At the beginning of last winter, I watched with interest the hustle and bustle around the bird table in our garden during breakfast. It was a beautiful morning with sunshine. A Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) kept coming to the bird feeder because he thought he would find sunflower seeds there. A little later, a flock of at least 20 passerine birds was constantly on the move between the bushes and the nearby bird house. Right away I could see Willow Tit (Poecile montanus), Coal Tit (Periparus ater), Great Tit (Parus major), Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), European Nuthatch (Sitta europaea), Greenfinch (Chloris chloris), Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis) and House Sparrow (Passer domesticus). While Great and Blue Tits prefer to fly to the feeder, Greenfinches, Goldfinches and House Sparrows feast on the food that has fallen on the ground. A Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes), a Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula) and 2 Dunnocks (Prunella modularis) were hanging around in the background. But what was that? A bird that was significantly larger than the others suddenly landed among the songbirds, causing them to flee. I quickly got the binoculars to identify the troublemaker. But by the time I had the glass ready, the bird was gone again. After a few minutes he appeared again. Its strong beak immediately tells me that it is a Hawfinch (Coccothraustes coccothraustes). Photos of this beautiful bird have been on my photographic wish list for years, but unfortunately I had hardly been able to get good images of it until now. After a moment of thought, I decided to seize the opportunity. That same day I set up the camouflage tent near the feeding area and looked forward to the hours ahead in the photo hide.
I phoned a friend. While the first birds helped themselves to the feeder, two photographers sat next to each other – completely unnoticed by them – in the spacious Buteo Stealth Gear 2-person camouflage tent Extreme Professional Wildlife Square Hide, and filled the memory cards. This is going well. While my colleague sat on a folding chair, I stayed on the floor on a sleeping mat.
I use the Cullmann Titan Professional CT200 tripod as a stable base for the heavy camera-lens combination and attach the ProMediaGear GKJR Katana Pro Aluminum Gimbal Head. I can take photos with the Canon EF 400mm f/2.8 IS II USM lens on a Canon EOS R 5. The foldable display of the Canon EOS R 5 is a real blessing. I initially set the Canon EOS R 5’s autofocus to center-weighted AF, but then switch to spot metering.
The small birds, which are surprisingly shy in his garden, took a while before they accepted the camouflage tent near the feeder. So far they have remained unmolested by photo attempts and are not, as happens elsewhere, more or less used to people.
It is therefore normal for them to show a certain degree of skepticism towards the camouflage tent. In order to get the birds used to the new situation more quickly, we didn’t take any pictures during their first approaches. In this way, they were not irritated by the lens movements, which were also for them, and had a sense of achievement when they flew away with a sunflower seed or picked it up on site. Thanks to the electronic shutter, shutter noise can be practically eliminated, at least with the Canon EOS R 5.
Over time, all restraint was forgotten and we started taking photos discreetly. The occasional noise from the tent was no reason for birds in a residential area to panic. They were startled for a moment, but soon the noises left them cold. However, something else caused more excitement. I now moved my lens to a different photo position. The birds didn’t seem to like that at first. At least some were now holding back a bit.
Of course, being able to sit in a tent with two people doesn’t just have advantages. But, a whispered conversation helps to get through a long waiting time and you can also take turns looking out. Since the inside of the tent is lined with black and is therefore quite dark, movements from the outside are almost invisible. So it doesn’t hurt to pour yourself a coffee every now and then.
If every season doesn’t have its own photographic appeal, then the winter location can be a good way to bridge the supposedly quieter season in terms of nature photography. The place for a hiding place, a camouflage tent or, better yet, a permanent hideout, should be chosen carefully. When setting up your hideout in the fall, you need to consider where the sun will be in the next few months. There should also be hedges, tree trimmings and deep trees nearby where the birds can retreat in case of danger. While passerine birds accept some level of noise and slight movements of the lens after a few days, birds of prey such as the Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) are much more sensitive. If you want to lure these species to their hiding place, a steady hand is particularly important. Red Kites (Milvus milvus), Common Buzzards (Buteo buteo) or even Northern Goshawks (Accipiter gentilis) do not forgive careless panning of the camera or other movements that are visible to the animals. Experts are still debating whether perfect camouflage with camouflage nets and branches is necessary so that the camouflage tent blends in with the surroundings. I mostly avoid it.
To meet the growing demand for top-of-the-line images of the rarer Palaearctic species, Bird-lens.com strives to expand the range of images of Western Palaearctic birds. Trips to many locations to take pictures of rare western Palearctic birds have been very successful. This nice picture of the blog is just a first impression of what you can find in the gallery of the “Picture Shop” very soon. Please leave a message if bird-lens.com can provide a picture.