This week we celebrate spring blossoms and the bounty they bring for nectar feeding birds. The grove of Taiwan Cherry at Centenial Park in Rotorua are in full bloom and tinkling with Tui.

As I wrote last year in my post “Spring” clean backgrounds are difficult to achieve at this venue. Last year I really lucked out with one bird on a clean perch but this year the branches are even more dense so nothing quite as nice.

Despite the photographic challenges it is just a great place to visit. The colour of the Cherry blossom, Daffodils bursting out, all to a symphony of Tui song. It is the real first taste of Spring despite the brisk frosts that the clear skies allow.

In addition to the above set of high key images with sky backgrounds, there are opportunities for some foliage backgrounds too.

Cherry blossom is short-lived so now is a good time to visit Centennial Park. The Japanese Cherry with their pale blooms will be the next opportunity for Tui and photographers.

My preference is for diffused light but there can be options for some sunlit images too. The difficulty then is to ensure that there are no shadows from twigs falling across the subject.

Photos with Nikon D850 and Nikon 500mm f5.6 PF lens