ^_^ And I'd love to plan it to coincide with an anime convention]

Yeah, a week and a half in New Zealand wasn't enough time either. Well, if you ever make it here and come through So. Cal, I could play tour guide. ^_^ Let's see now, swallows? Um, yeah, I think they might have some of those at San Juan Capistrano. (Californian joke) Hehe, no actually I've see swallows around other places too.

[Photosoph]

Excellent. XD Two tour guides lined up already!

But yeah. I do love swallows. The way they fly is so acrobatic and smooth. It's beautiful.
Actually, when reading up on birds one time, I found there were (if I remember correctly) 3 different ways of flying.
One is kind of a 'flap and then close wings close to their sides, thus creating a streamlined torpedo-type shape that lets them fly without flapping for a short moment before they flap again and restart the cycle' type of way; the other is, of course, gliding (like sea birds etc) and I think maybe the last one was just plan flapping flight. Or something like that.
But it was cool because in the book they gave examples of the different poses within these flight actions. Very interesting to look at. ^_^

[Starfire1]

i did this with a hummingbird once. it got caught between the toolshed and the side of the house but it's colors were phenomenal! then i put it in the hollow of a tree with a hibiscus covering it. still, it's amazing to see God's work that closely.

[Photosoph]

Definitely. And it would've been so cool to see a hummingbird up close; we don't have them here. Just kiwi birds etc, which you don't see in the wild except in places with vast wildernes... heh, I've only seen them at the zoo anyway. ^_^"
Though I've seen a NZ wood pigeon, Rosella (brightly-coloured parrot found in both NZ and Australia... originates from Australia though) and a few other small birds up close.

[That Dude]

Hummingbirds are definately neato to see up close.

[c-girl]

>"< It looks like it's rotting away.. >0_o< You can see the bones on the wings.