Short Eared Owls at ?????

[pooley]

Its a difficult debate, and there will always be various 'interpretations' over ethics.

A similar situation exists underwater, where people in the know like to keep certain areas a secret. Its frustrating if you're out of the loop, but from a sensible perspective, even more frustrating when the area in question suffers. An area in the maldives called Hanifaru lagoon recently became world famous for the collection of manta rays, often over 100 in a lagoon the size of a football pitch. Within 2 years of being outed, there's now a constant flow of boats breaking guidelines daily, and the number of manta's are suffering.

My opinion for what its worth is that we need to educate others who deliberately flout good practice, as per the bloke in the recetly posted video, but make the area available for all sensible togs, via pm, birding forums etc.

I've never photographed owls, but would love someone to take me out for the day, showing me the good practice that I might not be aware of at present

 

[den]

I would just like to add something to this thread, mainly because i was out yesterday afternoon in my SEO location with my tiny 100-400mm , i got some good shots which i was happy with ,however when i was leaving i was talking to a couple more photographers who were very pleased for me to have got my post shots of the SEO , they asked to have a look and were very complimentary for getting them in bad light etc (and i did get the with that lens)with the 100-400mm what with them with there big tripods and 500mm ,now they all stuck by the rules of wildlife photography but admitted they only went to spots were they had seen other photographers , and admitted they didnt know much about the seo ,i just told them stay in one spot as they do apear to be creatures of habbit and the one i got a pic of always and as done for the last few days perched on in the post,and to get to my point they asked me how i knew about the location ,well i had two sources ,one from a fellow photographer and one from a local newspaper , and to his surprise i showed them the link on my phone and they admitted they never thought of looking in the local paper ,if you are a genuine lover of wildlife in genral their is always a way you can find out for yourself.....I Think what i am saying is just because you dont have a big lens and all the gear it doesn't mean you have an idea and i believe thier is a certain group of big lens guys out thier that think you can only join the club,location and chat if you have one ,just my opinion of what i have experienced.

 

[lost]

I would just like to add something to this thread, mainly because i was out yesterday afternoon in my SEO location with my tiny 100-400mm , i got some good shots which i was happy with ,however when i was leaving i was talking to a couple more photographers who were very pleased for me to have got my post shots of the SEO , they asked to have a look and were very complimentary for getting them in bad light etc (and i did get the with that lens)with the 100-400mm what with them with there big tripods and 500mm ,now they all stuck by the rules of wildlife photography but admitted they only went to spots were they had seen other photographers , and admitted they didnt know much about the seo ,i just told them stay in one spot as they do apear to be creatures of habbit and the one i got a pic of always and as done for the last few days perched on in the post,and to get to my point they asked me how i knew about the location ,well i had two sources ,one from a fellow photographer and one from a local newspaper , and to his surprise i showed them the link on my phone and they admitted they never thought of looking in the local paper ,if you are a genuine lover of wildlife in genral their is always a way you can find out for yourself.....I Think what i am saying is just because you dont have a big lens and all the gear it doesn't mean you have an idea and i believe thier is a certain group of big lens guys out thier that think you can only join the club,location and chat if you have one ,just my opinion of what i have experienced.

I would agree with you there are some just like that out there, just for the record i do have a long lens but i will always i have a chat with people and if i can help people with worse equipment get a shot i will. I started out with a Zenith and a couple of screw thread lenses so as you can probably guess a lot of imagination went into getting shots in the old days.
A big lens isn't the answer for everything but at times it shore can help
i have just posted a thread where the one image was taken at 88mm on the canon 24-105mm so you don't need long lens again there is a ethical point about the image it was taken on inner farn right next to the footpath where the terns are nesting i must add i sat down and People were passing the terns on the path this was causing them to fly up as the last person passed me i got up and left so as not to disturb them more than needed. Again it is a interesting point on the welfare of birds.
The money raised is partially used for the welfare of the birds but in reality they would probably fare better if people were not permitted on the island.Do we close all the hot spots to people, part of me says yes the other part says no we would only create more as people looked for other places.
The only answer i can come up with is for people to be educated towards their subjects and a simple set of rules as guidance posted on all sites internet,RSPB,Wildlife Trust sites etc.

The shot im talking about is on this thread
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=383736

Regards
Richard

 

[Jimwah]

cruisin' with my birding homies

I just needed to quote this

 

[den]

Richard , i think you hit the nail on the head 'education' ....Its the key to good behaviour and i little more altruism ,i was lucky as my parents were very cultured ,i may have hated the youth hostels ,national trust houses ,historical places of intrest ,miles and miles of woodland walks(when i younger) and not mention the camp sites but as i have got older following the countrytside code of practice just comes natural to me i know how and when to respect my fellow man and all wildlife i am lucky enough to come across,....if i dont get my seo shots this season thier is always next year , i don't need the trophy shot as my walks and days on the track will eventually reward me ,i think to many photographers see it as a competion , i know my friend who sometimes comes with me as some amazing shots of seo but he keeps them to himself ,never post's them etc ,unlike me i like to be part of the photography forums , ...and i don't get obsesed of having to get that trophy shot ,thier is one fellow member on here that i admire and follow ,all is bird shot's are amazing and i can see that in all is photographs' the time, the patience and love for is hobby,in my opinion all is shot's are trophy shot's and my opinion he comes across (as many on here) to be a genuine lover of his Birds .....i get more out of someone being verbally passionate about what they do rather than a image .

 

[SuperAP]

I just needed to quote this

I'm down with the kids, innit? To be honest, I have no "birding homies" and I wouldn't want any! I like to shoot on my own, I like to find on my own if possible. I'm sure it's just as rewarding having buddies to tell you where to find everything, but it isn't for me

Richard, you like to bring up the controversial subjects! Conservation tourism is another one you could argue all day about! FWIW, there's obvious advantages and the animals at these sites are usually pretty humanised. It's when things aren't properly regulated/controlled it can get messy.

 

[u8myufo]

Ah, schedule 1 again!

Find me in law where it defines disturbing a schedule 1 bird. You can't, because it doesn't. Vague, subjective and unenforceable without the clearest evidence. There needs to be species-specific laws that are reviewed by an independent body - at a minimum of every five years. It is utterly ridiculous to have the Kingfisher and Hen Harrier covered by the same vague legislation :bang:

From my early Kf days http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=220426&highlight=schedule+license This also reminds me of last year when a local B.O.C.M factory had contractors in and had just started to clear a strip of land during the nesting season. I know for a fact that there are Firecrests in the area, in no uncertain terms I had a few choice words with the guy`s on site and fair play to them they stopped. I called NE and to my surprise the guy at the other end asked. "Is it their own land or a conservation area? " I said it was there own land and he said. " In that case then there is not much we can do about it " Imo he might as well have been the office cleaner answering the phone with that reply. Yes Chris there does need to be species-specific laws, but in the case of the Kf I personaly cannot see how it would be managed :shrug: other than by somebody submitting hard evidance that they caught someone doing wrong. Having someone patrolling every spot in the UK where there was Kf activity would not be possible.

 

[lost]

Richard , i think you hit the nail on the head 'education' ....Its the key to good behaviour and i little more altruism ,i was lucky as my parents were very cultured ,i may have hated the youth hostels ,national trust houses ,historical places of intrest ,miles and miles of woodland walks(when i younger) and not mention the camp sites but as i have got older following the countrytside code of practice just comes natural to me i know how and when to respect my fellow man and all wildlife i am lucky enough to come across,....if i dont get my seo shots this season thier is always next year , i don't need the trophy shot as my walks and days on the track will eventually reward me ,i think to many photographers see it as a competion , i know my friend who sometimes comes with me as some amazing shots of seo but he keeps them to himself ,never post's them etc ,unlike me i like to be part of the photography forums , ...and i don't get obsesed of having to get that trophy shot ,thier is one fellow member on here that i admire and follow ,all is bird shot's are amazing and i can see that in all is photographs' the time, the patience and love for is hobby,in my opinion all is shot's are trophy shot's and my opinion he comes across (as many on here) to be a genuine lover of his Birds .....i get more out of someone being verbally passionate about what they do rather than a image .

Hi Den
I just love being around wildlife in general wether it be a field mouse or a white tailed fish eagle my Philosophy is simple enjoy it, just treat them with respect at the end of the day i never really think of trophy shots. My shots are scraps of moments in time and hold the key to happy memorys where i spent a few happy hours/ Minutes in seeing a beautiful animal.

I'm down with the kids, innit? To be honest, I have no "birding homies" and I wouldn't want any! I like to shoot on my own, I like to find on my own if possible. I'm sure it's just as rewarding having buddies to tell you where to find everything, but it isn't for me

Richard, you like to bring up the controversial subjects! Conservation tourism is another one you could argue all day about! FWIW, there's obvious advantages and the animals at these sites are usually pretty humanised. It's when things aren't properly regulated/controlled it can get messy.

Conterversy is my middle name I totally agree that animals become humanised you could argue that on the farnes and skomer by people visiting and being around the burrows that we are doing puffins a favour by detering the gulls that chase them for their catch there's always different ways we can look at anything.

Regards

Richard