Just Beautiful

Two swallows posed for me beautifully on the Lyrup Punt last Sunday.

A punt is a floating platform to carry vehicles across a river and is  moved by winches and steel cables.

Photographed with a Pentax Kx

Flock of Galahs taken from ouside Subway Sandwich Bar at Berri  Shopping Centre

Cocky moves to the Riverland.

Today I helped my good friend Dave relocate his pet Corella to the Riverland in South Australia.
Cocky has lived for many years with Anne and Dave but because of his residence not being suitable anymore and he was missing out on being happy Cathy and Richard said they could find a home for him.
So today Dave and I drove Cocky the 3 hours to Renmark.
It was a noisy trip and after 90mins of screeching in his high pitched voice(the cocky that is,) Dave decided to cover his cage to quieten him.
Cocky then started yelling "Help! Help" for some time.
Eventually with us keeping conversation to a minimum he calmed down till we reached Renmark.
In Renmark, Kathy who has a way with animals, her mother has a type of ramshackle outback private zoo, soon befriended him and he met a recently rehabilitated Galah and the two resident dogs and many other caged native parrots..
In the bush around live Tawny Frogmouths, Owlet Nightjars, Goannas and Sleepy lizards, Snakes and Rabbits and Echidnas and many other native birds.
Tomorrow Cocky will be taken to his new home where he will be much loved.
Galah waved goodbye when we left.
Videos filmed on an iphone.
The trip home was much quieter.

Galahs in flight: Australia's most widespread Cockatoo

Solitary Galah in Gum Trees

Add caption

I have put these three shots up just for people to enjoy the splash of colour.These birds are in the suburbs in all our cities in Australia and also the outback and the river systems. The term Galah is also used colloquially In Australia to identify someone who is a bit of a clown. eg " You silly Galah!"

Thoughts on Bird Photography

Wedgetailed Eagle on road kill Central Australia

Little Corellas flying alongside our car Central Australia

Galahs in late afternoon light Central Australia

             




by Geoff Thompson


Bird Photography is one of the great challenges of photography.

We have all been impressed by the marvellous Bird studies by famous
Professional Photographers and think how great it would be to get similar
shots.

In the new age of digital photography it is now a lot easier to get great photos of just about any subject. Birds included.

Digital SLR cameras when coupled with zoom lenses can bring you right in close to wildlife and the magnification factor of the digital sensor actually increases the power of the zoom.

Many of the Digital Cameras now have Image Stabilization built into the camera or lens which means you can hand hold the camera a lot more successfully.

Couple this with multi point autofocus and all you need to do is study your subject and practice! practice! practice!

The modern digital movie camera also means that you have a whole new world open to you with photography. Many of the new Digital video Cameras are also offering a high megapixel digital still feature which means you can capture stills and video on the same camera.
Also now we have digital slr’s and also compact digital cameras that are offering full HD Video.

For the birdwatcher photographer this almost gives you the complete package. You can capture movement and sound of the birds and choose individual frames for printing off a still image of your choice.

You can then make a cd recording of birdsong from the video tape and when coupled with a computer and video editing you can create your own
wildlife documentaries or relaxation videos.
   
Birds of course are found just about anywhere and a place without birds would be similar to living on the moon.
Another good thing about birds is that they are most active in mornings and late afternoons when the light is the best for photography.

So what do we need to get into bird photography?

1.    A knowledge of bird behaviour, types and habitats  is something that needs to be acquired.
2.    A good bird identification field guide is essential.The beauty of digital capture is that you can look at your shots later and identify what you have “captured”
3.    A pair of binoculars would be helpful.
4.    A tripod used to be of some help but less so now with optical stabilisation built into the camera   body  or lenses on some digital slr’s
5.    Time.
6.    A Digital SLR Camera with a Telephoto Zoom Lens.Film is still good if you can afford it but it is  not as convenient.
7. You can now get very good Bird Indentification Apps for your phone or ipad.In Australia there is one by Michael Morecombe and also a good one by Pizzey and Knight. Other countries have their own apps. These apps also give you the audio of birds' calls.Great to have with you when out and about.

Bird Watchers and Bird Photographers come to Australia before you get too old.