RSPB Lakenheath Fen

Here are some shots taken at this RSPB reserve in Cambridgeshire.  I arrived very early, just after dawn and saw these barn owls peering out of a small shed.

There were four in total - these three youngsters: 

And this parent flying back and forth hunting.

 

While waiting for the parent to return, this bittern flew over head and landed in a nearby reed bed! My first shot of a bittern. It was a little gloomy as the sun was only just up, but there was just enough light to get a shot.

On the way back to the car, a stopped for a rest beside another reed bed, and briefly saw this kingfisher. It would not perch in plain view, but with some manual focusing I did manage to photograph it through the reeds.

All in all a good morning, and worth the early rise: Owls, Bitterns and Kingfishers!

Next time, some macro shots from Minsmere and Wicken Fen.

Lincolnshire Barn Owl

Near Cath's parents house in Lincolnshire, there is a barn next to a river, in which there lives a barn owl. Each time we travel up, weather permitting, I spend the last couple of hours before sunset waiting by the river, hoping to see it. Most times it does make an appearance.

Barn owl's are extremely difficult bird to photograph, I'm finding. They are small, fast, low flying, and white. Even with a teleconverter fitted, and using a crop sensor camera body, it's hard to get close enough to get a decent shot with my 500mm lens. Tracking them in flight is a real challenge too - the auto focus on my D300 has a hard time keeping up. Exposing correctly, to avoid blowing the highlights, isn't easy either - especially in direct sunlight.

After plenty of attempts, my favorite shot is the one shown on the front page of this blog. Here's another, taken on the same evening back in February.

Nikon D300 + 500mm f4 + 1.4x TC @ f/8, 1/1000th sec, ISO 400

Next weekend we are heading up again. For the last couple of visits the weather has not been good, so hopefully there will be some decent light this time.