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Kingfisher

The kingfisher is back on the lake where I usually photograph them. It is about this time of year when we start to see them each year. They are not very reliable yet, but I took a few pictures yesterday and will try again in the morning. I have started off on a very thin, but attractive twig, which I usually prefer to a larger branch. The downside to using such a flimsy perch however, is that the bird is not so likely to return to it to eat a fish as it prefers a thicker branch to slam the fish against before swallowing.

From a hide. Canon EOS 1d Mk1v. 800mm lens. 1/1250th at  f5.6.

 
 
 

Tawny owl

I was sitting in my car in the corner of a field watching the evening light fade away when a Tawny owl called behind me. I could only think of one old, hollow tree in the hedge it called from and 20 minutes later drove round and parked close to it.  After a few minutes the owl popped out and posed wonderfully for me, but I had no cameras set up. I have been back 7 evenings now and it has never posed quite so well. Mostly I just get head shots as it peers out of its hole. By going around the front of the tree I can get the whole owl, but only by using flash as there is no natural light from that angle. The setting sun lights up the side of the tree. I am going to set up a trap camera tonight and see where else he lands after dark. Maybe he uses the fence posts opposite the tree, which could make a nice picture. I left food out for him last night, but he didn’t touch it.

As I drove away last night in the dark I miss-judged where a muddy hole was and got the car stuck. I have everything in the car for extracting it, planks, spades, ropes and a hand winch, but in the dark it is never fun. So I called my friend Pete with his old Skoda to come and pull me out. Once he got there it only took seconds to get me free.

All taken with Canon EOS 1d Mk1v. 800mm lens. 1600 iso except for the flashed full bodied image, which was 800 iso. Portable canvas hide. #gallery-529-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-529-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-529-1 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-529-1 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

 
 
 

House Sparrow

Over the years I have found several places to photograph House sparrows. A red-tiled information stand in Greece and a similar bus stop in Norfolk for instance. The red tiles made for attractive pictures, but I have just found a new spot with more subdued coloured tiles, which are equally photographic. The roof is at head height and covered in lichens and moss, perfect for photography. The only downside is you have to pay £14.50 to get in to Twycross Zoo. It is the roof of the Meercat house, not far from the entrance. Twycross it not a good zoo from the point of view of open enclosures suitable for photography so it was the only subject I took pictures of on the day, other than a head shot of a White stork. Maybe I will try in the spring for the sparrows when the males might be singing.

House sparrow 800mm lesn 1/640 at f7.1. 800 iso. Although I used the big lenses for this shot I also took pictures with the 100-400mm. There was no problems getting closer.

 
 
 
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