The teleconverter arrived on Wednesday, and it soon became clear that the forest birds weren’t showing themselves that late in the afternoon—or were hunkered down in the darkest corners, spots that would have been pushing the limits even without the TC. I had also ordered a camouflage net (which turned out to be smaller than the description claimed) and a camo face mask. Surely there’s a way to get a bit closer to the animals without disturbing them. I ran a first test this morning. The headgear is good—lightweight and hides my pale mug. The net is unwieldy; it snags on absolutely everything, and I found myself constantly wrestling with it—a struggle the animals inevitably noticed. I need more practice with that. I brought the tripod along again, too, and the feeling from last time persisted: I’m better off without it—unless the animals are sitting right in front of me (which only a few did) or are busy doing something in one exact spot. A goshawk (photos to follow) landed right behind me at the “5 o’clock” position; I was lucky to already have the camera in my hands and the hood on, or else it surely would have flown off immediately. As it was, it just gave me a funny look and stayed put for a little while longer.

The kingfisher—the main reason for this whole rigmarole—naturally appeared at the far end of the area again: exactly where I’d waited for him last Friday, only for him to stubbornly choose the other side—the very spot where I was lying in wait today. We’ll come to an understanding eventually… probably once it gets cold, the leaves have fallen, and the water freezes over, leaving him only a few open patches where he can fish. The dragonflies were a nice way to pass the time, though I’d ​​better not tell you how many photos—or attempts—it took to get these shots onto the memory card… and is it even still macro photography when you’re shooting such small creatures at an 840mm focal length?

On my way to the other side of the area, I ran into Willi Weber (another local photographer), who was heading to the far end. It was a nice chat about photography… I hope you had better luck.

It’s great that this area attracts more than just the wildlife. 😉