Chthoniid

Back from Darwin with some wildlife photos

Monday, October 26, 2009 4:46:27 AM

Australia, photo, sony alpha, heron, kite, chase, bird, Environment and Ecology

I made it back from Darwin yesterday with what I think is a good collection of bird and crocodile photos. I'll expand a bit on the challenges of crocodile photography later (hint- it is a team effort, not a sole shooter exercise). In the meantime I've been really focused on processing my photos.

One of the common birds of prey is the whistling kite. This bird is a superb acrobat.

The shot below is from a sequence where the kite is chasing a heron- who has a fish in its mouth. The kite is trying to get the heron to drop the fish to steal it. This scene played out at Bird Billabong near the Mary River. The main challenge here was the 40 degree heat and sweat trickling into the eyes (and the damn flies sucking moisture from the mouth, nose, eyes and ears).

Anyway, for a brief second the two birds banked towards me and I got the shot.

Link to larger image

There will be a short break- taking cameras to AustraliaThe Art of Photographing Crocodiles

Comments

Dacotah # Monday, October 26, 2009 5:03:00 AM

Chthoniidchthoniid # Monday, October 26, 2009 7:24:28 AM

Thanks Carol- hope you clicked the link to the bigger image

Dacotah # Monday, October 26, 2009 12:58:59 PM

You are welcome. Just wondering why it's fuzzy in the background? Did you do that on purpose?
Yep, I clicked the link.

Loiscakkleberrylane # Monday, October 26, 2009 9:55:37 PM

Amazing photo. A bird with a fish in it's mouth is great, one chasing another is also great, but both together are exeptional!

Chthoniidchthoniid # Tuesday, October 27, 2009 3:48:40 AM

Thanks Dacotah, the main reason the background is that it is out of focus, but the heat-haze contributes. 40 degrees C is a bit of 100 degrees F. I had to drink a lot of fluids...

Dacotah # Tuesday, October 27, 2009 3:52:55 AM

I see.

Heat waves.

Chthoniidchthoniid # Tuesday, October 27, 2009 7:36:09 AM

Originally posted by cakkleberrylane:

Amazing photo. A bird with a fish in it's mouth is great, one chasing another is also great, but both together are exeptional!

Thanks- yes, this is very much why I like the shot. Fortunately the kite is a superb flier and the gap with the heron is minimal. It was also good of both the birds to bank at the right time- momentarily occupying the same focal plane.

Words # Tuesday, October 27, 2009 7:40:22 AM

What a fabulous moment to capture. A great shot. I'm really looking forward to the rest from this trip. It's going to be stunning.

Chthoniidchthoniid # Tuesday, October 27, 2009 9:57:44 PM

Thanks Words- these sorts of opportunities don't come up often, so when they do, it pays to grab them

NeilUkwildlife # Wednesday, November 4, 2009 5:36:16 PM

Well done for capturing that action!

Chthoniidchthoniid # Wednesday, November 4, 2009 9:36:31 PM

Thanks- yeah, I was pretty pleased with the shot. I had flies drinking off my lips, nose, eyes and ears at the time, so I had to get something worth the effort.

I've corrected the horizon slightly also in later editing work.

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Renee Hendricks
2013-03-18 19:48:00

I almost put "go away" in quotes ;)
Chthoniid
2013-03-18 18:22:08

Thanks, sigh. I hope Opera gives her complaint all the consideration is deserves :) (And yes, I *wish* she'd go away)
Renee Hendricks
2013-03-18 15:43:31

Heads up. Looks like someone is going to try to report you to Opera. Why won't she just go away?
Chthoniid
2013-02-01 04:02:26

I hate jet lag
Chthoniid
2013-01-01 02:05:46

Happy New Year everyone :) All I can add is that it is very hot and there are lots of cicadas in 2013
Chthoniid
2012-12-11 03:00:30

Thanks MM- it hit just west of us. Better than last time when it only veered away at last minute. Number 2 spawn was a bit concerned as she was home alone.