A location I had never really taken seriously was Fairhaven and surrounds yet the variety of habitat and number of species one can find is considerable... and of course the area is now recognised of national significance, although the plethora of designations these sites have is bewildering, must keep somebody in a job.
I don't have a 500mm lens or anything like that and have to rely on fieldcraft to get close to my subjects without disturbing them. You can imagine how difficult and how long that can take at times! What is rewarding is for the birds to go about their business in an unconcerned and natural way. That is so important to me and what I'm all about I guess. Here a Red Breasted Merganser takes 40 winks at the side of Fairhaven Lake, while across the road at Granny's Bay this first winter Knot goes about feeding... 'excellent'!
This photography m'larkey is so dependent upon the light and here again at times I was lucky, but working one's way into the right location so the sun is behind one can be a nightmare. The last image of the Red Breasted Merganser is merely to illustrate the difference the light can make... all images of the same bird!
