Red Kites II

[marlunn]

I went back to have another go at Red Kites in flight, a couple of my 'okay' shots - still not go the one I want though. I guess I will have to go back and try again - wow thats a hardship

#1 is the gentleman that feeds them every day. We pay £4 for the use of the hide to be there and photograph them - its conservation in action in reality and it help these fabulous birds survive winters and grow in numbers, thats not a problem for me !

#1 The Feeder


#2 Banking


#3 Just cruising

[Dave Humphries]

They look good to me Mark,

If you keep going for a few more weeks, you may see them courting partners - by passing food mid-air from one to another - is that the shot you want?

Dave

[madcrow]

Excellent images and beautiful birds. Well executed and well done.

[John 2]

Nice set Mark, no.2 especially. I spent a happy couple of hours at the red kite feeding station near Laurieston in Galloway a couple of years ago and so I can appreciate how difficult these acrobats are to capture.

[Shadowman]

Nice series.

[marlunn]

Thanks Dave, yep - or two of them scrapping in the air over a piece as they do currently, I suspect the current 'near miss' shots i have are based on the pairing up proces already starting - basically wanting good behavioural images rather than 'record' images. Not being derogatory of the 'record' images I have got but not what I had in my mind that I wanted to capture specifically. They are great to get but its good to have a shoot plan

Cheers Maurice, much appreciated

Thank you John (2), #2 was the shot of the day for me

Cheers John, appreciated.

[Wavelength]

So beautiful...liked them all

[billtils]

Nice set Mark. The red kites at Argaty in Perthshire are probably my favourite source of BIF shots. Like you though, the pursuit of, if not perfection, then at least the absolute keeper continues. I find that the best captures of the birds are diminished by grey skies but the ones with the best natural backgrounds (blue sky or snow on the ground) have some other problem.

I'm almost beginning to doubt the wisdom of the old saw that it is better to travel than arrive

[NorthernFocus]

Nice set. No.2 is awesome position on the bird.

Getting decent BG when shooting BIF is always a challenge. Even more so when your position is confined to a hide/blind. When shooting wildlife one of the only things we have any control over at all is (sometimes) being able to set up shooting/lighting angles. If that's removed then you're down to mere random chance and shooting volume to hit upon a shot now and then. Is it at all possible to ask the guy with the bucket to throw the feed out in a particular direction from the blind? And would it even do any good?

The whole concept of the feed station for wild raptors is interesting. From what I gather that is a station that is sanctioned by the relevant authorities? In the US one gets the impression the govt. beaurocrats would allow a species to go extinct before they'd resort to feeding them in the wild. But that prejudice is species specific. It's OK to feed elk and deer but moose are better left to starve. Feeding game and song birds is encouraged but for raptors it is forbidden. Generally speaking feeding of predatory species is frowned upon. Perhaps we've a fear that once fed then left to fend for themselves, the predators might unite and rise up in a Planet of the Apes syndrome.

So better keep feeding those kites lest dogs and cats begin to go missing.

[billtils]

Dan (and Mark)

I can't speak for places that I have not experienced, but the rules/procedures at Argaty are simple: the birds do not get fed in the sense of being provided significant sustenance - it's more like a mid afternoon snack-size serving, and the ranger uses two different locations to lay out the food, choosing the one that the birds will approach by gliding into the wind.

Here's one shot hand-held on one of the blue sky days:

[bnnrcn]

Nice shots Mark, especially #2 . Although I don't shoot BIF, the images shot and the comments by the experienced shooters in this forum are teaching me a lot. So, please keep shooting and uploading

[marlunn]

Thanks Nandakumar, they are lovely birds, mind you like most of their type while we think of them a majestic, they are scavengers and in hard times resort to eating earthworms !

Cheers Bill, we wil get 'the' shot - perseverance is the name of the game

Thanks Dan, appreciated. The bucket he is carrying is small off cuts etc from the local butchers - up to 60+ kites and 4-6 Buzzards and large numbers of the crow family all charge in for it, its a 'help' to them rather than anything else, the local conservation groups, the National Park are formally okay with it as it help the iconic bird, brings in tourism and takes the pressure off them from the general public to 'do something', the Gov. 'ignore' it in reality as again it takes pressure off them from the conservation lobby. The National Bird society support it - like feeding your garden birds, but more importantly for them it helps reduce the numbers of people hunting them out in the wild and potentially disturbing them during breeding season. Overall its seen as a win win - local industry supporting local conservation and local businesses by virtue of bringing in tourists and the birds benefit in lean times, he was telling me in summer the numbers that come in are much lower and take a lot longer to come down as they are not so hungry as in winter, he sticks to the same walking route to feed as that is in line with the prevailing winds etc. I believe thats the governing factor on the birds approach, need more visits over the year to determin that - there is room to move along a hide line and slighty over to one side so its pretty good for that

Thank you Binnur, appreciated, I will

Dan - funny you should mention cats - this one was very keen to get his/her share the guy often drops a piece or two outside the hide for it

[Craigie]

Nice series, Mark. #2 is my fav.

[marlunn]

Cheers Gary, appreciated

[NorthernFocus]

...Here's one shot hand-held on one of the blue sky days:

Excellent image. Flight shots from this angle with eye contact are rare. I love it.