About DoF, I think that here I have a minimal DoF, since only the plane of the bird is sharp. Isn't the DoF the amount of depth *in focus*? Just a nomenclature question, I know, but I am curiuos about the "correct" usage of it. On the other hand,
"What is a name? A rose would smell as sweet under any other name.",
Giuseppe, thank you so much for the nice comment! Yes, it is the usual method technically.
And for the pose, I promised the bird a role in the next reality show ;-) Now, seriously, I just stood still at some distance, zooming at 200mm and waited until some of the nice feathered folks presented a nice pose. But sometimes I also keep on shooting continuously in series and from the many photos some are good. (Like a photo session for fashion, that is.)
What birdseed you use for making all those birds to pose for you? I like this one very much Nick. You have inverted the usual method: your foreground is dark and the background is very luminous. And in the stark shadow the bird with the black head and the white body is a perfect subject. Bella. Ciao.