120 : Spotted Owlet

Spotted Owlet - Athene Brama

I have been in India for 3 days. Arrived on Thursday evening and I am flying back this afernoon (Sunday). I am staying at the Oberoi in Bangalore so hardly slumming it. Friday and Saturday I was up at 5 am to be picked up by a bird guide - two bird guides in fact on the first day. I found Bopanna online and he had some good write ups from visiting business types who use him to get at as many birds as they can in a short period. A trip report from another satisfied customer can be seen here. Its a differnt gig from an organised tour - you cut out the middle man and get yourself hooked up with a local specialist. The first day Bopanna and Dilon (a very good photographer and Indian naturalist) took me out - On my second day it was just Dilon as Bopanna has had a chest infection and needed to rest and stay out of the dust. Good photographer - world award winning photographer !! Check this out. Dilons English is not so good - however he knows birds ! He creeps around the bush finding things you would not believe were there. Great stuff.

There are (and I don't count myself in this) a large number of serial listers who crash around the world trying to tick off everything. Well it just isn't possible as I have explained. I think also its too stressful. Its best to slow down, tune in an see what turns up. For me I would rather see half as much and spend longer and get a good photograph if that is possible.

I think I saw something like 98 species in 2 days which is good for this time of year so I wasn't short changed by not "reaching" for every bird. I was content to let some things go when I just couldn't get on them and then my Karma was paid back as they would pop up the same day or the next day and give better and clearer views.

For two days I was looking at every wire, branch, post and wall as I knew that Spotted Owlet was a bird you should see with a fair wind. At the 11th hour in some jungle scrub out on the plains next toa  water course I heard a terrific commotion. A party of Yellow Billed Babblers was upset with something and then - pop - up flew a Spotted Owlet which I think must have been roosting and disturbed by the mobbing birds.

This brings me onto bird photography when you are excited - calm down and slow down ! The picture above is not manipulated at all and straight off the card. It was probably the 30th shot I took. Here is the first shot - I had been trying to photograph a bird against a sky background previously which does require you to put up the "stops" to perhaps 2.  So rather than check the first or second shot when I had the best view of all I simply banged off 10 overexposed shots like this -

Calm down young man. I don't think that bird photography is that difficult. Here's my Top 5 tips for absolute idot beginners with a Canon and a new lense (as provided by Bopanna and (I am not worthy) Dilon !

1) Get some confidence and get off of the automatic settings. Your bascis set up is the middle focus point only, single shot, ISO 400, the lens will find its FS thingy at 5/6 or so, then the aperture in the middle (whatever that is). That will do you in normal conditions with the bird with a backgroud behind it !

2) Birds with a sky background or flying eg you are going to have to up the exposure to 1.5 or 2. Dont ask me why but the detail on the bird wont show unless you do this. It is all a magic and a mystery - its a bit like a television. Who really understands how one works ? So big blue background - take teh exposure across to the right. AF - up to 2 or so.

3) If its flying you have got some other stuff to do - You need all the focus points active and not just the centre one. You have to go from single shot to servo - the camera will keep the bird in focus the. You have of course dialed up the AF to 2. Finally on your zoomy lens you need to make sure that the lens is on stabilisor mode 2 - dont ask me why - its something to do with the shakes while panning. Now I did all this and I ended up with a *lovely* picture of a needletail (a type of swift) in flight with all the feathers showing - also feather perfect pictures of Brahminy Kites and stuff.

4) No the trick then is getting from the standard base settings to the flying around stuff - and doing it while the bird is on the move !! I think some cameras have memorised settings - have not found mine yet - a bit like a hotkey in windows. Perhaps I need a fancier camera body - voice activated or mind activated like Clint Eastwood in Firefox - make it for flight - fire !

5) Finally remember where you are when you start shooting - check after a couple. Get as still as you can - get at eye level if you can - hold your breath - !!! Agh no I am excited an Owlet just flew to a tree 5 yards away !

So we are - a better Spotted Owlet blown up so that you appreciate him - I know snip that annoying branch !

There is more to it than that I am sure - It will be a journey - anyway I have had a masterclass from two masters.

Spotted Owlet, Athene Brama
Plains near Bangalore
26 May 2012