Print on, it’s a crazy feeling

At four in the morning (Faron Young time) I could not sleep and decided to tiptoe down to the study to look at a few more print candidates. Here are two. One I am sure I shall print, the other I am still undecided. Here is the “yes” vote.

And here is the “undecided”, a skua on a rock!

Feedback welcome but not mandatory!

And a third image, not for printing but I wanted to show it as an excellent example of camouflage.

If you see these birds against a plain background they look highly visible. Put them on a pebbled beach however and suddenly they become part of the surroundings, blending perfectly with the shingle, weed and water. There were about half a dozen birds on the beach when I took this and from a distance it was hard to pick them out unless they moved. This is cropped slightly so you can see the bird a little better but in a large frame it stands out a lot less.

Oh and in case you didn’t recognise it, the bird is Southern Lapwing, Vanellus chilensis. Half way through the week folks. Hang in there.

 

Birds in Ushuaia

This is a quick taster of our trip as we set sail tomorrow. We have been staying in the Hotel Tolkeyen and all these images were shot in the grounds or on the beach in front of the hotel except the cormorant. That was photographed on the Beagle Channel trip.

Cinclodes sp.

I am not yet sufficiently familiar with this genus to be 100% sure of the species.

Ashy-headed goose

These geese are simply gorgeous against a blue sky – fairly common.

Blue-eyed cormorant

Positively abundant in the Beagle Channel but too many were flying away from us not parallel.

 

Chimango caracara

I spent over an hour with this bird waiting for it to fly……… I am unhappy that at 1/2000s the wings are still blurred but otherwise it is acceptable. Shot handheld with my 400mm F5.6 + 1.4x TC.  That is the longest lens I have with me.