Show your Bird Portraits

[AlanF]

Smew (Mergellus albellus). Pictures taken in a zoo, R5 Mk II with RF200-800mm.

View attachment 222671View attachment 222672

Lovely shots of a handsome bird!

 

[AlanF]

Female (European) Kestrel (R5ii + RF 200-800mm).

 

[Click]

I really like the last one. Well done, Alan.

 

[Maximilian]

Female (European) Kestrel (R5ii + RF 200-800mm).

Really beautiful, Alan!

 

[Maximilian]

Blue tit on blue sky.
R6m2, RF100-500+1.4xExt. @700mm,1:1 crop

 

[Click]

I like the eye contact. Nicely done, Maximilian.

 

[dmelchor]

Canon R5 + 200-800 RF
More photos in Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dmelchordiaz/

 

[ISv]

Canon R5 + 200-800 RF
More photos in Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dmelchordiaz/View attachment 222695View attachment 222696

Great shots! post more (please)!

 

[Click]

Awesome! Well done, David.

 

[Maximilian]

Canon R5 + 200-800 RF
More photos in Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dmelchordiaz/

Just wonderful, David, great detail.
How close could you get? Did you use a camo tent? Thanks in advance for your reply.

 

[Maximilian]

For those who like refections... egret (ardea alba)
R6m2, RF100-500+1.4xExt. @700mm, some cropping

 

[dmelchor]

Great shots! post more (please)!

More pictures.

 

[dmelchor]

Just wonderful, David, great detail.
How close could you get? Did you use a camo tent? Thanks in advance for your reply.

Thank you very much. The bird was about 5 or 6 metres away. It was a trusting bird and I didn't have to use camouflage. Unfortunately, they tried to capture it for ringing and now it has become much more distrustful.

 

[Maximilian]

... Unfortunately, they tried to capture it for ringing and now it has become much more distrustful.

I can understand, that ringing sometimes is necessary for science and to understand and protect species, their habitat and their migrating routes.
But sometimes I have the feeling, that it has become a sport to get 100% birds ringed.
Especially when birds are NOT migrating - like most Central and Western European kingfishers - IMO it is not useful. (Depends on where you are located, from your name, I suppose Spain)

 

[Maximilian]

More pictures.

Again, great photos. Wonderful detail.

When I look at the sharpness and detail in your pictures, I remember the story about that (Nikon-) guy, trying to get a kingfisher diving, exactly at the point where the beak tip just touches the water.
It took him more than 400k actuations and in the end the final photo I saw in the article wasn't even really sharp. Hilarious!
I can't find the link any more. Maybe it was just a paper article in the newspaper.

 

[dmelchor]

De nuevo, fotos estupendas. Detalles maravillosos.

Cuando miro la nitidez y el detalle de tus fotografías, recuerdo la historia de aquel tipo (Nikon) que intentaba atrapar a un martín pescador mientras se sumergía, exactamente en el punto donde la punta del pico apenas toca el agua.
Le tomó más de 400 mil activaciones y al final la foto final que vi en el artículo ni siquiera era muy nítida. ¡Qué gracioso!:Me parto de risa:
Ya no encuentro el enlace. Quizá sólo era un artículo en el periódico.

Muchas gracias. Me resultó muy difícil capturar al pájaro en vuelo o entrando al agua. Nunca se sabe dónde saltará y no te da muchas oportunidades. No logré obtener imágenes muy claras de él en vuelo, pero estoy satisfecho. Un cordial saludo.

 

[dmelchor]

I can understand, that ringing sometimes is necessary for science and to understand and protect species, their habitat and their migrating routes.
But sometimes I have the feeling, that it has become a sport to get 100% birds ringed.
Especially when birds are NOT migrating - like most Central and Western European kingfishers - IMO it is not useful. (Depends on where you are located, from your name, I suppose Spain)

I totally agree with you. For specific species that are very rare or endangered, it may make sense. But for other, more common species, interaction with the animal causes its behaviour to change. The kingfisher was very happy with the photographers for several weeks (we didn't interact with it and kept our distance). Since they were ringing species, its behaviour has changed radically. Now it hardly lets itself be seen and when it does, it is only there for a few seconds.

 

[AlanF]

I totally agree with you. For specific species that are very rare or endangered, it may make sense. But for other, more common species, interaction with the animal causes its behaviour to change. The kingfisher was very happy with the photographers for several weeks (we didn't interact with it and kept our distance). Since they were ringing species, its behaviour has changed radically. Now it hardly lets itself be seen and when it does, it is only there for a few seconds.

It's reverted to normal behaviour for kingfishers - they are famously shy.

 

[Click]

Great shots, David.

 

[dmelchor]

Great shots, David.

Thank you.