I just had to look at the map and measured the distance: the closest nest to my home was a mere 3,5 kilometres away! What a situation … Ok, I had seen short-eared owls in my home region during winter, but breeding, who would have expected that?
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Of course, I didn’t only photograph great crested grebes from the floating hide in Les Dombes (see last blog post). I was quite amazed to discover so many different species. The breeding season was slowly ending and the first waders were already arriving. Ducks started to moult and herons congregated. So there were lots of subjects to shoot. Even young kingfishers were flying around and muskrats were foraging at the borders of the lakes. Thousands of frogs played an impressive concert every evening.
I can’t seem to get enough of eagles. They keep fascinating me, even after I’ve already spent so many successful days in hides, observing and photographing them from a close distance. When I heard about a place in Poland were about 30 birds came to feed on carrion that was provided for them, I needed to check it out.
As is my tradition, I escaped the festivities again last Christmas (sorry, family!). This time, I went to Spain with my friend Bas to photograph some eagles. The perfect country for nature photographers in search of peace and quiet during these overly celebrated days.
Presenting today: a colourfull collection of images I took in Hungary in June, mainly taken from fixed hides. June isn’t really the best time to shoot birds. The temperatures can rise very quickly in the morning, causing hard light and making the birds inactive during the biggest part of the day. It got really hot, and sleeping wasn’t on the menu!
Imagine you’re sitting in a small, low hide, with your knees up to your neck. You’re on a flooded bog that’s sinking deeper into the water every hour and sunset kicks in. You’re alone in an open river valley, far away from civilisation. All alone, except for some elks and roe deer splashing around in the marshes and a background choir of stunning bird species: river warblers, corncrakes, whinchats, rosefinches, woodcocks and wood-warblers …
This Little bustard gave a wonderful performance, just in front of my hide in the drylands of Spain. At the climax point of their display, they seem to explode, and lift of for one meter in the air, making some strange prrrt noises…
With great company from Norway, France and Belgium, I guided a photo-tour to Portugal to photograph the great bustard and many other birds. The group endured the 15-hours sessions in the hides very well, entering one hour before sunrise and leaving an hour after sunset. What a view we had from those little wooden boxes!
From the moment I arrived in Bulgaria, I noticed the hawfinches. You can see them everywhere! Stop at any gasstation, and you can hear them! This was my chance to get some quality time with these beautiful birds! It’s a species that is rather shy in Belgium. I spent three days in a hide photographing hawfinches on a feeding ground.