by Editor Jian Xu 
Edited and published by Yvette Depaepe, the 25th of June 2025

'Northern Parula'  Singing Among Wild Dogwood Blossoms

I’m a bird photographer based in Missouri, USA. I joined 1X in 2021, the same year I began my journey into photography during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the lockdown, working from home gave me the rare chance to slow down and reconnect with nature. Quarantined with nowhere to go, I turned my lens toward the only accessible space: my own backyard.

What I had once overlooked revealed itself to be a vibrant world full of life. Tiny songbirds, their feathers like brushstrokes of sunlight and sky, flitted through the trees, filling the air with melodies I felt I was hearing for the very first time. It had always been there, but only with a more attentive eye did I truly begin to see the everyday miracles just outside my door. This experience sparked a deep passion for birdwatching, which soon evolved into a love of bird photography.

In the years since, I’ve observed nearly 300 species of wild birds, most of them in and around the St. Louis area. I’m especially captivated by migratory warblers that make an incredible journey each year traveling thousands of miles from Central and South America to breed in North America before returning south in the fall.

I’m drawn to photographing these warblers not only for their vivid beauty, but because I hope to capture something more: their presence, their spirit, and the intricate relationship between the bird and its environment.

Here’s a collection of my favourite warbler pictures。

'Nashville warbler'

This image of a Nashville Warbler perched on a blooming red oak is my personal favorite. I captured it in my backyard during the spring of 2022. That year, the season was unusually cold, so when the warblers arrived, the red oak was still in bloom, a rare and beautiful coincidence. What draws me to this photo is the way the bird’s vivid breeding plumage harmonizes with the warm tones of the emerging leaves and blossoms. The warbler is perfectly poised, holding a small prey item in its beak, adding both narrative and detail to the scene. To me, this photograph embodies my vision for bird photography, a blend of technical precision and artistic composition, where the bird is not isolated but in harmony with its natural environment.

'Yellow-throated Warbler' on Blooming Redbud

Louisiana Waterthrush Serenading the Wild Bluebells

'Prairie Warbler' on a Tangle of Honeysuckle Vine

A Curious Glance from a 'Prothonotary Warbler'

'Cerulean Warbler' Singing to Spring

'Pine Warbler' Enjoying a Morning on a Moss-Covered Log

'Ovenbird' Displaying Its Fiery Crown

'Bay-breasted Warbler' Singing Its Heart Out

The Watchful Gaze of the 'Hooded Warbler'

'Blue-winged Warbler' Among Spring Greenery

'Golden-winged Warbler' Perched on Wild Rose

'Yellow Warbler' Framed by a Heart of Leaves

'Canada Warbler' on Basswood Branch

Cape May Warbler Among Spruce Needles

'Kentucky Warbler' in Forest Shadows

'Common Yellowthroat' on a Compass Sunflower

'Yellow-rumped Warbler' on Honeysuckle Branch

'Blackpoll Warbler' on Red Oak Bloom

See more in these two exhibitions by Jian Xu.

[382] 2025 Spring Migration by Jian Xu

[382] Wings of Passage: Warblers on the Move by Jian Xu