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Hi,
Manys for comments and votes on Yesterdays Ospreys .
Yesterday as I got home from School a Red Kite flew over our house . Was a bit short of of breath after running home to get my camera and he was flying a bit close to the sun, but got one or two shots - my 1st ones of a red kite - yesssss!!!!!
If you look closely it seems to have a baby bird in its talons , so he wont go hungry tonight.
Many Thanks Charlie
| Camera: | Canon EOS 350D |
| Lens: | 100-400 |
| Recording media: | JPEG (digital) |
| Title: | Wow - 1st red Kite | |
| Username: | 
BlackNinja | |
| Uploaded: | 13 May 2008 - 3:23 PM | |
| Tags: | Red kite, Wildlife / nature | |
| VS Mode Rating |
Unrated These stats show the percentage of wins and the rating score that your photo has achieved. You can go to the VS Mode by clicking on this icon. Signup to e2Signup to e2 to see which photo this has won or lost against in the vs mode | |
| Votes: | 108 | |
 | Junior Member |
Comments
Brilliant shot Charlie nice detail on the Kite well done
Richard
I did a search on red kite wing tag and looked at some other shots- it was white with letter D on it - white on left means it comes from east midlands ( rutland ) couldnt see right hand which gives year of hatching
The important thing with this type of shot is to retain detail in the bird. The fact that the sky is white is just unfortunate and happens so often in the UK that we have to learn to live with it.
It certainly looks like you got the exposure well as there are no signs of adjustment in imaging software, so well done on that.
If you want to have a fun couple of hours photographing more red kites than you could wish for, check out Gigrin Farm. Well worth a visit if you are ever in that area.
Cheryl
thanks Cheryl did go to +2 . Dad has promised to take me to Gigrin Farm in July
Nice one Charlie, you handled the exposure well, while under pressure.
Chris
You have done really well here, first time of seen a tag on a wing like that. I took a few pics of kites on sunday and binned all mine 
Excellent shot Charlie... well spotted and well worth the effort
Superb shot, you've managed to get a good amount of detail in the bird. As others have said, it's difficult not to burn out the sky in a shot like that because if you expose correctly for the sky all you get is a silhouette of the bird. I had similar problems getting shots of White Backed Vultures because of a bright white sky (yes, it's not sunny and cloudless every day here!), I wish they had turned out as well as this.
ÔżÔ
Thankyou for all of your comments and votes on this shot . I was really pleased with it to and it was my 1st red kite photo. I will post more photos in a couple of weeks when Ive been back to rutland again.
yes please cheryl - its quite a long way for us so want to make the most of it
awesome shot I know your going to enjoy Gigrin you must tell us about it on your return - I hope to go there myself one day - this year for me its the Farne Islands that will be exciting to
What a beautiful photo you sure do have an eye for a good picture ,(david bailey watch this space you have competition).keep up the good work charlie......kaz.
Excellent capture, your pf is amazing Charlie,
Go on, keep them streaming!
Johanna
Fantastic shot ..the detail is so good you can see the tag on the wing...
Don
Hi Charlie, not really the appropriate to place to put this amount of text, but we'll give it a go.
This is one of the drafts for the Gigrin article for Photography Monthly, not sure if it is the final one or not, but it won't be far off.
If you want it in print with pics, you need the December 2007 issue.
Gigrin and the Red Kite
Whilst every nature and wildlife photographer knows of places that are good for particular species at certain times of the year, none are guaranteed. In fact there are very few places that can guarantee an appearance by the local wildlife on a daily basis. One location that flouts this rule of wildlife photography is Gigrin Farm in Powys, Wales.
Gigrin has long been a favourite haunt for nature photography for the reason that no matter what the weather or in which month you choose to visit, at 2pm GMT or thereabouts you will see red kites. And not just one or two, but many more, and in winter especially, sometimes in excess of 200!
A short history of Gigrin and the red kite reveals that the kites have been feed there officially since 1992, though Eithel Powell, the previous farm owner had in fact been feeding the local kites for some time before that. The formalisation of the process into what we see today happened in support of the reintroduction programme that is continuing across the UK.
The red kite was once a common bird, but due to persecution numbers diminished such that only a handful were left in mid Wales before the reintroduction programme began in earnest in the late 1980s.
Photography at Gigrin
The first time you visit Gigrin it is easy to be overwhelmed by the action that unfolds in front of you. Understanding the kite behaviour can help to make capturing the action easier. The first time is often a confusing affair with a mass of kites circling and diving at random, or so it seems. However, if you observe more closely you will see that the sequence of daily events is predictable and knowing and understanding the patterns can make achieving better images easier.
About twenty minutes before feeding a small number of kites will begin gathering above the adjacent hillside. At 2pm GMT (3pm BST) the noise of a tractor moving from the farm buildings to the field will be heard above the calls from the crows, ravens and kites.
Chris, who now runs the feeding station, drives the tractor and it is the herald of the arrival of the food and the start of the main action.
It also signals your last chance to make sure that your equipment is properly adjusted for the task in hand. For me this involves a final check of the exposure by taking a reading from the grass and then a couple of test exposures of the field, sky and a combination of tree and sky. A quick confirmation of the shutter speed and an ISO adjustment if required and Im ready. I prefer a shutter speed in the region of 1/800th as a minimum, faster is better for stopping the action, but slower makes for a more challenging afternoon. Now it is just a matter of waiting patiently for the kites to feed.
First the crows and ravens will flock onto the recently dispersed food and quite often nothing else seems to be happening. Indeed it can sometimes take up to thirty minutes before the first kite will make a swooping dive to pick up a piece of meat. Patience is a key commodity at Gigrin as will become apparent later.
The feeding is hierarchical. The older kites will arrive first and the younger ones must wait their turn. Knowing this explains the apparent pause after the initial frenzy of activity. During the lull many of the other visitors will leave, do not be tempted to leave with them as you will miss the best of the skirmishes between kites, crows, ravens and buzzards.
After the pause, which can be as long as thirty minutes, the younger kites will begin feeding. There may well be more pauses in the activity, but feeding will continue on and off long after the centre is closed to the public at 5pm.
Once you have observed the red kites for a while you will begin to be able to predict when a kite is preparing to dive for food, and whilst this will not guarantee that you get them as they swoop it does give you the opportunity to try.
Another signal that you will become aware of, is that often, above the sounds that can be generally heard will be what can only be described as an alarm call. The shrieking will pierce the air and if you can find where the noise is coming from you will be able to watch a kite or crow being mobbed for its food. This mobbing tends to happen more later in the afternoon and is a key reason for not leaving early. If you have been shooting on a long lens you may struggle to fit the action into frame, but it is worth persevering as it is one of the more spectacular sights if two kites go talon to talon over the meat.
New Hides
Shooting from the standard visitor hides is more than possible, and until recently was about the only option available. The main downside to the visitor hides has always been the restricted view and for longer lenses the restricted range of movement afforded by the balancing the camera and lens on a bean bag on the sill of the window. It is also sometimes hard to find enough elbowroom as visitors can be crowded in two deep on busy days. So the good news is that a centre that has always been good for photography, just got better.
The new purpose built photography hides have recently been erected. They both have open front aspects and enough floor space to accommodate tripods, something that was never possible in the normal hides. The floor is solidly built and was designed with videography in mind where vibrations can be translated onto the film sequence.
Entrance to the new hides is a little more expensive, but if you want to use a tripod is really the only option. It is worth remembering that each entrance fee contributes directly to feeding the kites and promoting the reintroduction of a beautiful bird of prey not only in Wales but also throughout the UK as some of the young are used to help spread the population.
Equipment Used:
Nikon D2X
300mm f/2.8 plus 1.4 or 1.7 convertor
Gitzo Tripod
Kirk BH-1
Wimberley Sidekick
Photography Tips:
Careful metering is required
Try and follow one kite at a time
Keep panning with the action past the point of pressing the shutter
Keep an eye on shutter speed to ensure that it does not drop too low
Try and keep the bird in the frame, easier than it sounds
Watch out for the crows and ravens in the background as they can look like large dust bunnies
Other Wildlife at Gigrin
Crows
Ravens
Buzzards
Heron
Info
Kite feeding 2pm GMT, 3pm BST
Entrance £3 for normal hides (£2.50 Concessions)
Lower Hide £10
Upper Hide £15
Website: www.grigin.co.uk/hides
Positives
Unrestricted View
New Vantage Point
Tripod Use Possible
Negatives
Additional Cost
Max Occupancy
Open to Elements
Quote: What a super score, time though to send us in some more of your images, well done, will watch out , when I return from hols.
I agree . Im going On holiday to and hope to post more when I get in a week or so . Thanks for your support and comments
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