On a recent visit to the Saint Augustine Alligator Farm I
was ecstatic to find a nest of young spoonbills within easy reach of my camera. I have visited the rookery of wild birds
many, many times over the last twenty – five years, but this was the first time
I had seen such young spoonbills. I so
badly want to get a photo of the adult and chicks, but tree limbs were causing
some serious problems.
The nest was tucked away near the trunk of the tree with
just a small opening for a clear shot.
While the chicks were quite active the adult stood over the nest with
its head obstructed by an arching tree branch.
After taking a few photos I waited for the adult to move into a position
that would make a more pleasing image. I
waited for half an hour or more, but the adult spoonbill never moved. It simply stood above the nest with the
obtrusive branch running right through the bird’s eye.
The
images that I was getting just wasn’t cutting the mustard. Then, just as I was about to give up, the
adult spoonbill began to move around, and then the chicks became more
active. For a brief moment the adult
lowered its head toward the nest and all three of the chicks turned toward the
camera. For a moment everything came
together, and it is because of moments like this this that I am a bird
photographer.
Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4 with a 1.4 teleconverter, 1/160 second @ f/8
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