Hello Keith,a very beautiful video/vlog of the Sand Martin and fully understand your protecting comment.I only film in a nature reserve close to my hometown and a few years ago i saw a big sandpile at a backyard of a farmer that was meant for paving and about 30 Sand Martins were nesting there.I warned the owner and he decided to wait till the they were gone. That was a great chance for me to observe and film them.From a distance i watched where the activity was the most and when the parents flew away for picking insects i placed my tripod and camera and could film for about 1 hour without disturbing them and did that several times.Of course they noticed me but i am very carefully and take my time. All the young ones came out and i posted a movie of them on my channel.Greetings Gijs
Mesmerising! Fantastic little birds and some wonderful film and images Keith. They really are a special species and you have some sharp in flight shots - the one at 10:26 is beautiful. Shame about the human getting in the way, how come people are so stupid. I was at our Gravel Pits yesterday, waching people throwing balls for dogs, standing next to the "Please keep your dog on a short lead, there are nesting birds here" sign. So many of them around it just didn't seem worth reminding them 🤷♂🤷♂ But that looked a great morning out - have a good weekend mate. Loved this one.
Thanks mate. Yes, people can sometimes just get wrapped up in their own world and don't see the consequences. Like you say it goes on so often that you just stop saying anything. Thanks again mate and hope you both have a great weekend. Cheers Keith
Hi Keith good video my friend and some really good images, where did that year go I remember last years video from the same place it seems the older I get the faster the time goes. Until next time take care and stay safe my friend.
On our visit we couldn't even see the fence due to so many people gathered around it. Perhaps if they moved the fence further away from the nesting site or even constructed a hide well away from the nesting site this would improve it for the birds as well as onlookers. I agree with you with so many people at close proximity will only deter this wonderful species of birds from nesting here. Great video as always.
Thanks Kim. It is difficult, they cant put a hide there because it is not part of the reserve really. They have built the other box in the reserve so maybe the birds will move there.
Thanks Gary. Funny you should say that I had one land in a tree in front of me this morning so they are back. Didn't get the image though as was not ready. Spent another 2 and half hours waiting for it to come back without success.
I've spent a good number of hours trying to photograph these Keith. Normally I just manually focus on a spot and shoot when a bird enters the area. Will have to check to see if the site I use is active but as its a banking in the side of the river Trent your never sure if its going to be there or collapsed into the river during the winter storms.😬😬Lovely video and images mate!👍👍
Thanks mate. Yes great fun to watch and try to capture. Agree the only way is really to pre-focus and wait for the birds to approach. If you use auto focus you can sometimes get lucky. Cheers Keith
Great footage Keith, I popped down the other evening but there was little activity around the nesting area. May be the morning is the best time to visit? Thanks for sharing.
Very nice Keith. There's always someone that has to do whatever it takes to get the shot (or not) and get as close as they possibly can. I just don't get it, respect & research your subject(s) and learn some good old fashioned fieldcraft skills - it will make you a better photographer (not you personally!). Great footage and stills mate, the RF100-500 still looks good at F10 too 👌 Keep on keeping on mate. Best, Nick
Thanks, Nick never stop learning and am happy to include myself in there as there are always things that will make me a better photographer 😂. RF100-500 works well with the 1.4x just need to do some noise reduction sometimes. Cheers Keith
