Porcelain Frog

Some good news from the animal front. In a time where the Red List of threatened animals becomes bigger every day, fortunately there are some exceptions to the rule. The adorable and tiny Tree Frog is one of few species that seem to have thrived lately.

For many years, there were only a handful of places in the Netherlands where Tree Frog populations exist. As these sparse populations grew bigger and bigger, conservation agencies thought of creating new populations of the 4 cm (adults, juveniles are about 1 cm long) frogs in other suitable places.

After a period of research and further improvement of suitable habitats, the first batches of Tree Frogs, taken as spawn from several of the existing populations, have now been released into the wild. One of the locations of choice is very close to my home and I was asked by the conservation officer to cover the happening with my camera. Of course, I was happy to do so, as it was a great opportunity to also take some photos of the Tree Frogs.

Above is an image of a Tree Frog from the first batch of 160 individuals. The second batch of about the same size was released at a very bad time, photographically speaking. Thunder, rain and no light at all prevented me from taking any sharp images. Well, at least now I know where to look for them. Finding them is another thing though. Lets hope these juvenile porcelain frogs reach maturity and are able to reproduce and sustain a new and healthy population.

Tree Frog; Canon 1D Mark III w. 90/2,8; 1/125s at F4 and ISO 400; Gitzo tripod

Fire in the Sky

Summertime. For many people, it's finally the time of the year they have been looking forward to for months. Not for me. First, I don't have any holiday plans, I work throughout the summer. And more important: summer to me represents a period with few (and early) hours of beautiful light, birds moulding high up in the trees, foliage on trees that looks just dull and so on. So yes, for a nature photographer, summer is slow season. The inspiration and motivation both lack severely. No problem, the past few years have taught me that both rear their ugly heads again as soon as the first signs of autumn are here.

Until then, I'll pick up the camera every now and then when an opportunity arises. Like the last minute kingfisher nest from last week, or the beautiful sunset skies we had this week. I drove to a vast local heathland, as I did not want the dark lines of the silhouetted forest edge in the frame. The slightly tilted shape of the pine tree matched well with the shape of the cloud. I lay down on the ground to achieve a low viewing angle. I'll get back to this spot when the sunset sky promises to become a bit more dramatic.

Sunset Tree; Canon 1D Mark III w. 17-40/4; 1/60s at F5.6 and ISO 400; Gitzo tripod

Survivors

This years winter was a very cold one. Kingfishers, despite their Dutch name (translated to Icebird) don't like cold winters at all. It's not that they freeze to death, but when small lakes and ponds are frozen, it's difficult if not impossible for them to find food, and they starve to death. Observations this spring have been very scarce in all parts of the Netherlands, so it seems the population has really suffered.

Up to last week, I had not been able to find any kingfishers in my own area, despite many hours of searching at possible hotspots and around last years nesting sites.

Last Monday, I got a tip from a friend of mine: he had seen a male kingfisher visit a perch, near a fallen tree, several times. I checked the place out and it was indeed a nesting site. Given the amount of noise from the cavity and the size of the fish the male brought in, it must be about the time the chicks fledge. That means it is the absolute end of the breeding season (after possibly two or three broods) and the end of (good) photo opportunities. Next year, I hope to find such a spot earlier in the season, as I can tell you: kingfishers are a serious addiction.

Common Kingfisher; Canon 1D Mark III w. 500/4 IS and 1.4x; 1/125s at F5.6 and ISO 400; Gitzo tripod from tenthide

Cover New Ground

Finally, I have picked up the camera again. Last Saturday, I spent a hot morning in a tent hide to shoot bathing birds in a small stream. Amazing how many individual birds visit the spot. At one time, there were no less than 7 species in a small bush next to the stream.

On Sunday, I wanted to do something new (to me), so I went for dragonflies, damselflies and butterflies. A whole new world and subject to me, which became painfully obvious. The working distance of my Tamron 90mm is just too small for subjects like these.

I have to get very close to be able to portrait them large enough and to get a nice out-of-focus background. No problem around sunrise, when they still need to warm up and cannot fly away. But from about 7 am on, I only found myself chasing my subjects like crazy with very few results.

So I switched to the 70-200/4, attached a 1.4x extender and an extension tube to be able to get a bit closer. The combination of a longer lens and the ability to focus relatively close improved my chances. Problem was the combination is very long and therefore not very stable. Also, the focussing range of the lens becomes very small, so I had to move the tripod tiny bits to be able to focus on the subject. If I decide that I really like to photograph damselflies, dragonflies and butterflies, I'll sell the Tamron and go for something like the Sigma 150mm macro.

Large Skipper; Canon 1D Mark III w. 70-200/4 with 1.4x and extension tube; 1/640s at F4 and ISO 400; Gitzo tripod