Cats, Photography, Life

Kitties in the Garden on a Sunny Winter Morning

Bisou and Freyja really enjoy showing off their tree-climbing skills, and I had fun playing with my new Nikon 100–400mm (ƒ4–5.6) VR S lens

The screech of the hummingbirds. The twitter of the goldfinches and sparrows. And the warmth of the sun-drenched stepping stones. It’s just all too much to resist on a sunny winter Southern California day, if you’re a cat.

Bisou, Freyja, Uma and Emerson, with those fluffy coats and a fair amount of Maine Coon blood coursing through their veins, all love a good rainy day, but when the sun comes out you can find them at the back door, begging with all of the passion in their little souls, to be let out into the garden.

And although I have been aiming my new lens that I got for Christmas at hummingbirds and squirrels and other critters lately, the kitties are my favorite subjects to photograph. They can be a bit tricky to get good photos of though because every time I get too close to them they begin to flirt with me and drop down to do “baby rolls” with those fluffy tummies up in the air.

Having a zoom lens really helps because I can get more “action” shots from a little bit of a distance.

One of the other tricks for getting good animal photos is to get down to their level, so I find myself sprawled out in the dirt quite often. But it’s worth it to be able to get those “in the moment” shots.

Emerson loves to hide in the shadows. He blends in so well that he can stealthily observe all of the goings on.

After all, there are so many birds (whose feeders are hung up high enough in the trees that they are out of reach of inquisitive claws) to watch.

Uma Zooma Angelwings is my glamour girl. But that doesn’t stop her from rolling around in the dirt after nibbling a little bit of catnip. She knows that she has a personal servant to brush her out later. After all, that fur doesn’t comb itself!

Freyja alternates between initiating games of chase with Emerson and with Bisou. She’s quite subtle with her approach, sidling up to them, then tapping them with a paw to say “game on.”

This is Emerson’s, “I’m going to get you, Freyja” expression.

And this is Freyja’s “I am a wild thing,” look. It normally precedes a full-on dash up a tree.

But Bisou is not to be outdone. Once he sees Freyja getting attention for climbing a tree, he cannot resist the challenge.

And really, this little Australian Tree Fern is small potatoes for them. The hillside is covered with eucalyptus, pines and a few Giant Bird of Paradises that all make good kitty jungle gyms.

But, at the end of day, really what matters the most is a good nap in a sunny spot under the roses.

I hope you enjoyed the morning with the kitties. Stay tuned for more garden adventures. Mrs. Squirrel is coming up next. She had her own photo session the other day.

Erika Burkhalter is a yogi, neurophilosopher, cat-mom, photographer, and lover of travel and nature, spreading her love and amazement for Mother Earth’s glories, one photo, poem or story at a time. (MS Neuropsychology, MA Yoga Studies).

I hope you enjoyed my photos and musings. You might also like:

Photos and story ©Erika Burkhalter. All rights reserved.

If you enjoyed this piece, you might consider subscribing to my stories. You’ll get an alert whenever a story gets published. While I do normally post my stories with free “friends” links on social media, if you enjoy reading on medium, you can help the many talented writers here by joining. The five-dollar-a month fee helps to support the arts and to keep us writing!