Northern Goshawks (wild)

Mike Warburton

Mike Warburton

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Two more images of the male from the pair of Northern Goshawks I photographed over the Winter. I took the hide down late last month to allow for the breeding season to begin but am going to set it back up again in the Autumn to hopefully capture some of the juveniles.

Northern Goshawk by Mike Warburton Photography, on Flickr

Goshawk by Mike Warburton Photography, on Flickr
 
Back to your old tricks eh! Fantastic shots yet again, your hard work really pays off. What's the prey item?
 
Beautiful ...
 
Cheers Chris and it was a male Pheasant was not a natural kill but put there by me.
Baiting is a very contentious issue at the moment (and rightly so) which is why these were only ever fed when I went there for a photography session which was at most once a week. This was to ensure the birds never became accustomed to being fed and the bait was placed to look like a natural abandoned kill. Once the session was over (whether the birds came in or not) the bait was discarded into the bushes for the Foxes. Out of eight sessions in the hide with the camera the birds only came in to feed three times which shows that my plan worked a treat and the project had the absolute minimal effect on their natural lives and the local ecosystem.
 
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htid said:
He's not lucky, he's built his own hide and spent 8 years at least putting in many hours work to get to this point ;)
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Well good for you Mike, a friend of mine does something similar, I know how much work and dedication he puts in, and I'm still envious of your work as it's beautiful! :)
 
Where does one go and find these amazing wildlife birds to photograph ? How do you source out where they will be in your catchment area?

I'm slowly getting into bird photography and any tips/hints would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Regards;
Peter
Central Scotland
 
Yet again, fantastic photos and so nice to see your hard work paying off.
 
macvisual said:
Where does one go and find these amazing wildlife birds to photograph ? How do you source out where they will be in your catchment area?

I'm slowly getting into bird photography and any tips/hints would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Regards;
Peter
Central Scotland
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As I pointed out earlier in the thread which I guess you didn't see, he built his own hide and spent many. a long hour getting to this point. It's not easy ;)
 
Thankd again everyone, much appreciated.

macvisual said:
Where does one go and find these amazing wildlife birds to photograph ? How do you source out where they will be in your catchment area?

I'm slowly getting into bird photography and any tips/hints would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Regards;
Peter
Central Scotland
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Hi Peter.
If it is only the photograph you are interested then I would recommend a Raptor Workshop or one of the piad for hides that are dotted around the country. If however you are genuinely interested in Birds and Wildlife Photography in general then the very best way to go about it is research. I have always said that true Wildlife Photographers should be Naturalists first as the only way you can photograph Wildlife responsibly is if you know the species you are working with.
Learn everything you can about your intended subject such as habitat, feeding and breeding cycle etc before even thinking of approaching them with a camera as you will be wasting your time. It sounds like harsh advice but its the best advice you will get as with Wildlife Photography its 90% preparation that gets results. Also bear in mind that the breeding season is coming up and although its an offence to disturb any nesting bird some have special protection under Schedule 1 (including Goshawks and most Raptors) that require a Licence to approach.

I hope this helps you in some way and wish you the best of luck.
 
Mike,

They great shots of a stunning (and rather fearsome looking) bird. You wouldn't want to mess with one of these!

I do appreciate the hard work and hours you put in to get these pictures. I note that you are taking the hide down at the start of the breeding season when otherwise you would presumably be in a position to get even more and possibly better results. Your advice to Peter is spot-on. I sometimes wonder how little some bird photographers know about actual birds.
 
jerry12953 said:
Mike,

They great shots of a stunning (and rather fearsome looking) bird. You wouldn't want to mess with one of these!

I do appreciate the hard work and hours you put in to get these pictures. I note that you are taking the hide down at the start of the breeding season when otherwise you would presumably be in a position to get even more and possibly better results. Your advice to Peter is spot-on. I sometimes wonder how little some bird photographers know about actual birds.
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Thanks Jerry. Its advice I give everyone as respect to the subject should always be paramount as you know and you cant treat the subject properly if you know nothing about it. The hide has been down for several weeks now and was done as soon as I noted the birds displaying above the forest but I will visit over the Summer to see how they are getting on as its one of the pairs I monitor annually under Schedule 1 Licence.
This is a shot of the male in portrait format. I was hoping to make the most of the Larches behind but they are too out of focus to get what I wanted out of the image. I was already down to 1/6th sec so to stop down any lower would have been impossible to get a sharp shot.
Goshawk by Mike Warburton Photography, on Flickr
 
Beautiful shots. I would love to get shots like that.
 
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