I spotted this very blue Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) last Friday morning at Huntley Meadows Park. The brightness of its color suggests to me that it is probably a male—the females tend to have duller plumage.
When I posted this photo on Facebook, I got lots of “Likes,” which is not all that surprising to me. Over time I have come to realize that many of my best-like photos have been the ones with the simplest of compositions and often have featured relatively common subjects. In this case, I managed to capture the bluebird pretty well, but the branch on which it is perched has some nice texture and perhaps most important of all, the background is pretty cool, with the faint shapes of the tree trunks and autumn foliage rendered in a pleasing blur of shapes and colors.
Beauty is often very subjective, but in rare cases like this one an image seems to have an almost universal appeal.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Such a pretty little bird, and a very good photograph 🙂
Thanks so much. “Pretty” is definitely one of the adjectives that come to mind readily whenever I see a bluebird.
Such a beautiful blue, Mike!
Thanks, Pete. As I was processing the image, I had to pay close attention not to oversaturate the blue color, which was already amazingly rich and vibrant.
Great image Mike!
Thanks, Chris.
Such beauty, both the bird and the capture. Stunning photo, made me smile as soon as I saw it!
Thanks, Liz. Bluebirds really are such cheery little birds. I’m glad to hear that this one put a smile on your face.
A real cutie, that one!
What an excellent photo of this well-fed and beautiful bird!