As alluded to in recent posts my photography had been under a bit of a cloud recently with other issues getting in the way. My post on It’s the Little Things that Make the Difference was the spark to get it back on track and as mentioned in More Little Things and a Bigger Thing I now have a bit more time to devote to what I would most like to do. I so enjoyed my Lakefront Sunrise visit that I have visited again more regularly to enjoy watching and photographing the birds.
Waking to find the weather not quite what the forecast had predicted I went in regardless and was rewarded with the rainbow at the head of this post. There were clouds of shags flying so plenty to see and photograph.
The Kawau tūī/Little black shags are nest-building so many are flying with material in their bills.
The lake is quite low so a pukeko was wading in the shallows feeding and I managed some images as the sun snuck in low.
The rainbow persisted for most of the time I was there and from one vantage point it was possible try and catch a bird passing across the colour.
Common mynahs, while not high on the list of most popular bird, are intelligent and attractive. This can make them a challenge to photograph as they are usually very wary. This one perched on a nearby rock and posed quite nicely for me.
I spent the last part of my visit watching the Pāpango/NZ scaup bobbing in a calm bay with the occasional birds flying in to join the raft.
Always fun to add to my Birds on White (in flight)
Rainbow photo with Apple iPhone 14Pro. Remainder with Nikon Z9 and Nikkor Z 180-600mm f5.6-6.3
Trish Bailey
13 Apr 2025Great photos Tony. Love the bird flying across the rainbow. I was down there a couple of days ago and noticed how many shags there were. Not many branches for rooting or resting on. One of the trees they often nest on looks as though it might have died, I cannot recall it being entirely leafless.
Have an awesome day
Trish
tony
13 Apr 2025Thanks Trish. Lots of activity down there at the moment.
Nicola
13 Apr 2025The photo of the scaup coming in to land is quite comical; it definitely put a smile on my face.
tony
13 Apr 2025Thanks Nicola. They always look a bit panicky.