I recently heard of an obliging male Capercaillie. They are a schedule 1 species, which means that you would need a licence to photograph them in the breeding season, which is fast approaching. Consequently I was anxious to make the long journey to the highlands of Scotland as soon as possible, which I did in the middle of last week with my friend Gerhard. A good walk deep into the forest and the bird was found.
He was displaying and strutting his stuff over an area so we sat and waited, he would come close, have a look at us and then roam off again. This meant some changing of lenses which gave a good variety of shots. He flew up into the trees to feed on the pine needles, flying almost vertically, which is impressive for such a large bird. Thirteen hours driving for a couple of hours photography seems a bit crazy, but it was well worth it. Just seeing this magnificent bird was enough and what a day to remember!
There are lots more images on my website - stevenround-birdphotography.com
He was displaying and strutting his stuff over an area so we sat and waited, he would come close, have a look at us and then roam off again. This meant some changing of lenses which gave a good variety of shots. He flew up into the trees to feed on the pine needles, flying almost vertically, which is impressive for such a large bird. Thirteen hours driving for a couple of hours photography seems a bit crazy, but it was well worth it. Just seeing this magnificent bird was enough and what a day to remember!
There are lots more images on my website - stevenround-birdphotography.com