Lately, I’ve found myself more and more fascinated by the birds flitting around my Mother’s garden in Shoeburyness, Essex, England. With a bit of seed experimentation and some patience, they’ve started showing up more regularly — and over a few Mornings last week, I noticed a couple of Wood Pigeons up to something purposeful. They were entering the thick conifer trees at the side of the garden, disappearing and reappearing with twigs in their beaks. Sure enough, they were building a nest — laying the groundwork for the next generation, right there in the back garden.
A Wood Pigeon pauses from nest building to pose for a quick photo in Essex, England.
Wood Pigeons are the big lads of the British garden bird world — plump, mellow, with that pinkish-grey chest and a flight style that’s heavy on the flap. You’ll often spot them waddling across lawns or bouncing between fence posts. Different from the slimmer, slightly more dainty collared doves — who have that signature black collar and a softer coo. Where collared doves feel delicate, wood pigeons have presence. They’re less shy, less skittish — and clearly not too fussed about nesting in eye-level shrubbery if the spot’s right. Food wise they don’t seem too fussy and they often appear to be working alongside the Magpies for some food, letting the more aggressive Magpies shake the bird feeders whilst the Wood Pigeons happily scoop up the leftovers.
Conifer trees, especially the thicker, mature types, offer brilliant shelter. They stay green year-round, provide cover from wind and predators, and their dense branches make a great base for twiggy nests. Timing-wise, late spring is prime season for activity — with Wood Pigeons sometimes raising multiple broods a year if the conditions are good. Click through the slideshow below for some more images from the Wood Pigeon Morning sessions:
The images on this photography blog were captured with the Canon 5D Mark IV and the absolute dream that is the Sigma 135mm f/1.8 Art lens. Razor-sharp, dreamy falloff, and perfect for garden wildlife when you want reach and isolation without hauling a massive telephoto around. The first and favourite image I took just as the pigeon looked straight at me with its twig moustache — a perfect mix of purpose and personality. I cropped in tight in Lightroom and edited using one of their presets.
This little garden project was unplanned but surprisingly rewarding — a reminder that you don’t always need to travel far to find beauty, behaviour, and a story worth shooting.
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