Peter Jones, "Hampshire Diary"
• Saturday, October 10, 2009 - Time to ditch the scope?
Photos from my Unst trip, and a visit to the Portland Bird Obs website got me thinking!
I noticed during the trip that the quality of pics from my EOS500d, viewed on the camera LCD in the field, were bringing out detail that I had no hope of capturing with my naked eye or binocs. In fact, the zoomed in images were at least the equal of my scope with 32x magnification.
I also saw the following on the Portland birds obs website ( http://www.portlandbirdobs.org.uk/ ):
"Finally, we are instigating a small change in the way we report on rarities and other records of local interest/importance. In future the PBO website and annual report will no longer include records of this nature that lack the support of video, photo or sound recording evidence".
A small change of gargantuan proportions!
Given the choice, it seems the budding bird finder should pack a camera and long lens before the scope, and even the notebook! Something that has been on the cards for some time, especially if you go out solo.
The Birders on Shetland were in this camp, all toting long lenses, very few with scopes.
It would certainly change the priorities if you find something out of the ordinary.. What do you do? phone the news out or leg it 50 yards to grab the nearest birder? or get a photo first, then phone the news out? Bearing in mind the grief you'd get if a bird flew off while you had a camera pointing in its direction! the photo may be better obtained before the crowds arrive ;) What if it takes a couple of hours to get a photo. Now you are suppressing news too!
I have recently made a big effort to capture finds on film, especially single observer ones, but it ain't always that simple. Just last week, my best finds of Red Throated Pipit, 2 Yellow Browed Warblers and a Rosefinch were pretty much impossible to record in this way.
And are we saying that if 6 experienced birders are eating breakfast at the Obs when a Veery hops onto the Portland Observatory garden wall then drops down never to be seen again, then it won't feature in their annual report?!
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