The Connecticut Audubon Society Coastal Center at Milford Point is a bird sanctuary in Milford, CT (map). The salt marshes and coastal dunes at Milford Point support a variety of plant and wildlife communities. The Coastal Center is in the city and provides easy access to anyone. I visited once this place last year and once this summer as well to explore the area for potential bird photography projects. The drawback of being easily accessible is that there are always too many people here and I didn’t feel good photographing at this coast. It’s a nice place for bird watching though. A big spotting scope makes it possible for responsible birders to watch the birds from a distance, however, even a large telephoto lens is not powerful enough to make really good photos of the wildlife from far away. For me the wellbeing of wildlife always comes first, but unfortunately there are too many ignorant people out there with cameras (I wouldn’t call them photographers). Maybe next year I’ll try again, but only if I feel my presence doesn’t affect the birds. I took some photos during my two visits and I wanted to share them in case I won’t take better ones. I only spent about an hour each time at the coast and never more than a few minutes at the same place. Last year I used my Canon 7D camera with my Canon 300mm lens + 1.4x teleconverter. This year I photographed with my Canon 5Ds attached to my Canon 500mm lens with the 1.4x extender. I used my Manfrotto and Gitzo tripods to support my photo equipment.

Least tern (Sterna antillarium)

American oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus)

Piping plover (Charadrius melodus)