MNHP Cairngorms - Red Grouse and Birds of Prey!

The main task for the whole group today was photographing six bird of prey species.  Beforehand, myself and three others went looking for red grouse in a spot that we have done before.  We found one pair amongst the heather on the way to the location and after spending a couple of minutes stalking them we were going to jump back into the van and carry on.  Luckily, Anthony spotted a grouse another grouse sat atop a fence.  We got low and stayed along the fence line which allowed us to get quite close.  

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​5 minutes later and we were photographing the next pair of red grouse.  In total there were around three pairs in the area and so we had a fair amount of choice of which to stalk.  By the end of the session (just over and hour) we had found a pair which didn't mind us being too near them.  We (three of us) stalked them and got well within 10 metres, which gave us images like these!

Below and right - (c) Anthony Slocombe

Anthony was using a 300mm F/2.8 lens with a 2x converter attached.  Although this brings the aperture to F/5.6 at minimum you can achieve a really shallow depth of field by staying low to the ground.  The sky behind the subjects was clear and blue which gave a great backdrop which again, is achieved by the low angle.  

Below - (c) Ellie Bearcroft

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​As I said at the top, the main task was photographing the captive birds.  The species we had to photograph were; Golden Eagle, Goshawk, Peregrine, Kestrel, Eurasian Eagle Owl, Barn Owl.  As you can see from the group picture below.  As you can see from the group shot, we had varied backgrounds to shoot the subjects on.

The golden eagle is a stunning bird, using the trees and grasses around you can be a great way to not only show the viewer some habitat, but also help conciel the jessies.
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The Goshawk was the next species.  A rare UK species, it's got stunning plumage and we were incredibly lucky to have it with us today, as they are even rare to see in captivity.  

Again by using the foliage and trees you can create quite nice compositions, which hide the jessies and provide framing for the subject.  When the subject was positioned on a perch which didn't allow for a natural look, the handler bought in grouse to place over the talons.

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The peregrine falcon is fairly common around the UK with growing urban populations.  It was probably the most calm subject of the six and gave us awesome opportunities for images.  As you can see from Jasmine Beveridge's image below, it being as still as it is gives you a great chance to capture an amazing image!








Below - (c) Jasmine Beveridge

After we stopped for a lunch break, the kestrel came out and it was arranged to sit on a grassy bank around 10 feet above ground level.  It was a really good idea to have it up this high because we could frame the bird with long grass in the foreground and hide the jessies whilst having a blue/white/green background from the sky and trees.  I would say that the kestrel was the most active species, constantly moving around.  Which worked great for changing backgrounds between frames, but it made it less easy to compose the image as the previous species had been.

Below - ​(c) Ellie Bearcroft

The last two species were flown by the handler.  In my opinion this was the best part of the day, as it was quite a challenge to track the birds in flight.  The eagle owl came out first and was then followed by a barn owl!

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Thanks for reading, feel free to check out the galleries of the other photographers that are in this blog:
Jasmine Beveridge - www.jbeveridgewildlife.weebly.com
Ellie Bearcroft - www.ebphotography95.wix.com/elliebearcroft
Anthony Slocombe - www.anthonyslocombephotography.weebly.com

Unfortunately, there wont be a blog tomorrow as I am in a hide overnight and so there won't be any time to write it.  I'll write tomorrows blog on saturday on the way back to Falmouth, so look out for that!