While an unobstructed view of a subject is usually desirable, sometimes it’s fun to deal with less ideal circumstances. In the case above, the blackbird was perched on a cattail on the other side of a bunch of trees. If I moved just so, I could see the bird clearly through a window in the branches. I rather like the green framing in the foreground. There was a light breeze, so there is also some “artistic” movement.
These Gadwalls were very timid and came close to shore only in places that were pretty dense with trees and shrubs when they saw any sign of people. Even when I sat still along the water, they noticed me and kept their distance, but as I was walking along the pond at High Park, I noticed the pair before they noticed me. A bush allowed me to view them through a little clear spot. I had a very low DOF, which gave a very soft look to the fall colours past which I was shooting, to create a natural, softly coloured, vignette.