After the last couple of ranty posts, I thought I fine day at the plant might be a good idea. 🙂
The Western Treatment Plant is about the size of Phillip Island and to travel all the tracks and explore all the possible bird sites can easily consume an entire day, and a goodly chunk out of the fuel budget for the week. 🙂
We tend to be a bit selective about the areas we travel through. Preferring to stop at one location for a time and see what is moving about. It also depends a lot upon the weather. Being a flat farmland, there is little shelter from high winds or the heat of midday.
So we tend to go either late in the afternoon when conditions are good, or early in the morning. Morning can be hard at first as the long drive in from the main road is directly into the rising sun. But once in the bird area it becomes easier.
We had decided to go on the morning as the weather looked promising, and if the wind picked up as predicted then back to the Highway Lounge and a Gerry Coffee.
Here then is a look at how the morning, and the birds progressed.
White-bellied Sea-eagle being harassed by a passing Swamp Harrier. I don’t think the apex predator was fazed.Said Swamp Harrier, then made a close pass over the reeds on our side of the lake. The ponds held many Hoary-headed Grebes.A committee meeting. These two Sea-eagles were resting a long way out in the middle of the large lake. Meanwhile up close the Reedbirds were moving about in the sunshineA small selection of the many hundreds of Hoary-headed Grebes.Whatever the current title, I still refer to them as Mountain Duck. The nomenclature police seem to think they are Australasian Shelduck. I don’t think the birds care really. They now all have nice new feathers and will be journeying northward soonNot sure if this Sea-eagle was from the earlier lake ones, or whether it came in from south along the beachline. But there could be as many as four working in the area at present.This Collared Sparrowhawk was making the most of the increasing high winds. And showing off that extended middle toe.Fueling up for a long trip ahead. Curlew SandpiperThese two Sharp-tailed Sandpipers are starting to colour up. Here they are ‘hiding’ out of the strong wind behind some reedsIt has been an increasing good year for Brolga at the Plant. We saw one pair with two well grown young. A second pair with a young one, and this third pair on their ownOne of my fav inflight birds. The Little EgretI can’t ever recall seeing an Austalasian Grebe standing up, nor on a rock. Perhaps a nest is on the way. Also managed a great wing display just for bonus points.
Now that Melbourne has emerged from its fifth covid lockdown its time for the Doona Hermit to shed his old worn doona and venture out in to the real, (no definitions please) world.
#kneetoo and I had a little local journey planned, with a stop off along the way to look at a pair of Black-shouldered Kites and their young(?)
But as I pulled back said doona and checked the weather app, it looked like a beaut, clear, cold morning.
We had planned to do our quick visit and then be home by mid-morning for a relaxing morning tea, so I was not planning to load Earl of Grey into the thermos or grab a bikkie or two for the journey.
But.
On a whim, we decided that a morning driving around part of the Werribee Treatment Plant birding area would make the most of the weather, and who knows when if, ever, we’d have such a chance. Fix snacxks, load cameras, dress warmly and we were on the way.
As it turned out much of the area where we visited was pretty bereft of birds, but what we lacked in quantity we made up for in birds we’d not had the pleasure of seeing for quite awhile
Here’s a small selection.
The dancing fisherman. The Little Egrets make such delicate moves as they follow the fish through the water
Where did that fish go?
Napping out of the wind. PIed Oystercatcher
A Swamp Harrier on patrol
Crested Tern rolling over for a fishing plunge
Swamp Harrier on a turn
A beaut find, Blue-winged Parrots feeding in the saltbush. We probably saw 15 or more
Blue-winged Parrot. One of the most delightful little parrots we photograph
Pied Oystercacther powering past
One of a number of white chested Brown Falcons we found during the morning/ This one was in no hurry to move and in the end, a Whistling Kite approaching finally put it to air.
When I first came across this bird, it didn’t seem to be in a hurry to leave. At first I thought it was working out the moves for its next meal. Closer inspection shows it must have only recently eaten and was resting for digestion.
Tis a well know fact that this blog does not do equipment reports. It’s not as though there aren’t enough opinionated sites to trash the best of hardware. However I’ve had a few enquiries regarding this lens, and rather than rehash what Uncle Google can find in a minute, I thought I’d rather share a few paras and pictures on my use with the lens so far.
If you own Canon gear, don’t proceed any further, you have the wonderful DO 400mm f/4. Be happy!
I hummed and hahed when the lens was first released. The big bikkies involved was probably the first stumbling block. And I was working with the Sigma Sport 150-600mm f/6.3 and it was working well for me.(more to follow below)
But the low weight and small size were an attraction, and in the end, I placed an order with Ross at Camera Exchange in Box Hill, in October 2018. I also planned to trade the Sigma at that time.
Eventually, got a note from Ross. “It’s here!”. March 29 2019. The wait-time worldwide has been astounding. So I motored over to collect the lens. Thanks Ross.
What follows is where it fits with my current work.
Time for the Pixelpeepers to click away now, as there are no charts, no ranking scores, no graphs and definitely no lens test charts to pour over. No dudes riding bicycles, or shots of the building over the road, or some obscure mountain in the distance.
Just how does it work for me.
Also please remember that these are all JPEG images made out of Lightroom to 1600pixels at 90% Qaulity. A few are crops, some almost full frame. Shot on both D810 and D500. I’ll note the data with each shot.
All the ratings are against My Expectations of the lens, coupled with use of previous lenses in the field. 100 % is just that. I’m completely happy with that aspect.
Price: No % Score, but I’d have no hesitation in buying it.
Gotta get that out of the way.
It’s a pro piece of kit, Nikon are asking big bucks. If that doesn’t fit with your bankbalance, then click away now. For those who want to save some money, the Nikon 200-500, Sigma Sport 150-600, and the Sigma Contemporary are all good value for money, and sharp. Canon users have the DO 400mm or a pretty nice 100-400 f/5.6 Zoom and a neat 400mm f/5.6 without image stabilisation. Any one of those lenses would be a reason for me to change to the Canon System.
My reasoning was to amortize the investment over the next 10 years or so, and a couple of bucks a week is a reasonable.
Size: 100% Meets my expectations.
It is about the same size as a 70-200 f/2.8. Which makes it imminently handhold-able.
Weight: 100% Meets my expectations.
Having been using the 300mm f/4 PF from its introduction, I had a definite idea about how the weight would be. I’m confident I could carry it all day in normal use without needing a porter.
Handleability: 100% Meets my expectations.
I’ve thrown around some big lenses in my time, but this one just feels right. The balance on the camera and handholding is very comfortable. Mr An Onymous will tell you I once fell in love with a 10-30mm zoom for the Nikon 1 system, just from picking it up off the benchtop. I ordered one the next day. If it feels right, the chi is working, and it is pointless to fight nature.
Focus AF: Exceeds my expectations. This is such a fast lens to focus, especially on the D500. Sometimes I think it finds the subject before I get it sorted out in the frame. Big plus. And it locks and follows. If I compare it to the 300mm f/2.8 or the 70-200mm f/2.8, which are my go to ‘speedsters’ for action, then it’s right up there as good as, if not better. I can’t compare it to the 400mm f/2.8 as I’ve never owned one, but that is the gold standard in fast focus. I reckon this lens would give it a pretty good run.
The other feature is like all pro lenses, its sharp all the way from the closest point to infinity. Unlike most consumer zooms that lose interest in focusing after about 30m. I’m looking at you 18-200mm and 80-400mm.
Sharpness: 100% of my expectations.
Just have a look at the photos below. I don’t do comparisons, but looks equal to the 300mm f/2.8, and has more contrast than the 300mm PF.(My copy. EE’s copy is a little better than mine I think).
Unsharp fuzzy bits.
My photos don’t have bokeh, (never pronounced so a Japanese would know what these people are talking about), mine have fuzzy out of focus bits.
So against a smooth backdrop 100% of expectation. Milky smooth as it should be.
Against busy high contrast backgrounds, 75% of expectation. But then my expectation wasn’t that high. Digital sensors are the real problem here. Most lenses struggle with those clunky blobby bits of branch and bush and the like.
That Removable Foot. 100% meets my expectation.
I’ve seen some remarkable nonsense written about the foot. It’s like “OH wow, something to complain about”. If the only reason not to buy this lens is the foot, then my advice would be trade in the camera gear and buy a set of golf-clubs. It is the same foot used on the 70-200 f/2.8 zoom. I’ve owned three of them over the years, and not once has it worked itself loose, and those lenses travelled lots photographing car events. If the user is so clumsy as to loosen it off then forget to tighten it, I don’t see that as a feature fault, I see that as incompetence!
For my hand the end of the foot rests nicely on the edge of palm of my hand, and my fingers sit well just before the lenshood, near the programmable buttons (coming up soon). A good fit for me. I’ve used it without, and my preference is with the foot. I’ve also had no intention of buying third party Arca mount foots. I simply don’t intend to ever put it on a tripod again. (Coming up soon).{Update Aug 2019} I’ve since taken the foot off and popped a BlackRapid “Fastener Fr-5″, in the 1/4” hole. Not a fan of BR, but I can attach an OP/Tech fastener and that works for me.
I found not much difference with and without the foot, and its just one less thing to get caught up when I’m cradling the lens while sitting down (think driving around the Treatment Plant)
{Update Nov. 2022} I ended up buyng a Henjar Foot. It has ARCA rail and also has a QD (Quick Detach) a standard used for all sorts of weaponry. I added it to a Blackrapid clip with an ebay QD swivel bracket (cheeeep on fleabay)
I am not a Blackrapid fanboy, but in the end, I tolerate it for the convenience of the QD set up. Means I don’t have to pull the confounded strap on an off my shoulder each time I want to put the camera/lens down seperately. Put it down to crabby old person dysfunction.
Programmable Buttons. 95% meet expectations. I use these a lot. Just wish they were a little bigger so my finger doesn’t need to hunt for them. They can be set for a specific distance and the lens will return to that spot. About 30% of my use. Or programmed out of the D810 and D500 menus to do a range of activities. Mine is usually an AF function about 70% of the time.{Update August 2019} I’ve since taken a big black ‘Sharpie’ marker and put a big “X” on the Lens Coat camo, just above each of the buttons. Easy peasy to find now.
Tripod use. Balances well with the D500 on a Wimberley. If you can’t get it to balance on a Wimberley, then read the instructions. On the Markins Q20 that I use a lot, it’s a treat. But now, the problem is you have to take a lightweight lens, and sally forth into the field with a whacking great tripod. Don’t see the point. End of discussion
VR 100% of my expectations. Image stabilisation is so much better implemented than on the 300mm f/4 PF. I found myself handholding at much slower speeds than I anticipated. See below. {edit Aug 2019} For Inflight, I usually turn VR off.
I have a paranoia that the VR interferes with focus acquisition, and while it might only be a microsecond as the VR settles down, it just might be enough to move the focus from the eye, to a wingtip. Besides for inflight, (regardless of the lens I’m using), I want the fastest shutter speed I can get. Give me 1/8000 please. No need for VR there.
Lens Hood. Guess what! 100% meets expectations. It fits, it locks, it’s lightweight. And in my world. It goes on the lens, and is never removed. (except to clean the lens). I use a bag that fits the lens with the hood attached. (and its taped in position so doesn’t go wandering off on its own in the field.) That is the way all my lenses are fitted.
What about Teleconverters. Met my expectations 100%, and perhaps exceeded them.
The results with the TC 1.7, were what I expected. And I won’t be using it again with this lens any time soon, or later.
Haven’t had a need to try the TC 2.0, but I know it will be slow to focus and that won’t work for me too well. {edit Aug 2019} The TC 2.0 is really not workable. Hunts, even in good light. One, two, three strikes. You’re Out!
The TC 1.7 is quite sharp, no problems, but again needs a bit of patience for focus. Won’t see me trying inflights that way any time soon. Or Later!
With the TC 1.4 I found it needed some focus Fine Tune Adjustment. Using the D500 in camera, it gave a result of -6. When I tried it I found the focus position was just not right. So I played around, and hit on +6. Can’t fault that.
I often get asked about Teleconverters as if they will help get a pin-sharp shot of a duck on the far side of the lake.
Nope.
Here are 3 helpful points for that sort of shot. 1/ Learn to Swim, 2/ Buy a kayak, 3/ Develop better bush craft.
TCs are best for giving a little bit of extra magnification closer up, say in the 15-30m range. After that for the birds I work with, both heat haze and tiny size make it impractical.
Acquisition can be a bit ‘iffy’ in lower light. And the tendency to hunt is always likely. But it’s a solid performer once the focus is there. Side by side I doubt I could pick sharp, with and without the TC 1.4
Beginning to sound like a ‘fan boy’, so let’s see if some of this makes sense from my field experience.
This is the first image I made with the lens. 1/320 f5.6 ISO 400 Tai Chi Pigeon Spotted Dove
Early morning overcast. 1/640 @ f/5/6 ISO 400 Superb Fairywren
Morning Sunshine, near full frame. 1/800 @ f/5.6 ISO 400 Black Swan
1/500 @ f/5.6 Just a hint of sunshine coming through the trees. Eastern Osprey
1/200 @ f/6.3 ISO 400 Eastern Yellow Robin
Late Evening Sunshine 1/2000 @ f/5.6 ISO 800 White-bellied Sea-eagle
1/200 @ f/5.6 ISO 400 Tawny Frogmouth
1/400 @ f5.6 ISO 800 Hazy indirect light through overhanging trees Eastern Spinebill
What about the soft out of focus bits
Late evening. 1/640 @f/5.6. Creamy out of focus bits. Juvenile Whiskered Tern
1/1600 @ f/5.6 ISO 400 Very late afternoon rich light. Brown Falcon. Messy out of focus bits because of messy background
Brown Falcon, messy out of focus bits. This is mostly the result of sesor issues rather than the lens design.
How good is VR. I don’t shoot many in low light but here’s one from the back fence.
Checking VR or Image Stabilisation 1/50 @f/5.6 ISO 400. Handheld. The sun had set, but there was still light in the sky.
Then of course the always asked question.
Oh, but what about Teleconverters. I’ve got to see it with Teleconverters. See my point 13 above.
TC 1.4 700mm 1/3200 @f/9.0 Handheld. Bird worked its way toward me on the water line. Red-kneed Dotterel
TC 1.4 700mm 1/500 @f/5.6 ISO 400 Soft out of focus bits and plenty of detail on WIllies beak whiskers.
TC 1.4 700mm 1/1250 @f/9.0 Handheld, overcast day. Lightened up 1/2 Stop in Lr.
TC 1.4 700mm 1/2500 @f/9.0 Full sun. It is no macro lens, but the detail is certainly there.
Accessories.
I was going to really annoy myself and write ‘accessorising’, but restrained. 🙂
I added a B+W UV filter. Not a great believer in UVs as the Sensor already has a UV component, but let’s face it, this an expensive piece of glass. My first B+W UV was with the Sigma Sport, at first I was hesitant, now, I’m a convert. The B+W shows no visible image degredation, I wish I’d come across them years ago.
Added some Lenscoat to protect the lens, I really like the Kevin Kealty ones from the Wildlife Watching Supplies in the UK, they are a bit thicker and don’t seem to shrink like the US based mob.
Also work with a LensWrap, that I had for the 70-200mm, fits like a glove and gives added security for travelling. Simply velcros off when I’m ready to go in the field.
Everybody has opinions on Carry Straps.
The lens does NOT have special strap attachment points, like the bigger pro lenses and the Sigma. Pity, as it would only have been a few dollars more.
I started using a BlackRapid Strap, but find them uncomfortable.
I changed to an OP/TECH Sling Strap Which we’ve used for years on other long lenses, and it does the job well. And doesn’t take over the camera bag when travelling. I’ve snuck on a BlackRapid attachment since, and have one OP/Tech connector on the Lens, and one on an ARCA “L” bracket on the camera. Two attachment points makes me feel more secure.
{Edit Aug 2019} Like camera bags, carry straps will continue to keep me searching. 🙂
{Edit Nov 2022} For full disclosure, I’m now using a Blackrapid Classic Strap and a QD (Quick Detach) on a Henjar bracket See above
Conclusions. I think the price is well justified for the work I am doing. It is indeed my go to lens at the moment.
Alternatives.
The Sigma 150-600 Sport worked well for me. In the end just too heavy for carry around field work. {edit} And, while it was very sharp, the focus was often a little to slow for me for inflight. Once acquired it stayed locked. Even using the Dock to set a faster focus acquire rate, it still left me wishing for a bit more speed.
The Nikon 200-500 Zoom. Is a sharp, well-balanced lens. I would have purchased it if the Sigma had not been on the showroom floor. I do find it a bit bulky to carry as the barrel is nearly twice the diameter of the 500m PF.
The 300mm f/4 PF and a TC 1.4 420mm @/f5.6 EE’s go to lens. Solid performer, I find mine with the TC has a little chromatic aberration in highlights, easy to fix in Lr, but detracts sharpness a little. It is a lovely walk about for hours lens. Sharpness side by side with the 500mm PF would be hard to pick, and as I’ve used it for over three years, it’s a lens I have a high regard for.
Downsides.
Yes, there are a couple.
I tend to take a lot more pictures as it gives me a chance for good framing for inflight birds.
The lens makes my 300mm f/2.8 look a bit redundant. Not sure what I will do with that.
{Update Nov 2022} I traded the lens at Camera Exchange Haven’t really missed it.
The 300mm f/4 PF is also going to take a back seat. It sits in the lens cupboard and like a dog waiting to go “Walkies”, sort of quivers at me when I open the door. Perhaps a D7200 or D7500 and use it for wider shots from the vehicle. Certainly can’t take both to the field.
And here are two more from a shot this morning. The White-winged Terns are still around, and I spent the best part of 2 1/2 hours with them, one long session of about 90 minutes.
1/8000@/f5/6 ISO 800 Grab Shot. Got out of vehicle, lens grabbed focus, I framed next. Swamp Harriers do not give second chances.
1/2500 @f/5.6 ISO 400 I was working with these terns for about an hour and half, took several hundred frames. Lens didn’t feel tiring to hold. Had I not run out of time, and the birds out of patience, I could have easily done another hour or so, the lens is unbelievably easy to handhold.
So there you go. Thanks for taking the time to read to the end.
It is a keeper for me, and I’ll probably extend myself to get the best from it in the coming weeks.
Keep takin’ pictures we do.
(I’m hoping EE does not read this as I’d hate to have to wait another 5 months for the next lens.:-) )
I was really keen to put up yet another Wagtail Nursery set, as we’ve several along the river at the moment.
But perhaps a change is a good thing, so here’s a Swamp Harrier.
Perhaps the most challenging of the raptors that we work with. These birds are have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to humans, and most often what we see is the white tail feathers of a Swampie disappearing in front of us.
This one came up the paddock toward us, but was searching for an updraft and as soon as it reached it the bird rose at a great rate with hardly a flick of the wings.
Which caused me to ponder that little bit, that how do they sense where the updrafts are happening? Eagles, Pelicans, Kites, Ibis and many others seem to be able to work their way along and then rise with the thermal.
Unknown, but still things that make going out and watching a most pleasing experience.
Mostly we think of Swamp Harriers as pretty serious birds, going about their serious business and always on the look out for the next meal.
So we were a bit taken back to find a couple of Swamp Harriers, engaged, in what can only be described as games.
It’s often seen among the Whistling Kites and Black-shouldered Kites, but Swamp Harriers seem to be very much the solo bird.
These two took it seemed great delight in working the air, and making passes at one another. They remained at it for at least 10 minutes, and stayed around the river edges, so we were able to follow them along for much of the time. In the end, both swept away, to see what they could find among the ducks now congregating along the ponds.
Time to add another chapter to the Complete Guide for “Sneaking” up on a Swamp Harrier.
By now we have established some golden rules to ‘sneaking’ up on a Swamp Harrier.
For those who skim read, here they are.
Rule 1. You Don’t Sneak up on a Swamp Harrier.
Rule 2. None known in the universe.
We adopted a new technique the other evening. Find a spot to park, setup chairs, open picnic basket, ignore Swamp Harriers. Actually the real reason of course for the visit was the ever elusive White-bellied Sea-eagle.
The tide, Mr An Onymous had revealed to me in a private conversation was a low-low tide around sunset.
Armed with this vital piece of data, EE and I decided a picnic evening meal watching the sun set over other bay would be as good as any reason to travel down to the WTP, so as the Banjo has often been quoted. We went.
To Picnic Point. Well its actually 175W Outflow and there is a big blue sign there warning of E coli and all sorts of other nasties, (but not about Swamp Harriers), but for the sake of the exercise we’ll call it Picnic Point from here on.
The technical term, low-low tide means this is one of those tides that makes those funny tidal graphs drop really low on the page. And it means in practice that the water level drops dramatically and reveals the mud/sand flats out several hundred metres. With such exposed areas, the small shore birds, (waders), come in their tens of thousands to gobble up as much rich food as they can.
And because of that low-low tide, the Sea-eagle can patrol looking for an easy snack, either to take alive, or to find carrion. Its an either/or for said Sea-eagle, and if all goes well, from our Picnic Point, it will patrol along the mudflats in great light, in close and will do some really clever Sea-eagle activity and we’ll get some good images.
Which of course as you can see leads us to sneaking up on Swamp Harriers.
Not to be out done the Clever Brown Bird has also worked out the low-low tide might just bring it the snack it so deserves.
We are hull down among the bushes. The Swamp Harriers patrol through the scrub.
From previous chapters, its pretty obvious to me that the Swampie has the area well and truly mapped. Nothing is a surprise to the average head-down hunting bird. There is no “Oh look a fox killed duck, I might just swoop down and pick it up”. No, it knows the carcass is there, because it wasn’t there the time before. And humans, well they either drive around in circles or are large blobs standing against the horizon and easily spotted and avoided.
And for those fortunate souls picnicking at Picnic Point, well they stand out among the bushes as much as anything and from a distance can also be avoided. Needless to say, based on these facts. We didn’t get a close encounter with a Harrier all evening. But. We did see a Sea-eagle.
Still the weather was kind.
Enjoy
Head down, comparing the present information with the stored data
Nothing escapes that radar gaze
Oh, look, humans, they weren’t there before. Turn away
Humans. Turn away
Turning away in the evening light. Our presence didn’t come as a surprise to this bird, it simply continued its business along another track.
The elusive, White-bellied Sea-eagle made several runs along the low-low tidal flat. For some reason it was carrying grass from a previous swoop.
Given that chapter one was a runaway success, I decided to continue in the theme of “Sneaking up on a Swamp Harrier- The Completely Gullible Edition”
First of all find your Swamp Harrier. Seems logical enough and those big pools of water with the reedbeds seem the most obvious place to start. And from a Russell Coight perspective “Endless reedbeds that stretch as far as the eye can see… And with binoculars, even further”
And of course this classic on Emus, modified for Swamp Harriers
“Swamp Harriers tend to travel in pairs, or alone, or in groups and tend to eat at night or day.”
We were it turned on the look out for the elusive Sea-eagle. So suitably stationed on what we considered to be one of its flight paths we waited. And.
Waited.
and Waited.
And had a cuppa, and waited.
In between, the only Brown Falcon for miles sat on a boxthorn bush and waited.
Then along the shore line scrub a Swamp Harrier appeared. Deep in concentration it was simply following its road map. Anything that was out of the ordinary was checked out. I am convinced, that they are not looking for things so much as comparing the current data with previously collected data. A bit like google mapping without the old out-of-date photos. You know the ones that show the empty paddock down the road that is now a supermarket and carpark. Or the open land by a creekline that is now 6 laned freeway.
In the same way that astronomers used to look for comets in photos by comparing night sky shots, I reckon Swampie has a visual shot of the bushes and is really looking for anything that is different on this pass. Such as a new hatched Purple Swamphen, or a sleeping Eurasian Coot. (which according to Russell Coight, “Most Coots generally sleep with their eyes shut…….unless they’re open……or they’re awake.”)
Down the scrub it came. Head down. No need to look up, it knew where it was going. And no other bird is going to stop in its way, and make it turn to the left or the right. It rules the skyway.
And unless this is your first post, esteemed reader, you’ll know what happens next. The map is compared, “What are those humans doing there!!!!!”, and it turns away 180 degrees and is gone.
Head down locked on the ground below
Everthing is checked and filed away for future reference
What is the human doing there!!!!!!
In the next milli-second it has turned
Anyone who has seen or photographed these birds, knows this LOOK> It might seem to be checking me out, but in reality it’s readjusting the online database and making a note to avoid that area in the future.
This bird then cut out to sea, and glided past our position before coming back in to continue its journey along the beach scrub
Gliding in to take up station for its next run.
Russell Coight Quotes: All Aussie Adventures. (Website address a bit dubious)
Oxymoron: (def). is a figure of speech that juxtaposes elements that appear to be contradictory.
Hence “Sneaking up on a Swamp Harrier”.
And just to be sure that I am clearly not misunderstood; there is no Book.
Just my bemused attempt of dealing with a bird that seems to be lightyears ahead of my feeble attempts to get a good shot. If there was such a book it would be very short on in pages. A real theoretical experience. And the first chapter would be the last. Sneaking and Swamp Harrier are not compatible.
They are the masters of the bunds along the Treatment Plant. Wafting in the breeze, dropping on unsuspecting prey, harriering the water birds until exhausted they fall easy pickings. And, I believe, they have the area ‘mapped’, so that anything out of place is either open to inspection or senses danger and the bird shys away. Do I then have some respect for these birds. Absolutely.
wouldn't you know it that was the moment the autofocus in the camera decided to recalculate and settle on the reed beds
So take your average evening light, hope its sunny, sit among the reeds and wait. Trying to chase them down only results in a flurry of white tail feathers disappearing over the next bund, and they don’t return.
The spot we’d chosen was on a short bund, with plenty of reed cover. The car was about 150m back buried in some more reeds. We set up the cameras and waited. There are some rules about this- not mine, just the birds. First: Don’t move. Second: Don’t Move Third Don’t MOVE.
Riders to said rule. Don’t get all excited and exclaim to no one in particular. “Look, its coming toward us”.
And don’t make that the moment that you move the tripod/camera for a better shot, or swing said camera toward the bird.
A head down searching Swamp Harrier is a committed bird. It knows what was down there last pass, and knows if anything looks out of place. And will react accordingly.
After about 15 minutes, (no fidgeting please), along the far bank a lone Swamp Harrier began its run. And about the same time, the sun slipped for the last time behind some cloud and the light went to porridge. Enough to make me prepare to go home.
However, back to said bird on said bund. By now it had worked its way along about half of the 300m or so of reedbed. I’d begun to take the occasional shot. Too far away for much detail, and not enough light now for much interest.
Mark Knofler (Dire Straights) wrote lines for such occasions. “Too far away from me. ” and “It’s just that the light was wrong, Juliet” (apologies for word change)
Because of the moderate breeze blowing, the most amazing thing was in the over 300m of its flight path, it didn’t flap a wing once. Just turned its body on an angle and simply sailed along like a kite in the breeze, or canoe crossing a fast running water.
Not sure what I was most impressed by, but the almost energy-less movement was certainly something to behold. With unconscious awareness it came on.
When it reached the end of the bund line, it changed direction, and wing tactics and began to pull up the reed bed in our direction. Lower now, because of the need for wing flapping, and also because the reeds were blowing over.
We waited. (see above)
And sure enough on it came. Head down, completely absorbed; in eloquent silence.
Then, the moment I had anticipated. It pulled up, saw a change that was unexpected. And turned in an instant. And wouldn’t you know it that was the moment the autofocus in the camera decided to recalculate and settle on the reed beds 250m away. I dream of the days of manual focus.
A bitter sweet result.
Yet I still have the memory of its almost effortless track across the bund. We shall go again.
Enjoy.
High in the evening breeze. Simply drifting along the reed beds
Reaching the end of the first run.
A change of direction along the bund toward us.
Working harder in the head wind
Still engrossed in its mission.
The moment of awareness. I checked the EXIF the is about 1/10th of a second between this and the next shot.
On the Turn, those big surgical legs swinging out like a pendulum.
Sometimes the best ideas are those that come with out lots of planning and forethought. Just go out and do it.
With a small cool change coming in, and the wind shifting in from the south, we packed the picnic, grabbed some Earl Grey, and phoned the WTP birding line and booked for an evening down by the sea
To our delight the young Spotted Harriers were still on the roadside, and parking carefully to avoid any likelihood of mishaps with trucks at 110kph, we took our time to get the best lighting on the bird perched on the top of the cyprus tree cones. Then tired of begging, it took advantage of the strong breeze and launched, drifted upwards to the top of the treeline and then without a wing flap, sailed along the treeline and back. Not exactly hard photography as it turned in the evening light. The great tail moving one way or another like a large oar or rudder to keep it almost stationary in the air. With barely a wing flap, it simply enjoyed the moment. So did we.
When we got to The Spit, Murtcaim (n) we found a number of Swamp Harriers at play. Interesting to watch their games from a distance, but not much hope of being able to get close enough of great shots, but highly entertaining none the less.
Further down the road we came upon a pair of Brolga, but they were just too far away to do any real work, so we headed back to Lake Borrie. And then first came upon some Yellow-billed Spoonbills, and a Great Egret sitting on a fence rail. While EE got moved for a clear shot of the Egret, all the seagulls in the world- or at least the 10,000 or so on the seaside took to the air with a broadcasting squawk.
A White-bellied Sea eagle had made a sneak attack along the grasslands, and had swung up over the hapless gulls. Each gull to itself seemed to be the answer, and someone’s relative went home for dinner with the eagle. I managed to find the camera by the time the action was all over.
Probably enough excitement for a mere whim.
Young Spotted Harrier expecting dinner to arrive soon.
Time to stretch those wonderful wings in the evening breeze.
One of many White-fronted Chats that seem to work as a flock at the moment
Waiting for its turn at the Swamp Harrier Games.
This one drifted almost up to our camera position.
Knocking one another of fence posts must be a raptor game, they all seem to indulge in it.
Cautious Brolga checking that the right protocol distance is being maintained.
Great Egret to wing.
Bulking up for the trip to the summer breeding grounds, the waders, mostly Sharp-tailed Sandpipers here, are hard at work getting as many calories as possible.
White-bellied Sea-eagle with its own method of calorie collection.
With the hot weather just making day trips so hard for photography, hard on the birds, hard on the photographer and hard on great images, we’ve been a bit subdued of late.
A small dry cool change wafted through and we took the chance to go back out on the Murtcain(m) to see if we could sight those elusive Brolgas.
The evening light played such a fine tune over the scene, and the breeze from the ocean was really refreshing. The birds seem to enjoy it too.
Black-shouldered Kite on a high vantage point.
Juvenile Black-shouldered Kite, with its wonderful brown ginger markings.
Zebra Finch.
Yellow-billed Spoonbills settling in for an evening meal.
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper.
Swamp Harrier, all a bustle as it turns its body to keep up with the intended target
Royal Spoonbill who stopped in the middle of a preen for a bit of a dance in the water.
Not to be outdone, a Yellow-billed Spoonbill perfuming in the water. Perhaps the cool breeze gave them pleasure too.
Oh, so elusive Brolga. Late evening stroll.
Black-shouldered Kite hunting right on sundown. It lifts its head to be sure there is no sneak attack.
With the weather man predicting only more heat wave conditions, and the WTP being closed on Total Fire Ban days because of OHS issues, and good on ’em as far as I’m concerned. Don’t want to be driving around in the heat trying to find birds hiding from the heat
We found a bit of a break in the hot days, and decided and early morning start was the best thing. Rather than cover the usual spots we headed down to southern end, known among birders as 29 Mile Road, T Section or the Spit. Also Murtcaim(n) and Pond 9. The Brolgas had been seen among the ponds there and we thought it a good look see.
Here’s the way the day progressed.
Found one of the Spotted Harriers up in the early morning mist. That’s Avalon Aircraft Repair workshop in the distance.
The second young one also put up, and we got some good views even if the light was against us.
Golden-headed Cisticola came by to be sure we weren’t thinking of taking over its territory, and gave a us a good lecture just to prove its point.
We did manage to find the Brolga engaged in team precision preening, but they were too far away, and the heat haze even in the early morning was a curse.
A strong breeze really surprised these Golden-headed Cisticola, nearly blowing it off the rail. The leaning into the wing and wide stretch of the legs was all it could do to prevent it being swept away.
Another great find were a pair of Cape Barren Geese, they did a great little head nodding performance before taking to the air. I always feel a bit sad when I’ve partly been the cause of a bird taking flight.
No such feeling with Swamp Harriers. This bird had no intention of letting us get close under any circumstances and led us on a merry chase along one of the bunds, flying a brief spell, sitting until we caught up, and then wafting on down the road a hundred metres of so.
At the moment, there is alway a Whiskered Tern or two to keep photographers amused and waste lots of time trying to nail that elusive best tern shot. Its not that the birds don’t try hard enough.
And that pair of Geese just would not sit still when we were around.
My bird id skills let me down sometimes and the little grass birds are a good example, but this is a Horsfields Bushlark (I hope). It adopted a different technique to stay on the post, by crouching down.
Back along the Point Wilson Road, one of the young Spotted Harriers had returned to the nest tree for a bit of a spell.
And down along the rocks, the Sharp-tailed Sandpipers were ready to get down to work when the tide lowered a bit.
By late mid morning, the temp was up, the heat haze was reducing very expensive lens to the quality of my Mum’s Box Camera and coffee and a toasted cheese and tomato sandwich (not a bad alternative to a poi.), at the Highway Lounge. How could I resist
At last the weather gave a bit of relief, and with an onshore breeze, a resonably low tide at around mid-day, it looked like a good time to re-visit the WTP.
So we loaded up the car, picked up Dieter early in the morning and progressed to see what was happening.
We found a Brown Falcon that has mastered the art of hovering. Mostly Brown Falcons hover like a house-brick, but this one has been able to figure out the technique. We’ve seen it down around the Kirk Point area before exhibiting its skills. A Swamp Harrier had made a kill and had been pursued by a number of Ravens, and had dropped the victim. This Brown Falcon had been somewhat in the middle of it all and was pretty certain that a free feed was waiting somewhere in the grass. It was completely oblivious to our presence and hunted quite close going over Dieter’s head at only a few metres. It was a great few minutes to watch.
Further along we came across a Spotted Harrier, ‘Languidly- that’s how its described in all the books’ making its way along one of the small channels. It passed quite close to the car and seemed un-preturbed by us. It has a primary feather that is loose, perhaps its moulting.
A second Spot turned up with what looks like a Eurasian Coot as its lunch. The coot can weigh upwards of 1 kilo, so it must have been quite an effort to get airborne, and maintain a steady course.
All in all a good day out with the birds and with plenty of Black-shouldered Kites and Nankeen Kestrels on the wing there was always something to be photographing.
Dipped on the Oriental Pratincole, which is always too far away to get great shots anyway.
Hovering Brown Falcon. It skimmed over the waters edge looking for the prey dropped by a Swamp Harrier. It didn’t have any success in the few minutes we watched. Perhaps the mouse or rat escaped for another day.
Spotted Harrier casually making its way along a water channel at WTP
Another Spotted Harrier, this time with takeaway lunch.
Just look at the calendar! It’s the end of April already. Although I suppose a look out the window at anytime would confirm it is coming on to winter.
I make no excuses, I like to go to the Treatment Plant in the afternoons. The light just runs down the roadways at a better angle. Because there are so many limitations about position in Werribee getting the light direction is one of the keys to great photos down there. So daylight saving is my friend in all this endevour.
But come winter, well, things change a bit. The sun is down by 5 pm, and so there is little time to get about the places we like to work from. So for the next few months, we are back to early morning starts. (No point getting there at lunch time as the birds are past the hungry at all costs mode). The light is harder to work with because the angle of the early morning sun is always lower and 3/4 backlight at best.
So in keeping with all that we loaded the car in the evening, set the alarm, and ventured out just as it was breaking daylight. A better run down the Ring-road too.
As soon as we turned of the freeway onto Point Wilson Road, we found some Red-rumped Parrots. A short distance along and Flame Robins were on the fence. And on the Paradise Road, and the road to Ryans Swamp, past the pumphouse. And a lovely Brown Falcon who sat motionless on a fence post and stared us down. I edged the car past it, on the far far side of the road, and with the long 500mm had to shoot vertically to get it all in. And then it flew. So I got a crop, but am pretty happy with the result.
More Flames down at Chirnside Road gate, and then a fruitless search for Swan J19.
We travelled back along the road to the Bird Hide and in quick succession scored a lovely Swamp Harrier, a pair of White-bellied Sea Eagles and a Buff-banded Rail. Not content we stopped near the Outflow from Lake Borrie and were entertained by five Black-shouldered Kites who seemed to be enjoying the light breeze and playing a game of ring-around-a-rosie, from the outflow sign and a large bush. No aggression, just plain fun.
More Flames along Beach Road, and a tree full of lovely yellow/green parrots.
We trundled down 29 Mile Road, and were amazed to find a single male Nankeen Kestrel,- the first we have seen at WTP (I had heard of it from reports on Victoria BirdLine.). It hunted up the paddock, dive-snatched a mouse, and sat on the fence line to consume it. So I moved the car forward a bit, it moved up about 3 posts. I moved again, it moved up 4 posts, I moved again, and it moved even further. A game of diminishing returns for me, and a success for the Kestrel. Still I managed to get a few record shots of it at work. Must go again. Hope its still there. The farm management were in the process of some controlled burns on the grass lands, and amongst the smoke could be seen 5 or 6 Whistling Kites waiting for some action. They seemed to be calling to one another, which is such a great sound, sends shivers down my spine.
Brown Falcon in early morning light. It allowed us to bring the car with in about 10m, which meant with the long lens I had to shoot vertical to get it all in.Just airborne. I waited, as it went though all the pre-flight checks, and probably was a little too early on the shutter. Was shooting vertical, so had to put up with a horizontal crop in the end.This one is at Chirnside Road GateIt made a turn out of the waterway just in front of our position. The early morning light filtered through the mist has kept contrast down, and highlight the wing and tail feathers. No clever post processing, just a little lightening up on the head.
We watched the Swamp Harrier making its way up the long grass towards us. Every so often it would make a course correction, or swing down to inspect possible prey. It was so intent on the work that it really didn’t notice two people sitting by the side of the roadway.
As it was close enough to pass over us, it finally saw us and made a swinging attempt to pull away. The large wings and tail scooped around like a parachute, stopping it dead in the air, its long legs began to swing out, to give it a point to turn on.
The first pic shows the wings and tail coming into action, the second the long legs now acting as a fulcrum to turn the whole body almost completely around. The crops are unintentional, the bird was simply too close to get it all in the frame.
The next pics in the sequence show a Swamp Harrier disappearing rapidly in the evening light.
Grinning widely we started to breathe again.
Swamp Harrier with tail and wings folding out to slow it down and the legs swinging forward to give it leverage for the turn
Swamp Harrier with legs extended, tail splayed and wings on down beat for a very fast turn
Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER - --doesn't mean I'm LOST 