Great spotted woodpecker (1)
great spotted wood pecker spotted at castleton in derbyshire uk . oct 10th 2015 ..
great spotted wood pecker spotted at castleton in derbyshire uk . oct 10th 2015 ..
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Oct, 2015Views
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
the photo was taken when out walking i the peak district not far from a place called castleton in derbyshire .. I was out looking for wildlife so already had the camera ready but was having little luck seeing or getting any photos . until out of no where this great spotted woodpecker caught my eye not in the distance but just a matter of feet to my right at the base of a post . nothing more than a head poking round the post . I was shocked it was so close and also wishing it was more open or visible as there was lots of long grass in the way along with the fact I was to close for my 500mm lens to even focus .. there was no other option than to move away stepping backwards to try and get a focus and to my amazement as I moved back a couple of feet it made it's way up the post still at the back of the post . I thought it was just going to fly away but no it made all my dream come true and sat right on top of the post for this and a couple of other pose's only for around 10seconds but that was more than time than I needed to get a couple of good images . as they say pure luck and being in the right place at the right time is often all you need with wildlife photography .Time
it was mid day the light was not brilliant and it was a little over cast but dry .Lighting
the lighting was poor natural light as I never use a flash but with wildlife we take what we can get and just seeing birds and animals in the wild is brilliant but to get a ok image also is a real bonus .Equipment
my camera is a old use pentax k50 very beat up but still works and gets me the images I am almost happy with . my wildlife lens is also a used beat up sigma 150-500mm hsm dg apo os still a great budget super zoom .Inspiration
what inspired me ... I have always loved photography and as I suffer from depression and became very anti people and almost house bound . I decided to buy myself a used dslr a couple of years ago and try my had at learning more and soon found it gave me a reason to get up in the mornings and go out doors . as my wife also has a passion for photography we both started taking long walks and getting out and about in the peak district in the hunt for nice images or wildlife watching . the camera can be a great tool to hide behind when I need to or even a talking point with strangers along with other camera users when out .Editing
I do very little post-processing and only use free software for simple cropping with slight adjustments to cont-bri maybe adjust the hue-sat and if need be a little bit of noise reduction and or sharpening .In my camera bag
I travel light so only carry my camera and 500mm lens but often put a 50mm in my pocket for landscapes or people shots . I often carry a small bag of mixed bird seed or nuts not as bait but just to place on walls or post's as I pass to feed the wildlife almost as a payment for letting me take their photos .Feedback
my advice for others to get similar wildlife images is just get out there . yes knowing a little about where to look for you subject helps along with learning basic settings and or photography tips or tricks but often just being in the right place at the right time is all you need .
