One of the techniques with photo-impressionism is to use camera movement during a slow shutter speed with static subjects as illustrated in my previous post. The yield from this is quite low so when you combine slow shutter speeds with camera movement and subject movement success is even less frequent. Bird photo-impressionism falls into this very low yield field but when things come together it can be fun. It’s about having an idea and trying to implement it within the constraints of what the birds will do.

The lakefront in Rotorua is a good place to explore as there are plenty of gulls, swans and ducks. The gulls often fly when being fed by visitors but the new signage discouraging feeding seemed to have put paid to my plan. Fortunately one of the tourist vessels disgorged a crowd of overseas visitors that took no heed of the signs and facilitated a flurry of activity.

Normally with birds in flight I try to achieve sharpness against an uncluttered background with just a hint of blur in the wingtips to convey some feeling of movement. These images convey more feeling of lightness and motion and while of no use in a documentary or illustrative sense have a validity of their own and were great fun to make.

All photos this week were with the Nikon D500 and Nikon 300mm F4 PF lens. Processed through Lightroom then Photoshop with Macphun Luminar.