Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

The light in your eyes

Mimus polyglottosI wonder who it was who painted the first portrait with that little bit of white in the eyes signifying reflection? You can wander a museum for hours fixated on these daubs of paint, geometries suggestive of where the subject posed — rectangular for natural light through a window, for instance — which suddenly give so much depth and life to the image. A portrait is dead without them.

Get close enough to other animals, and if the sun is behind you, it will bounce off their eyes as well, as this Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) shows. Mimus polyglottosMimus polyglottos

mthew

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4 responses to “The light in your eyes”

  1. Beth G

    I believe the technical term for this “catchlight.”

    Reply
    1. mthew

      I had no idea. Thank you, Beth! Wikipedia also suggests that in the age of mechanical reproduction, they are known as Obies, for Merle Oberon — one of many lit this way for the glories of silver nitrate — which sounds too good to be true.

      Reply
  2. Paul Lamb

    I continue to be impressed not only by the detail you capture in your photos but by the photos themselves. You must be a sort of St. Francis to be able to keep the critters from darting away before you get within 100 feet of them. (Or are these NYC critters who will take no guff from anyone?)

    Reply
    1. mthew

      Mockingbirds ARE pretty tough and quite territorial. But I do think our local birds are habituated to people. These photos were taken in Bk Bridge Park, where the path is lined with the very trees the birds feed in and roost, so they have to deal with people frequently. A telephoto doesn’t hurt, either.

      Reply

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