It was chillier than expected so after adding extra layers or thicker jackets eight of us headed into the wetlands. The birds at Laratinga seem to be more tolerant of people which was great as it enabled us to get quite close to many of the birds. The group soon split up as different birds caught their attention.
The great thing about photography is that it slows you down and enables you to concentrate on the behavior of the birds. You need to watch the birds carefully to enable prediction of that special moment to get the great photo. Or you hold your finger on the shutter and hope that moment is captured somewhere in the burst!
The blaze of blue from the Superb Fairy-wrens captivated everyone. These birds flitted from the ground and into the shrubs feeding themselves and finding food for their begging young.
The Willie Wagtail flew out and came back with tiny sticks and cobwebs to build its nest.
The Red Wattle bird foraged in the litter and probed the tree bark for insects. I thought they were nectar feeders!
The Australian Spotted Crake scuttled across the path to the muddy shore then disappeared into the reeds.
The Mallards thrilled us with brilliant flashes of colour as they moved their wings.
As the Australasian Shovelers dived their tails rose up and their feet paddled.
The synchronized swimming of bird pairs was great to watch.
The freshwater tortoises sunned themselves on the fallen log.
We finally moved our eyes from our cameras and enjoyed a picnic lunch together. But was great to peek onto someone else’s camera screen to see what they had captured!
JUDY
GREG
DI
KERRY
BRUCE
Blackwood Photographic Club of South Australia Inc. 