SEARCHING IMPRESSIONS OF LIFE: When I Met the King

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

When I Met the King

I had planned to post some images of wonderful autumn colors – even though, because of rain and bad weather, I haven't had the opportunity to shoot too much – but the visit to the wetland area of Racconigi and the encounter I had there last Saturday made me change plans.

The nice sunny day convinced me to try and go to the natural preserve of Racconigi, the center created in 1985 to reintroduce the white stork, which had stopped nesting in Italy since the eighteenth century. The success of the people who worked at this project has made this area a sanctuary for a lot of species of birds.

The two and a half hours it took to drive there were worth it, since I have been able to take my first pictures of the common kingfisher (Alcedo atthis). The sun was setting and the light was great. The little and fast bird posed for us a couple of times, with different light conditions and I tried to take the best out of it. The kingfisher was waiting for fish to pass by, resting on a branch quite far from us, but we knew there was a good possibility it would get closer, on a couple of single branches coming out of the water, just in front of where we were hiding (apparently that bird fishing there does it often). And in fact, that happened twice; the second time it actually came to swallow the fish just caught.

I tried to keep a fast shutter speed and so I pushed a little the ISO. I knew I might get some grain, but that is always preferable to a blurry photo. I got just enough to get a decent output, considering I was not well balanced and shooting hand-held. But to be the first shots at this wonderful bird, I am very happy with the results!