Full frontal
Ever since we dug the pond in front of our house, kingfishers have visited it. No surprise that I have photographed them countless times. My portable hide is set up more or less permanently and when I hear one coming I can sneak out the front door and get in, without the bird seeing me.
At first I was very happy with 'bird on a stick' but no matter how beautiful they are, there comes a time to move on from that. Next was 'kingfisher in flight'. It took a while to master but eventually I did. So on to the next most difficult thing: 'kingfishers in flight with prey'. That, after an overflowing red hot digital trash-bin, also worked.
So, what's left is the ultimate challenge: diving kingfisher with splash. I don't like the artificial multiple flash and fish tank setups very much, because the results I've seen seem a bit artificial to me, so it had to be all natural. But eventually, I got a couple of good splash shots.
But yesterday, I think I managed to get the most difficult shot to date; splash ànd flying towards me!
I sure was one very happy camper yesterday!!
Canon 1DX mark II
Canon EF 600mm F4.0 L IS USM II
Iso 1600, f4.0, 1/4000s, exp. comp +1.67
Full frontal
Ever since we dug the pond in front of our house, kingfishers have visited it. No surprise that I have photographed them countless times. My portable hide is set up more or less permanently and when I hear one coming I can sneak out the front door and get in, without the bird seeing me.
At first I was very happy with 'bird on a stick' but no matter how beautiful they are, there comes a time to move on from that. Next was 'kingfisher in flight'. It took a while to master but eventually I did. So on to the next most difficult thing: 'kingfishers in flight with prey'. That, after an overflowing red hot digital trash-bin, also worked.
So, what's left is the ultimate challenge: diving kingfisher with splash. I don't like the artificial multiple flash and fish tank setups very much, because the results I've seen seem a bit artificial to me, so it had to be all natural. But eventually, I got a couple of good splash shots.
But yesterday, I think I managed to get the most difficult shot to date; splash ànd flying towards me!
I sure was one very happy camper yesterday!!
Canon 1DX mark II
Canon EF 600mm F4.0 L IS USM II
Iso 1600, f4.0, 1/4000s, exp. comp +1.67