My Opera Interviews

We proudly present an interview with well known Opera Community member Andy Wilson, also known as Dudley. His blog posts is usually only seen through a lense, but this time we give you the chance to get to know the real Dudley.

We proudly present an interview with well known Opera Community member Andy Wilson, also known as Dudley.

Andy, please introduce yourself shortly.

My Opera user name is "Dudley" and my real is Andy Wilson living in the state of Massachusetts, USA. I am fast approaching the half-century mark but I feel half that number, married to the most beautiful woman in the world with two grown children who have since left home to be on their own.

How did you find out about Opera Community and what convinced you to join?

Once finding the browser Opera and using it, I would visit the Opera forums from time to time reading on how to customize Opera. When I noticed the photo blog availability I jumped in.

What do you like the most about Opera Community?

The ease of use and overall design of the blog system by Opera makes it an ideal place to display photographs. Plus, the civility, helpfulness, friendliness and international flavor of the Opera members. The Opera moderators perform an outstanding job of monitoring spammers and troublemakers.

What new features you would like to see in Opera Community?

Easier customization of the blog sidebar, such as the ability to sort photo albums. Although, a new design is coming with new sidebar customization features.

As many of your readers already know photography is one of your hobbies, is it also your profession?

Photography is not my profession, although when my current employer needed a photographer (among other duties), naturally I stepped in. However, I was transferred to another position and I no longer take photos for work. It was fun while it lasted!

When posting pictures of birds and you always provide the name of the specie, how do you know all those species? Are you also interested in birds? Or photographing birds made you learn the names?

I have a couple of bird books to help me with identification. One book is considered a "must have" for birders; it is "Sibley’s Field Guide To Birds". I have found this book to be extremely helpful in identifying birds. What makes this field guide stand out from the other guides, is that it displays juvenile, male, female and seasonal plumages of birds making identification easier. I supplement this with another book containing primarily photographs of birds.

I did not become interested in photographing birds until I bought a lens for my (at the time) new camera. Once I photographed the bird I became interested in knowing what kind it was.

How do you capture those beautiful photos of birds? Do you mask yourself? Do you hide and wait? Where do you find all those birds?

Birds are very skittish creatures, which is a natural behavior since in nature they "are the food" for other creatures. Depending on the species and the environment, birds have a tolerance level of how close they will let you come. Birds in the wild have a lower tolerance level than birds in parks where there are people all the time.

In each setting, slow movements and patient waiting are key. Hiding at times is essential, especially for the wilder birds. I try to hide myself as much as possible.

Birds are all around us and you would be surprised how many kinds there are in your own back yard. At last count, there are at least 30 kinds in my yard! Besides my own backyard, there are parks, beaches and zoos. I am branching out to nature trails.

Your photos have great composition and are technically clean, how did you achieve that? Personal experience? Photography courses? Books?

I was also active in a local photography club for a short time. That proved to be a great experience in learning what some judges look for in a photograph.

How long have you been into photography? How did you start?

Growing up I knew a professional photographer and I was always interested in his work. He was always willing to help and give me some pointers.

It was not until I was stationed in Hahn, Germany courtesy of the US Air Force that the hobby really took off. The beauty of the countryside and the friendliness of the people really struck me.

It was then I bought a Pentax MX and took it with me on many trips around the German countryside. I still have it and a photo of it is posted in the Project 365 photo album.

What equipment do you use?

Nikon D70

Nikkor 300mm f/4D ED IF AF-S (Main lens for birds)

Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G ED-IF AF-S DX Zoom

Phoenix AF 100mm f/3.4 Macro Lens

The adventure is finding different kinds of birds for the first time, trying to photograph them, and the goal of trying to get a better photo. How does one achieve this? I think this quote says it all: "...achieving the perfect picture is down to a mixture of skill, vision, originality, knowledge of nature and luck."

Therein lies the challenge.

Last words:

Thank you all for your kind words and the opportunity to share with you.

We thank Andy for sharing his experience with us, and we'll be watching his blog for more great pictures