The stunning Straw Necked Ibis and yet another outing with the Canon 200-400mm f4 lens

I consider myself lucky as I live within walking distance of the Brisbane River which winds through the suburb.Usually when I just have an hour or so at my disposal, I head to the river. 
There is a decent path that runs parallel to the bank. If one leaves the track and wanders down to bank through the vegetation there is a good chance to see some water birds though you have to be on the look out for snakes. It is warm now and the snakes are out and about and there are some venomous ones. 

Usually I try to keep  my weekend mornings reserved for outdoor photography. Summer is just round the corner and the days are mostly fine with clear blue skies and sometimes small patches of wispy white clouds.These days the sun rises around 4.45am and there is enough light at 5.00 am.  Last weekend some urgent work took up the early part of the morning so I only arrived by the river around 8.30am. The sky was cloudless and blue but the  sun was high up in the sky [we have no daylight savings here] and the light was not ideal.

I headed for my favourite spot - a bit of a clearing grass and rocks. Slowly I made my way through the vegetation keeping a sharp look out for snakes and made myself comfortable under a small tree. With my back against the tree trunk and knee high grass in front of me, I knew I would not be noticeable if I kept my movements to a minimum. As usual the camera & Canon 200- 400 f4 was on a monopod at its minimum height. As always, I checked the settings on the camera and the lens, (there are quite a few settings on the Canon 200-400 f4 lens itself like the stabiliser mode, shooting distance etc. It was a matter of waiting for something to turn up. In the past I had shot, Royal Spoonbills, egrets, darters and cormorants on the rocks.

I didn’t have to wait too long, a big black and white bird glided in and landed on the bank. 


It was a straw necked Ibis (Threskiornis spinicollis). These birds are similar in size to the more common Sacred or White Ibis with a naked featherless head, a long curved bill and black wings and back. The legs are red turning dark gray towards the feet. They get their name from the yellow straw like feathers on the neck.The thing I like most are the iridescent feathers on the bird’s back, wings and collar. These really shine and glow when the sunlight strikes them and if the angle is right it is a joy to behold.  

The Ibis stood still for a while looking around [probably making sure it did not have company] and then started to preen itself  moving constantly. At certain angles the feathers would shine metallic green, purple, and even little yellow, as can be seen in the photos below.

I started shooting in silent mode. Whenever I found the colours catching my eye I would press the shutter. I could clearly see all the details  through the lens. I was making sure that I got the eyes open. Lots of birds are prone to shut or half close their eyes while preening. I am not a fan of transplanting eyes in Photoshop. I love minimum processing of the raw file.

All was going well and I was thoroughly enjoying the dance of colours through the lens. Alas good things do not last forever. As I mentioned earlier the river winds through the suburb and the houses are close by. I heard some kids coming along the walking track talking loudly. They were having having a friendly match of who could hurl a rock the furthest and into the water. They were just having fun. A few rocks landed in the shrubs close to the Ibis [ the river/water was too far from the track for the little kids rocks to reach.

That was enough for the Ibis and it decided to leave and so did I.

I had a fruitful morning & could not wait to get home and see the results on the screen.

I will be travelling interstate and surely take the lens along with me. More when I get back.