Photographing Kingfishers

[vinnychameleon]

Does anyone have any tips on how to photograph thse little guys as I have seen the awesome images of them on the Gallery and know alot of you are awesome photographers. I know an area where they live I was just wondrin if anyone knew any tips on how to spot them and how to get a decent photogarph of them.
cheers
VC.

[Nicola Main]

Hi VC! The key to photographing Kingfishers is to watch where they land and keep it mind, it could be a regularly used perch and so that should give you enough time to focus on the object. What camera were you planning on using? One with a good zoom would be useful and remember patience is a virtue! Nicola.

[vinnychameleon]

Was plannin on using a Panasonic DMC FZ7

[markday]

hi if you find some shallowish water that holds fry wedge a branch or stick in the river bed to act as a perch the king will find it and use it sometimes within 30 mins that way you can pick your spot and even the background for your picture hope this helps your my first post

[Kev Lewis]

Originally Posted by markday

hi if you find some shallowish water that holds fry wedge a branch or stick in the river bed to act as a perch the king will find it and use it sometimes within 30 mins that way you can pick your spot and even the background for your picture hope this helps your my first post

To improve your chances throw in some ground bait around the stick to attract the fish. If the fish come so will the Kingfisher Be aware that the kingfisher has exceptional eyesight and you should seriously consider getting a camo net or similar to hide under as it will rarely perch if it can see you.

Note: the kingfisher is protected by law and photography at or near a nest is is only allowed with a schedule 1 license.

[JeffH]

Having one visit our garden on a regular basis is obviously a great advantage (and privilege)

However, I well remember an early morning visit to the RSPB's Fowlmere reserve here in Cambridgeshire some 25 years ago when, close to one of lake edges, I came across a temporary hide (with no one in it at the time) overlooking a small area where the reeds had been cleared, a perch branch had been stuck into the water and an area of the shallow water beneath the perch had been cordoned off with very fine wire mesh pushed into the lakebed. Within that area there were a number of minnows which I presumed had been put there to lure a Kingfisher.

Sure enough, a couple of months later the cover of Birds magazine featured a cracking photo of a Kingfisher taken at Fowlmere by an RSPB staff photographer and I immediately recognised that same perch branch!

Jeff

[ron1863]

Hello, this is a good site for the info you want:

Wildlife Watching Supplies - Photo Tips - How to photograph the Kingfisher

[jcurtis]

Hi,
Very interesting thread! I had heard of someone who had baited fish to attract Kingfishers too, but exactly what bait and where to get I dont know.

Can anyone help?

Also I know there is a list of subjects that are protected (Kingfishers at the nest being one). I dont want to get into any trouble do if someone could point me in the right direction I would be grateful.

Jase

[squishy]

you'll have to get quite close with only a bridge superzoom, but use those tips and i wish you luck!

[FUDGEY]

Ive only been photographing them for several months, but I hope I can be of some help through what I've learned from others and also some observations I have learnt myself in my short time. Firstly some good advice I have recieved is you have to be well hidden, be it a bag hide, cammo net or some form of hide. Important tip is once the bird is where you want it no sudden movement as it will spook the bird with out doubt. Through trial and error I have found they prefer a perch in open water and height is important. I've noticed that if a high perch is used (6 to 8ft) they prefer not to expend energy and once they dive they don't usually fly back up to it. A perch that's 3 to 4ft above the water is much prefered IMO. I also place a couple of perches 20 yards up and down stream from the target perch, but I place these in areas that are not good hunting areas eg fast running or deep water. These can act as a stopper if a bird is passing through just in case it misses your perch. This has worked several times for me. A birds shoots by my perch and lands on the outside one then has a look around & back tracks to my perch. I'm 100% sure these stoppers as I call them have gave me extra oppurtunities. I also like to place my perches in about 6 inches of water and make sure it is in an area that contains small fish. One last thing make sure you take into account what position the sun will be in relation to where your hide/perch will be when you attempt to photograph this fabulous bird. Do things right and you should be able to get a great oppurtunity with in a few hours. Good luck, it's the best buzz ever when your patience pays off.

[FUDGEY]

Jcurtis, any fishing tackle shop will sell you ground bait for about £2 a bag or you could blend some stale bread ( take crust off first) it's pretty simple. Mixing it can be quite tricky to get the right consistency, but it won't matter too much if your putting it in close to you. Just lightly add water to it in a tub of some description and mix thoroughly. Keep it moving and get the air through it. If you don't add enough water it will be to light and just wash away, if your unsure better to add too much.
Re my post last night, please note this post were on my experiences and may not be the case in other areas. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has noticed that if using a high perch that if they catch a fish they would rather land on a perch lower down rather than flying back up high? It's definatly the case with the ones I watch, just curious to hear if this is normal behaviour.

[Deer Hunter]

Fully agree with Fudgey regarding the perches. I've filmed countless kingfishers over the past 40 years and yes they do return to a lower perch after catching a fish if one is near-by.

A tip that may be helpful and one that I've used on numerous occasion's for locating a perch. Make a few concrete blocks with a 50mm hole in the centre. These can be located in the water and cut perches fixed into the hole depending on height and depth of water. The advantage of this is you can change your perch with ease thus avoiding all pictures showing the same perch format, plus move them a foot or so and you can create a different background.

[FUDGEY]

Great tips deerhunter

[BillyPilgrim]

Originally Posted by FUDGEY

I've noticed that if a high perch is used (6 to 8ft) they prefer not to expend energy and once they dive they don't usually fly back up to it. A perch that's 3 to 4ft above the water is much prefered IMO.

Mine is probably about 5-6ft high and most of the time (but not always) they do choose a lower perch after catching a fish. I'd not even thought about why they do this but it seems obvious now that you mention it - cheers!

The reason why I made it so high was so that I could get a nicer background, ie. the trees at the far side of the lake instead of the water which is more often than not reflecting a light grey sky which can mean either a 'blown' background or an under-exposed bird.

It would be nice to get down lower and reduce the height of the perch but as I'm sat in a hide this isn't possible.

These two images show the difference. The first bird is on my higher perch and the second is a couple of feet below on the branch of a fallen tree.

I have had shots of a Kingfisher with a fish on the lower perch but because of the brighter background the fish is usually blown so I tend to delete them.

Kingfisher - Alcedo Atthis - Wildlife Photography

Kingfisher - Alcedo Atthis - Wildlife Photography