I went out for a walk to the mangroves during the heat of the day, but thats when low tide was. I was hoping to get some pics of some of the local water birds. I spent an hour out there, sometimes up to my knees in grey stinky mud. I found 2 small birds, no idea what they were and they were too quick for me to get pictures of. So on the way back, i walked along the tides water edge hoping to come across a pelican, or some kind of crane, which always seems to be around, anything so i didnt go home empty handed. I spotted movement, and realised there were two black birds poking around about 300m away. I chose to walk closer to the bird furthest away from the shore, thinking if it flew away i could always go back to the bird that was nearer to shore. At least i'd get a feel for how close i could get without bothering him. I got pretty close and squatted down. He ended up walking closer, using his beak to prod the sand. I snapped 3 pics of the distinctive bird and was happy to have got some clear shots from close. I was about to leave when he surprised a crab, and himself! Sooty Oystercatcherx3 by kcpics73, on Flickr I snapped away as he poked the crab, while the blue swimmer swiped around with both his claws. The beak was longer than the crabs nippers, and that orange beak was doing major damage. Eventually the crab lost a flipper and a claw/arm. Eventually the Oystercatcher was able to pick the crab up and walk to a sand bank to eat it. Being so close, watching it all unfold, a real life or death battle,camera shutter firing away, it felt like a "National Geographic" moment. Sooty Oystercatcher by kcpics73, on Flickr
Love it! Love that last/middle one with the leg kicking out. It's not just interesting, I like the shot as a shot, the splashing and the colour of the water, the way he's "looking at the camera". Good one.
great birdwatching story and pics. certainly captures the drama of the hunt, only thing is that i find the colours quite dull, kinda taking the life and energy out of the picture.
Agree about the colours. Shooting a black bird in the middle of the day at a white beach, maybe the camera was fooled or didnt have anything to work with. A couple of "bird" guys have said the same thing. I shoot at -0.3EV because Nikon have a habit of overexposing. Bird guys shoot at +1.0 so that the bird is quite bright and they can capture more detail. They dont care the background might be washed out. So maybe thats something i can try next time as well.
