Kites

[DrZais]

Hi, I'm new here, really avid photographer though especially intrested in wildlife.
Been shooting properly for about two years, picked it up in school even though I wasn't on the photography course the guy who ran it made sure I got plenty of chances to use the gear. pretty much dedicated myself to 35mm photography up untill may this year when I got a digital SLR. Still prefer 35mm, but digital has its pros. I'm really just here to learn what I can from people, and take my photography further.

Anyway some of my nature stuff:
These birds were shot at a falconry centre, we don't get bald eagles in the wild around here unfortunately
Funny story about the bald eagle was it was being flown for a group of paying photographers, I hid in a hedge and got some really nice shots of it for free.








These Red Kites however were shot in the wild in central Wales:




I'm not just intrested in birds though, anything living catches my attention when I've got my camera handy:

[Loupey]

Hello, DrZais, and welcome!

You seem to have a good eye. So what dSLR did you end up getting? What lens(es) are you using? What about 35mm film do you like over digital?

Probing you for answers

Nice photos here. I especially like the hawk profile and the wild kites.


Lastly, you will get more out of this site the more you post your images and open yourself up to comments. Thanks for sharing.

[DrZais]

Thanks! the kites were great fun but pretty exausting to shoot.

I've got a Canon EOS 400D + 18-55mm Canon lens (best I could afford) and a Tamron 55-200mm lens for zoom/macro stuff. I could lie and say I don't use a decent telephoto because I like a challenge, although actually its just money again :P It is quite rewarding though when you do get a nice picture with it.

35mm I use an old (1970's) Canon Tlb, with standard Canon 55m lense, 24mm Canon wide angle and a Canon 70-210mm zoom/macro. I find 35mm much more satisfying in the sense that you are actually manipulating a physical media rather than just code represented as an image, I feel I can get in touch with what I'm photographing alot better. I find the whole science of darkroom photography pretty fascinating as well, my backgrounds more in art than photography, and so I think I find more to associate with in film rather than digital photography. I also find I consider what I shoot alot more with 35mm because it costs so much not to , and so often get better photos as a result

Some of my 35mm wildlife (not great quality, done before I really knew how to use my neg scanner).

[readingr]

Is this the "The Hawk Conservancy Trust" in andover - just has a familiarity to it.

Nice shots

Roger

[DrZais]

The Falconry stuff? No its the Cotswolds Falconry centre near Morton-on-Marsh, I pass it ever so occasionally and I usually take the chance to go and get some photos as its pretty cheap and they fly the birds every two hours or so.

I'd recommend it to anyone wanting to get some photos of birds of prey, you can get incredibly close to them, almost too close. I've got a photo that was a little too disgusting to use of an Eagle Owl pulling the head off some unfortunate small animal it had caught,
eww.

[readingr]

The Falconry stuff? No its the Cotswolds Falconry centre near Morton-on-Marsh, I pass it ever so occasionally and I usually take the chance to go and get some photos as its pretty cheap and they fly the birds every two hours or so.

I'd recommend it to anyone wanting to get some photos of birds of prey, you can get incredibly close to them, almost too close. I've got a photo that was a little too disgusting to use of an Eagle Owl pulling the head off some unfortunate small animal it had caught,
eww.

I haven't been up that way for years. - must head up that way sometime soon

Roger

[DrZais]

Its worth checking out just for the Bald Eagles.

As I say I think they do special days for photographers if you have some money to splash about, but if you're crafty you can usually get just as good opportunities for nothing.