Skomer Flier, Wales.

Canon 20D + 100-400mm. Hand held.

An unpaired Puffin cruises along the clifftop on Skomer Island, eyeing up the talent on view.

Nearby, courting birds are engaged in burrow inspections and carrying around objects, hoping to attract a mate.


Copyright: Kevin Smith

Puffin courtship. Skomer Island. Wales.

Puffin carrying courtship present.

Canon 20D + 100-400mm lens. Hand held.

Unpaired Puffins on Skomer can be seen parading around, carrying objects and vegetation in order to attract potential mates to inspect nearby nesting burrows.

Copyright: Kevin Smith

Small Copper. England.

Small Copper butterfly, Sheffield, England

Canon 10D + 75-150mm Canon FD lens. [adapter ring]

A small jewel of a butterfly rests on a grassland stem long enough to capture an
image using the hybrid combination of new EOS digital body and older FD manual lens.

The result is encouraging.

Copyright: Kevin Smith

Cheetah Profile

Cheetah, Masai Mara, Kenya.

This cat was encountered walking along a sand road within the Mara reserve.

We assumed it was hunting and looked for a possible vantage point it might use.

Luckily we guessed correctly, positioned ourselves in advance and the cat did the rest.

Film days: Olympus OM1 + Sun 38-90mm zoom. Slide scan to CD.

Copyright: Kevin Smith

Burnett Moths

Spotted Burnett Moths, July, England.

Canon 10D + 75-150mm FD lens + adapter ring.

Day flying Burnett moths are a colourful addition to the grassland scene
in mid-summer England.

Being somewhat lethargic, they proved an excellent subject for an experimental camera combination of digital camera body and older generation Canon FD manual lens. [with adapter]

Copyright: Kevin Smith

Brown Fishing Owl. March 2009. India

Brown Fishing Owl, Ramnagar, N. India, 2009

Canon 40D + 300 2.8 + x2 extender. 640ASA. Tripod

During the daytime, a Brown Fishing Owl waits within the centre of darkened tree.

The magic of digital imagery enables us to see details largely hidden.

At dusk, on large wings, it will fly low of the river surface, picking up the surface fish.

Copyright: Kevin Smith

Brown Headed Barbet, New Delhi, India. 2009

Nectar feeding Barbet on tree blooms.

Canon 40D + 300 2.8 + 1.4 extender. 400ASA

During late February 2009, a blooming tree outside my Delhi veranda attracted a host of Squirrels, Mynahs, Parrakeets and Barbets to feed on its nectar.

This Brown Headed Barbet was initially obscured through the branches on the far side of the tree but a 20 minute wait brought it into range and clear view.

This ideal pose in even light was worth the wait.

Copyright: Kevin Smith