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How to start birding. Intro 2.

It used to be so hard

Before you had to buy a field guide, buy binoculars and join organized bird walks with experienced guides to get started. But as soon as you were left on your own you’d be totally lost. You would never be sure of identification if you did not have a mentor to ask. Sure you could take some notes to look up later, but still it was more often not possible to get the ID confirmed.  You looked for the wrong things and you would miss important features. It was simply not enough to state that it was green above and yellow below.

Which one was it?

If you did not have almost constant access to an experienced birder that would take you out birding, you’d have a hard time to get beyond the threshold every beginner experience. Now with communities on the internet and especially Facebook, we can just share a photo. You say: I think this may be a Nashville Warbler. Someone will likely help you.  There is some evidence of what you have seen. There is instant confirmation.

Blog update.

We are gaining momentum for this blog and the future ebook. Please note that these first posts written by Gunnar Engblom are mainly to anticipate the future posts and chapters. In the coming posts I shall show who the collaborators are. I am sure you shall recognize many names. Subscribe by email or RSS not to miss any posts.

Please comment on your frustrations with bird identifications below.

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Gunnar  Engblom
Connect with Gunnar on Facebook or Twitter or kolibriexp@gmail.com

by    27

How to start birding? Intro1.

Old school birding vs birding in the digital age.

Don’t listen to the old school to in for of birding! You don’t need a field guide, you don’t need a mentor to guide you and you don’t even need binoculars to start birding. You just need a point and shoot camera and an internet connection to get started.  Everything else is secondary and comes later. Chances are that you already have a digital camera and access to internet, so you can get started right away.  What are you waiting for? Just do it.
Everything is right there at your fingertips, but it is not yet organized for the 21st century.  Pick up any book, read any blog post, check out any video on Youtube about birdwatching for beginners, and they all repeat the same mantra from yesterdays.

YOU NEED Binoculars, Field guide and notebook. And join a birdwatching club!

We are here to show you, that to get started you don’t need any of all that. That is why we are doing this blog. We want you to understand that it is easy to start birdwatching. This blog leads you into a wonderful and rewarding hobby, which has never been easier to get started with, than today.  The blog presents the new resources on the internet where you can share your photos of birds and learn as you go along. You’ll become a member of the birding community from the start, without membership fees and without physical access to birdwatching clubs or leaders who mentor you.

Birding has never been cooler than it is today. It is certainly not a hobby for nerds, but one for active people who enjoy nature and outdoors and want to share their passion with others. Birding today compares less with trainspotting and stamp collecting, but more like the fine subtleties of wine-tasting and photo-hunting.

This blog will give you a multitude of tips from the best birders in the world. It will teach you to become a birder.  Eventually, we shall also talk about the same mantra, but then you are already a birder and you probably want to step up a pinhole.  You will find joining a bird club, subscribing to a birding magazine or visit a birdwatching festival will be a natural outcome and very awarding.

Follow us from the beginning by subscribing to this blog.

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Gunnar  Engblom
Connect with Gunnar on Facebook or Twitter or kolibriexp@gmail.com