Trip reports

Nature Up -Close

Tuesday, 2 October 2007

This talk wasn't just about taking photographs close to the object, it was also about taking superb pictures with seemingly little effort. But the secret came out when Ian McGuire explained that he had an image stabiliser and could thus take instant shots without a tripod.
In the first half we were shown successes, and a few failures, where this instant response method could produce brilliant, unusual pictures such as hen harriers food-passing and (my favourite) several photos of a meadow pipit feeding a young cuckoo and then standing on its back.
As a member of the Hawk and Owl Trust, Ian spent the second half describing the work he had been involved in. We saw photos of a variety of birds - some tame, some wild and some, oddly enough, in between. As to be expected the barn owl took centre stage. Some magnificent pictures; and, for me, amazing (although unpleasant) news that there might be up to 50,000 captive barn owls in Britain.