Red-throated Diver (Winter plumage)

Back in March I photographed a Red-throated Diver at Fairhaven Lake, in Lancashire. This bird was in Winter plumage and would contrast well with the breeding plumaged birds, that I would photograph a couple of months later in Iceland. I was originally going to include both plumages in one post, but decided that with so many shots of such stunning birds, I would split them into two posts. The next will follow shortly.

 

Iceland Trip - Slavonian Grebes

One of the most stunning species we photographed in Iceland was the Slavonian Grebe. Also known as the Horned Grebe, you can see why from some of my photographs. There were plenty of them about so I could select them for the calmest water and most pleasing backgrounds. These produced some of my favourite shots from the trip.

26 new images have been added to my website. Steven Round Bird Photography.com

Iceland Trip - Eider Ducks

Although we had done a lot of research before our trip to Iceland, there were a few things we discovered whilst there. One of these was a large colony of nesting Eider Ducks. The weather was very wet and windy and this being our last day, we decided it best to stay with the ducks, as we knew that we could achieve some good shots here. The males were constantly flying to and from the sea, a good challenge to get some flight shots in the murky conditions. The females stayed put on their nests and were quite hard to spot at times.
It turned out to be a very productive day and the flight shots worked well. The grass is always greener and we wondered what else we could have photographed that day. But we won't be needing to photograph Eiders for some time. I have added 55 new images of them to my main website.

Iceland Trip - Black-tailed Godwits

Another of the waders that was on the list to be photographed in Iceland was the Black-tailed Godwit. Looking very smart in their summer colours. We do get some in the UK that are practically in breeding plumage, but I haven't seen any as stunning as these. They weren't as approachable as we were led to believe and most were hard work to get near. Nevertheless we came home with some good shots.

 

Greenfinches

I have recently returned from a two week trip to Scotland. It was a "working" holiday with the family, so of course the camera gear went along. I set up a feeding station and had good numbers of birds coming to the sunflower heart feeders. With plenty of juvenile birds around I was soon having to fill the feeders two or three times daily.
One species I was pleased to see were Greenfinches, they seem to have declined in numbers over recent years. I spent quite a bit of time concentrating on them to make the most of the opportunity.

I have added 32 Greenfinch images to my main website, here are a few of them.