Sand Martins

[John Robinson]

They have been back im the red sandstone a while and are all sitting or digging out now. 20 holes up to now, after two yearswith nothing (usedto be 800 holes!) when they get the first and second brood birds hanging around it will be a sight to see.!!
This is a newly mated pair at their tunnel and some one above is having a good old dig ! You cann see the sand being thrown out.
White poo on the sand removed.
Sunny conditions so not ideal. The sand is that colour by the way.
D200 Sigma 50-500 mm
400 ISO 500th sec @f11
Contrast down
Levels in Paint Shop Pro
About 70% of frame.
Image guru for slight shadow lift
Comments welcome.
Giving the Owl a rest whilst sitting.
Cheers
JohnR

[Joseph Przybyla]

Beautiful birds, nicely shown. Wish I were there to see and photograph. Thanks for sharing.

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Nice one John. Two sharp birds is 10 times harder (and better) than one sharp bird. Great poses and eye contact. I like seeing the falling debris from the construction presumably going on further up.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Nice shot John, our local colony is completely wiped out after all the winter and summer rains last year the land has slipped. Not easy to get two in a position like that.

[John Robinson]

Thanks guys
yes they have really gone down and the quarry sand face where they are now will be gone at the end of the season.
John- I often use the sigma 50-500 on a fairly wide setting as the hide was quite close. I,ve always said its better to rack out and have a smaller subject in many cases. Sand martins are pretty easy birds to do though.
Saw a Hobby take one right above my head the other day!
Cheers
JohnR

[Andrew Robinson]

Lovely image John, perfectly done. Nothing quite like being on a river bank listening to these churning to each other as they hunt. Perfect....

Andrew

[William Dickson]

Lovely shot John, well done

[Geoffrey Montagu]

Like this image a lot, John. Beautiful browns in the feathers complimented by the warm sandstone BG. Like their positions and head turns as well.





Geoffrey

[Satish Ranadive]

Spectacular image.Very nice lights, beautiful tack sharp pair with nice HA.I like the sandy backdrop and falling sand.
Beautiful composition too.

Regards,
Satish.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Good techs - f/11 was just the ticket to get them both within dof. I like the sand falling off the top as it helps tell the story. Although I'm OK with it as is I can just imagine if both had given you better head angles (but that would have been to good to be true!!).

[John Robinson]

Thanks all. Am relieved that there are no colour issues !! been a problem with me lately. Even now I look at the red sand and think 2uuurggg2!! -but it is that colour .
The sand is coming out of a hole a bove The birds shuffle out backwards and kik it all over the place. After all they have a two foot tunnel to build !
Thanks again
JohnR