Walked into the house and saw this visitor through the living room window. Took a shot on my phone. Ran into my home office and gabbed the Big Lens and stuck it on the Sony Camera. Ran to living room - got a shot through the window. Ran to bedroom, closest spot to Mr. Pileated. Got a shot through the doors. Gently opened the door halfway. Got a shot through the clear air (above).

Mr. Pileated heard that and flew off squawking.

But: I got the shot. 300mm Canon lens at f/3.2, 1/500th second. (I just turned dials until it looked vaguely OK, the shot was about one-third overexposed…easy recovery.)

He just about filled the frame at that distance. Best. Shot. Ever.

Oh, the torn up post? His work.

The above is a crop of his head; here’s the rest of him. The head shot is at 100%; click on it to see it in a new window.