The Swan’s Wings You really only appreciate how large and imposing a swan is when they rear up out of the water and spread their magnificent wings. While at The Lough on Sunday there were a number of fights between swans. Guess it’s that time of the year again, eh? The swans were fairly tame…

That bread is mine! A heron swoops in on a bunch of greedy gulls at The Lough yesterday! For more pictures, check out Katie’s set and Will’s photos! In retrospect, we were very lucky with the weather for the photowalk. Just after I got home the downpour started and 60mph winds ravaged the south of…

The crow stops here A crow atop a STOP sign on The Grand Parade, Cork. Shot using a fairly high ISO but bicubic resizing smudges the noise away!

I would love to know who made an email attachment of my thieving duck and thank them. The Aflac Duck seems to be a well known part of American insurance marketing and people got a kick out of these ducks stealing money from a lady on the street! Apparently my thieving duck has become “the…

Shadows of prison and freedom A crow flies off into the freedom of the air with a crumb of bread he found on the pavement. The railings of nearby houses are like those of a prison keeping humans in and trapped and closed off. Who is free?

Cupid’s Arrow and the birds Cupid’s Arrow in San Francisco provides an interesting silhouette against the evening sky. If you’ve payed close attention to my photos in the past you might think this is a duplicate of another shot but it’s from a slightly different angle and wider, and I feel stronger because of the…

The lonely swan A solitary swan swims on the calm waters of The Lough as the sun disappears at the end of the day. Believe it or not, this is a 10 second exposure that turned out much better than I could have hoped! I balanced my camera on the edge of the Lough, set…

The gull and the flag Two teenagers watch a seagull on the way back from Alcatraz Island in San Francisco. The US flag flutters in the same breeze that keeps the gull aloft, who no doubt is hoping for food from the boat full of tourists. I’m going to be shooting at a fund raising…

The swans they are a coming Swans rush to the bank of the Lough looking for bread from the crazy guy hanging over the water with a large black object… This shows off one of my favourite night-time techniques. Long exposure with a flash. The long exposure captures the background while the flash illuminates the…

The gulls of Alcatraz Yet another curious seagull on the island of Alcatraz in San Francisco. I think he has a stern, angry look on his face, probably because I disturbed him by waving a camera in his face!

A resident of Alcatraz Alcatraz Island is now inhabited by the birds and I presume security staff but I think the birds have a better life with all the tourists around hefting lunches and sandwiches from the mainland. Imagine the scene, me and a few of the others scrambling to get a shot of this…

Bird flying by A gull flies off after an inconsiderate photographer runs after it to shoot it. Beats having the kids do the running eh? They might fall! This was taken in San Francisco, and that’s The Golden Gate Bridge in the background. I went through my shots from my August trip a few days…