"birding" fun - Page 112

**Kevin WS** · #**1111** 03-26-2019, 03:23 AM

Glen - took these at the weekend especially for you to demonstrate the settings I suggested to you for birds in flight - except the shutter speed was cranked up 1/2,000 with an ISO of 400.

If the ISO gets too high (automatically it may go up to over a 1,000 then things get blurry which defeats the object of the exercise).

A male Long Tailed Widow Bird. Normally a brown nondescript little thing, when breeding it gains the dark plumage, red shoulders and long tail shown in the two photos.

**Don Boose** · #**1112** 03-26-2019, 07:19 AM

What magnificent images, and what a splendid bird!

Don

**SCEtoAUX** · #**1113** 03-26-2019, 07:30 AM

Great photos of a good looking bird.
It is very interesting how so many male birds change appearance for breeding season.

**birder** · #**1114** 03-26-2019, 08:04 AM

Great pictures Kevin ! the second one is really action packed with the open bill, if it was a bit bigger would look like a long tailed version of our red winged blackbird.. is it a little finch though ? Thanks for sharing the methods to catch such a pic it looks very good.

**whulsey** · #**1115** 03-26-2019, 11:41 AM

Beautiful bird and awesome photos.

**Papierschnitzel** · #**1116** 03-29-2019, 06:17 AM

Last weekend @ Nationalpark Seewinke I was able to take this one. I think it looks nice in B/W. I can almost hear the geese call when I look at it

**Kevin WS** · #**1117** 03-29-2019, 06:43 AM

Papierschnitzel - that is very very nice!

And you are correct - it HAS to be black and white!

**Don Boose** · #**1118** 03-29-2019, 07:49 AM

That's a wonderful scene, Chris! Reminds me of an early morning at the Cape May Meadow. We have a lot of Canadian geese in motion here in Carlisle at this time of the year, too.

Don

**SCEtoAUX** · #**1119** 03-29-2019, 08:19 AM

Very nice b&w rendering, Chris. Makes it seem more tranquil.

**Papierschnitzel** · #**1120** 03-30-2019, 06:23 AM

Thank you gentlemen. I do enjoy (esp after the winter) to get out there and go on these little photo safaris. It's a welcome change of pace after working on the computer so much. Gets new fresh air in the head so to speak :-)

For a couple of years we have had a residential gray goose population (probably due to the warming weather) but in the next one or two months the ones from far away countries will arrive and start breeding. Then it can happen anytime that a huge family will cross the streets there and all cars are on high alert.

Here is a pic of two in flight near an observation post. I love the pattern of their wings in flight and the mirror in the water.

The water is low in the small salt water lakes, so I hope it will rain soon. Last year was bad rain wise (as in almost no rain). But for photography it's kind of good, because the birds concentrate in the few remaining lake areas.

At the Austrian-Hungarian border they have a couple of old watch towers. Some of them you can climb and have a great view. At sunset it looks like all the reed and water is turned to gold.

Chris