This weather this week was a bit more settled, and although there were still many showers about the temperature was warmer. I was doing some photography contract work on a national nature reserve but left my bed in the early hours to spend a little time searching out insects. Things are still well behind, many of the damselflies and dragonflies have yet to make an appearance. Large Red Damselflies were still very fresh, and it took some diligent searching to find a few worth photographing. Butterflies were also scarce, but I did manage to find a couple of Orange-tips and a few Green–veined Whites. These were relatively easy to approach, as they were still pretty cold from the night before. Here are a some images from my early morning sortie during the week.
While photographing the Green-veined White, I heard the call of a Cock Pheasant. A couple of moments later it emerged from nearby vegetation. I quickly changed lenses to a 300mm 2.8 and it started to walk towards me. I did not even have time to mount the camera back on the tripod but supported it on my photographic bag. The whole event was over in a couple minutes.
I was still testing the D800, which Nikon had kindly let me have for a while and was keen to use it in as many different situations as possible. Although not quite as big as the D3X, it took a little time initially to get used to the slightly smaller camera; also some of the functions have been changed. I’m looking for an additional body now since my only remaining D3 is now non-operational and not worth repairing. I need an additional body before I head off the France next month. Since there is no announcement about a D4X, I will happily settle for the D800. This is a truly amazing camera. I was immediately impressed with how clean the files were even at high ISO settings. I will get a change to put the autofocus through its paces this coming weekend on the Saltee Islands workshop.
A few other images from the early morning shoot.