Artist at Exit 0 Riverblog

In my attempts to photograph the illusion of a flying bird, I’ve resorted to some low-tech solutions.  I first tried suspending my polystyrene models using cast-off fishing line found all too commonly on the riverbank.  Fishermen, please take your waste monofilament with you!  But, this solution was too obvious in the pictures and the models did blow around in the wind.  Then I hit upon using long thin skewers whittled  from local wood.  In the above photos, you can’t see that the bird is pinned to the branch behind it.  I call this the Styro-Storm Bird because it was made during a rain storm.  Materials used include polystyrene foam, wood, coal eyes, and plastic for the collar and part of the bill which came from a fishing bobber.  I’ve made a few of these birds recently and saved them. 

During the time I was working, this Eastern Kingbird hung around my site.  It didn’t seem too afraid of me.  I’ve noticed that there are a couple pairs of them currently at the Falls of the Ohio State Park.