The cockatoos are in town ..Tamron 55B Mirror lens

[mo]

It is that time of year for the Cockatoos to come to town and raid this tree.It was overcast as we are having a cold day about 20C and dropping .....and they expect snow in the high country...
The last few I managed to get very close and they still kept eating (yay!!)...oh for good light when these moments happen.

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

#9

#10

[Attila]

Such a lovely series!

[mo]

Thanks Attila,these guys booted out the Rosellas.I am hoping the Rosellas will come back for their turn for a photo.

[Attila]

[revers]

Very nice with the exception of #2 which is not focused well.

I was expecting to see circles in the OOF areas but not so.

[mo]

From what I can tell when you have strong light you get the stronger donuts.
#2 was taken early on when I first started taking the images, by the last image I was warmed up and a bit more stable . I decided to include it because these birds are fairly heavy and when the bird was walking up to the seeds he did not look very stable at all = Out on a limb.

[Bruce]

Good looking birds! They are wild... yes?

[mo]

Yes they are wild...they come every year at this time when this tree has its berries

[IAZA]

great series...thanks Mo

[cooltouch]

Very nice, Mo. More great shots from a very nice lens.

So, what's the size of this flock? How long do the cockatoos hang out? I assume until they've depleted the tree of its berries, so I guess I'm wondering how long that takes.

[hoanpham]

Very nice. Strange to see them in the wild.

[mo]

Michael
There was only about 5 in this tree and yes they keep coming back until the tree is stripped (I will take a photo of the carnage they leave under the tree)...and the Rosella's a smaller colorful parrot tries to get in and eat the berries in between their visits. This is roughly the 3rd day hanging around this particular tree.I have to find out what the trees name is.

The Cockatoos can flock in their 100s + and destroy a lot of vegetation when they get going! This is one reason I went MF because I found I hated the AF hunting while trying to focus on a bird.
I am not a expert it is just what I have seen and heard.
http://www.billabongsanctuary.com.au/aussie_animals/sulphur_crested_Cockatoo.html You may find this interesting.

Yes, you can say my little Tamron 55b mirror lens is a very nice lens,my copy certainly justifies its reputation.

[RTI]

Great, this is some really exotic stuff, at least for my eyes; Thanks for sharing

[scsambrook]

Really nice pictures - never mind the slightly misfocused one, there's no sign of camera shake . Did you use a tripod or was the Pentax'e image stabilization lending a helping hand?

[Ymmot]

Very nice shots, they show very well what can be done using a mirror lens, you seem to have avoided a lot of donut bokeh.

[Schnauzer]

Very interesting to see such beautiful birds in the wild. Nice work.

[Tervueren]

I think it's the eucalyptus tree

[GrahamNR17]

Splendid stuff

[mo]

[cooltouch]

You might also consider a monopod, Mo. As you can no doubt imagine, it is much more flexible in terms of use than a tripod, but it can deliver tripod-like results. I used a monopod often with my old Sigma 600 mirror and found that it did a good job of controlling shake. Back in those days I was shooting mostly Kodachrome 64 and Fuji 100, so shutter speeds were often at or below their lower limits for handholdability, thus it was better to have the monopod handy for my work.

As to what kind or brand of monopod, there are many to choose from. I have two: a lightweight Gitzo and a sturdier Bogen (now Manfrotto). With both I used a ball head and I found that the ball head was the monopod's most useful feature -- more so than weight or what brand the monopod was.

Having written all the above, however, the shots you got were quite sharp, so your setup is working well just as it is. The time may come though when you're working in failing light or low morning light, etc., such that the Pentax's IS routines are not able to counteract enough movement, in which case a monopod might just be the ticket.

[mo]

Thanks for the thoughts Michael,I have considered a monopod for that very reason...I just haven't stopped buying lens and concentrated on getting a decent monopod

I just took the Vivitar series 1 70-210 out to try and capture the Rosellas...now that is a heavy lens...give me the Tamron any day.

[luisalegria]

Very well done !

Great use of a mirror lens.