Beautiful Female Cardinal - Behind the Shot

I'd been at Magee Marsh for several hours this last weekend listening to the birds and trying to find these skittish creatures amongst the thick growth of trees, grasses and weeds.  The more I stay put in one place and don't move around too much the more the birds come in and the more I see happening around me.  Such was the case when this cardinal landed on the boardwalk not far from where I stood and allowed several pictures before taking to the trees.  Though I had some good shots of her on the ground I really wanted her in the trees which proved a little more difficult because now I was moving and so was she.  But I kept pursuing until, finally, she settled on this branch long enough for a shot.