How My Canon Shot A Dove

To snap this photo I stood on a higher ground at The Farm. You
can see the top of a durian tree. This is when the afternoon sun
shines the forest and hills on the eastern side of The Farm.

I continue to explore possibilities with my Canon 550D.

Here I want to share with you some photos of birds that I have taken on The Farm recently. My narration will be completely in layman's terms. No technical or professional photography jargon will be used, only because I don't know any of them (well actually I know aperture and shutter speed, but that's about all, and they are hardly technical).

I really believe in experience being the best teacher. I find that as I continue to use my camera I learn more and more on how to take better photos. I'm talking here about taking photos with my basic camera, not after spending a fortune to buy attachments which would make your camera look like one of those used by the paparazis. After all I am a farmer, not a professional photographer.

Using a basic camera will force you to be more creative too. For example I have to stalk and move stealthily around so that the birds will not know of my presence and will stay long enough for me to take the shots.

I'm also thinking of getting a pair of army uniform. If I wear them and cover myself all over with leaves the birds might think I am a durian tree.

Oh dear..this always happens to me: all I wanted to do was show a couple of pictures of doves I shot. But I rambled on and on first. I hope I am not turning readers away by doing this. Now you know why I cannot be a micro-fiction writer like Akelamalu. Or write a drabble of exactly 100 words like Rayna M. Iyer does.

Without further ado here are the photos...

This was the easy one

The first shot from behind a tree 30 feet away

Here's the more challenging and interesting one: I had followed this one from tree to tree using the stalking method described above, when she finally landed on this branch.

I actually hid behind another tree 30 feet away and - this is the clever part - through the branches and twigs and leaves of this tree I was able to create a telescopic path and took a shot up the other tree. How cool is that?

2nd Shot

Next, I moved closer to about twenty feet away to get a closer shot, and hoping of course she won't fly away.

She's twenty feet up the tree. Can you help me to calculate the straight line distance between me and the bird? (assuming the path from where I was crouching to the tree is straight and level, and the tree trunk is completely straight and rises perpendicular to the ground - which they were more or less).

Please provide answers with your comments. Thanks.

Hint: you either do it the hard way by using the longest tape measure you have, go out to your front yard, ask your hubby or boyfriend to climb a tree or pole 20 feet high, and measure the distance between him and you, who should be crouching 20 feet away;

Or you can consult Mr Pythagoras for help (recall your fifth grade or ninth grade - depending where you are - algebra).

3rd shot

4th shot

The last shot as she flew away