Taking Bird Photos in a Wildlife Park

Today’s ‘selfies’ are a bit different. The family took a midweek trip to Staglands Wildlife Park and, even though it is chilly wintery weather here in New Zealand, it was still a fun trip and I captured enough animal selfies to keep me busy for weeks.

Unlike the experts with large lenses I prefer to travel light with one lens (or two lenses, at most) especially I know I am going somewhere the birds and animals will not be too far away. You can see my earlier visit with different animals here.

Today I am with my partner and he needs to enjoy himself as well as watch me waving my camera around. So, it’s a question of balancing fun and photography. I think I managed OK.

Staglands Wildlife Reserve (1972) is nestled in Akatarawa Valley, a perfect day trip destination less than an hours’ drive from Wellington City. Staglands can be accessed from Kapiti or the Hutt Valley main state highways, with the Hutt Valley being the easier route. Read a little of its history here.

Staglands Visit

Bird Photo Tips

If you are far away you will need the best telephoto/zoom lens you have. Mine is a modest 55-250mm Canon zoom (Affiliate Link) which is perfect for pet photos too.

• If not, you can either crop a larger photo from further away or focus more on those birds you can get close to.
• If you are confident with Shutter Priority use a fast shutter speed to get a sharper shot. I am still figuring it out.
• If you use Aperture Priority, like me, look at your light. If its gloomy or overcast, increase your ISO to 400 and take a sample shot.

If your camera has an animal eye option find it and use it, or you can tap your smartphone screen and focus in on the eye! You my take lots of blurry shots but you are more likely to get a sharp image and remember these are digital and can be deleted so you only keep the ones you feel are OK.

Rusty the Parakeet

I found myself challenged by a small and colourful parakeet in one of the enclosed aviaries. He decided he was going to try and eat all the bird seed we had purchased at the ticket kiosk. His name, I am told, is Rusty, and he sat still long enough for some fun and lively portraits.

You can see how petite he is from the snapshot here…

The aviary was a contained space, enough for the birds, but not for my zoom lens. I switched to my smartphone when the little bird decided to climb up partner Paul’s shoulder. It is a thrill to be close to animals who are wild or who are helping maintain wild populations so you need to keep a steady hand.

• This close I have to admit that some of the smartphone pictures were much better than my Nikon Z50. Yes, really! Remember that a ‘phone shot can be really successful so experiment with your phone’s tools and see for yourself.

I hope you can see how vivid the colours are in these photos. In a chilly and dull morning in New Zealand Rusty was a bright sparkle of colourful joy, movement and texture. Remember my short post on textures? This is the real thing, defined feathers, and a mostly sharp eye.

Until he moved!

This one will not be submitted to the Staglands Photo Competition. This is not a pin sharp shot but I still like it. It has a lively quality I am pleased with and it makes me smile.

This last shot is landscape orientation because it will not work as an upright portrait shot. I did crop in close so you can see Rusty dipping his head for a head scritch! Yes, he loves a scritch (just like our cats at home, or ruffling a dog’s head).

I definitely need more practice and to take my nifty-fifty lens for closer shots but for a first trip outside after many miserable and wet weeks, it was nice to simply enjoy taking photos and enjoying a break from home.

In Memoriam

Totally stunned by the news we have lost not only Katie Isabella but discovered that sweet Seal from Brian’s Home has left our cat community.

Seal was beautiful, and we were blessed by her company.

On the 8th of August we lost a fine friend Katie Isabella.

I join the rest of the Cat Blogosphere in remembering a lovely and lively tuxedo cat who was known to so many of us. She always made me smile when I read her posts. Katie Isabella was a really special girl and this is a loss to our blogging community. Farewell beautiful friend.

Marjorie Dawson

Cat Photographer, Instructor and Writer

Marjorie is an award-winning cat photographer, tutor, and published author based in New Zealand. A Professional Member of the Cat Writers’ Association, she helps cat lovers strengthen the bond with their pets by improving their photography and editing skills through short how-to videos and posts. Marjorie believes anyone can take amazing photos and show off their cats to purrfection!

Professional Member of the Cat Writers Association,
Winner of the Kuykendall Image Award
Published at the Guardian newspaper