TV Programme

Since I returned from Scotland I have been very busy with various projects and haven't really progressed as well as I would have liked with processing images. The next few weeks should see a lot of images added to my site and a few more blog posts.

One project I have been involved with is working on a BBC TV programme called Urban Jungle. This is one of a three part series of half hour programmes which will be shown later in the year. It's aimed at getting people more involved in the wildlife on their doorstep. I spent a day showing presenter Rani Price how to take photographs of urban wildlife.

Having not done any TV work before, I was a little nervous at first, but was soon put at ease by Rani and the team, headed by producer Ged Clarke. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day with plenty of pictures taken and plenty of sunshine for a change. I'm not sure whether I am looking forward to seeing myself on television, but I think I did okay. Many thanks go to Ged for the opportunity to do the programme.

This was the last shot at the end of the day. Rani had rushed off to catch her train, so here's sound man Rob, Producer Ged and cameraman Paul.

 

Corncrakes

For any wildlife photographer visiting the Outer Hebrides in late spring, one of their target species would undoubtedly be the Corncrake. A small migrant that is only found in this part of Britain throughout the summer, where it breeds.

Probably due to the very cold spring, the Corncrakes seemed to be very late displaying and in the first week of my trip I only heard the occasional one calling. Usually by the middle of May they should be heard in abundance. The fact that the vegetation hadn't really started to grow was possibly another factor, giving them little cover and making them vulnerable to predators.

With temperatures down to 3 degrees centigrade and a wind that was regularly over 40mph, it wasn't the ideal conditions to be trying to photograph Corncrakes. I had almost given up the idea of getting any shots of them at all. Then, towards the end of my second week, there was a warmer, calm day and by chance I came across a bird that was showing well alongside the road. A good hour was spent contorting out of the car window with the camera as it moved around, occasionally calling it's unique "crex crex" call. It just shows what a decent bit of weather can do, as there were many more heard calling that day.

More images on my website - Steven Round Bird photography

My Scottish Trip - Birds on Posts

I have just returned from three weeks in Scotland. Two were spent on the very windy Outer Hebrides and the third was in Speyside. I will be posting a few images of the many species I photographed over the coming weeks, as I add them to my main site. To start off I thought I would show some of the birds perching on posts, this is a common sight on the Hebrides as there are plenty of posts and not many trees.

Corn Bunting

Oystercatcher

Redshank

Short-eared Owl

Snipe

Corn Bunting

Meadow Pipit

Meadow Pipit

Redshank

Water Rails

I have finally edited my Water Rail images from last winter. With literally over 2000 to sort through, I narrowed it down to 94 to be published on my website. Here's a select few.

More at - Steven Round Bird Photography.com

A Variety of Images

At this time of year I have many plans for photographic projects. The success of them is usually determined by the weather, which up to now, has been pretty poor. Hopefully spring will soon be here. This post is a small assortment of some of the photographs I have managed to take in the last month or so.

Blue Tit

Bullfinch

Goldfinch

Great Crested Grebe (courtship display)

Great Crested Grebe

Kestrel

Lesser Redpoll

Signs of Spring

A few shots of the singing Robin I spent some hours with yesterday. Frustratingly, he seemed to prefer to sing in the shade on an unusually sunny day.

Capercaillie

I recently heard of an obliging male Capercaillie. They are a schedule 1 species, which means that you would need a licence to photograph them in the breeding season, which is fast approaching. Consequently I was anxious to make the long journey to the highlands of Scotland as soon as possible, which I did in the middle of last week with my friend Gerhard. A good walk deep into the forest and the bird was found.
He was displaying and strutting his stuff over an area so we sat and waited, he would come close, have a look at us and then roam off again. This meant some changing of lenses which gave a good variety of shots. He flew up into the trees to feed on the pine needles, flying almost vertically, which is impressive for such a large bird. Thirteen hours driving for a couple of hours photography seems a bit crazy, but it was well worth it. Just seeing this magnificent bird was enough and what a day to remember!

There are lots more images on my website - stevenround-birdphotography.com