Cranes

Anthropoides  virgo (Family: Gruidae; common name: Demoiselle  Crane)

This crane was moving all the time while the distance from it asked for a small aperture to give some depth of field. The result was a lot of shots which were a bit blurred due to the bird's movement. At some time the bird decided to stay still. This allowed me to take a couple of good shots. The moral of the story is that you must spend some time with your subject before moving on.

Photo by George J. Reclos

Shooting Data:

Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: Tamron SP AF 180mm f/3.5 Di Macro 1:1
Sensitivity: ISO200
Shutter speed: 1/125 sec, f/9.5, Aperture priority mode
Flash: SB-800 in i-TTL mode
Image: RAW, converted in Photoshop CS, sharpening and contrast adjusted, saved in JPEG, levels adjusted, cropped + USM added. 

Balearica regulorum (common name: Golden crown crane)

Cranes are usually impressive birds but the crown crane is definitely the most impressive of them all. The golden crown, the blue eyes, the contrasty colors all make up a beautiful bird and a nice photo. The birds don't like the human presence so you need either a very long lens (300 mm or longer) or, alternative, a fence which will hide you from them. I chose the second and managed to take some pictures of them standing just 4 meters away from me.

Photo by George J. Reclos

Shooting Data:

Camera: Nikon D2X
Lens: Tamron SP AF 180mm f/3.5 Di Macro 1:1
Sensitivity: ISO 100
Shutter speed - aperture: 1/640 sec - f/8, Aperture priority mode
Flash: None
Image: JPEG edited in Photoshop CS, levels adjusted, USM added and resized.