Wader roost

The forecast didn’t look promising but I decided to go anyway knowing just how quickly it can change here on the north Kent coast.  A few weeks ago I headed off to a wader roost I know of and since there is public access there was no chance of me erecting a hide.  I therefore kept myself patially hidden some distance away and shot a few general scenes.  Some with the 300mm and others with either the 1.4x or 2x attached.  The camera was mounted onto a tripod and due to the sometimes slow shutter speeds I used to convey movement I would often employ the mirror lock-up.  

It was very windy so as a result the clouds kept moving until eventually the sun appeared and lit the scene with dark, brooding clouds in the distance.  The tide was still rising and the roost consisting of knot and dunlin couldn’t settle thereby giving me several chances of getting lift-off and landing shots.  The sun would appear and disappear over the next hour or so and as the day dew to a close the weather improved further until as if on cue the tide receded exposing the huge ‘bird-table’ that is the mud-flats as the sun was setting.  

Tags: autumn, behaviour, birds, coast, dunlin, knot, nature photography, north kent marshes, roost, waders