Friends of a feather.
Apr, 2016Views
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Awards
Fall Award 2020
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this image at Healesville sanctuary in Victoria, Australia. This is a place filled with native wildlife for the public to enjoy and also a place to see creatures rarely seen in the wild. Some animals and birds kept here are sadly near extinction. Most people walking through here likely won't fully realise this.Time
This image was taken mid afternoon in an enclosure where the birds were quite active. I've spent a long time in these aviarys before, again and again, just waiting and watching for that moment to arise where you capture something really stunning.Lighting
Taken only using natural light, however this was beautifully diffused not only from a slightly overcast day but further diffused by trees above these birds you see here. In the case here, theres the interaction with the birds but to keep shutter speeds up to capture them properly I had to make sure they were inEquipment
I used a Canon 7D with a Tamron SP 70-200mm f2.8 Di VC USD lens. Single shot only, no bursts.Inspiration
When Im walking through places like Healesville sanctuary, Im not just looking for any image of animals or birds. In this case, there were birds in this aviary practically everywhere but only some which we're interaction with other birds like this. I had to take this image because the interaction was beautiful between these two, showing affection like this. This kind of interaction isn't usually seen on a casual wander through, one has to linger and watch the birds, always ready at a moments notice to put the camera up to your eye to take a shot, for you may not get much time.Editing
This particular image did not need much post processing, just some fine tuning and tweaks. All post processing in my images is done in Capture One Pro 9, as the tools in this application is purely second to none for my uses. From memory what your seeing is only a slight contrast tweak, minor colour correction in the green tones, a vignette and clarity tool adjustment.In my camera bag
I travel nearly everywhere with my Canon 7D, still my only digital camera body and usually at least 2 lenses. I own a Zeiss Distagon 2/35 ze, which nearly always without fail is in my bag. I will always carry my Tamron SP 24-70mm f2.8 Di VC USD also. For wide angle I use a Canon ef-s 10-22mm which is my only crop sensor specific lens and for the work like the above, a Tamron SP 70-200mm f2.8 Di VC USD which has also proven to be quite fantastic. These lens choices were a specific choice over the competition, not for cost but for the type of image rendering I like. I usually also carry a Metz flash too, in case of need of artificial light.Feedback
My advice for others is that you don't need to race out to spend dollar on the most expensive lenses and equipment, when that time comes you will get more out of them if you've mastered whatever you currently have now. If purchasing equipment, remember its only a tool and It can't and won't automatically get you pictures, and choose wisely for there's many choices out there for good reason. If your extremely passionate about photography, carry your camera everywhere with the lens you find your most useful or the most useful for where your going. For wildlife like this, even in a sanctuary or zoo, you must have patience. Continuously moving from one exhibit to another might get you lots of photos of animals, but unless very fortunate, won't get you the magazine pictures most have in their minds when about to take photos. Lingering in a place with the animals you want to capture can often pay off but if there's an animal you really want to capture, you may need to go back again and again just waiting for that ideal image. Its not just wildlife that patience pays off, there's many genres of photography that you just have to wait for the ideal moment to take that photo.
