Golden Oriole Archives - Craig Rogers Photography

I looked for my lost mojo….and found it.

10th July 202111th July 2021Craig Rogers

The current state of the world with Covid-19 is still causing so much hardship and pain and has affected many people differently. For me, I can’t complain as my commercial photography (FotoSul) has thrived due to people taking the opportunity of the lack of tourists to update their property portfolios. This however has had a knock-on effect with my passion (but still a job), my nature photography.

For those that have followed me for a while will know that I plan, watch, plan, shoot and probably shoot again with all the projects that I set myself. If I’m honest, the hardship of Covid-19, mainly not being able to see family left me with a real “just can’t be bothered” approach to my nature photography. Not good…..

So I got in touch with bird guru and friend Frank McClintock who owns and runs the fantastic “Paradise in Portugal”. Officially known as Quinta Do Barranco Da Estrada it has amazing lodging on the banks of the Barragem de Santa Clara. If you are looking for that something special to get away in nature, not a lot comes close to this special location which has been carefully ecologically crafted to create a real nature-lovers must visit. As I mentioned, Frank is a guru when it comes to bird watching and offers amazing guiding trips. Take a look at the website at https://www.paradise-in-portugal.com.

I just wanted to get out in nature and find my mojo, Frank suggested not only a session in the Golden Oriole hide but also his riverside hide close to the nearby village of Santa Clara-a-Velha which he is more than happy for people to use, but if you do, take a visit to the lodge, you won’t be disappointed.

The morning worked! Now, I have the enthusiasm to get planning to get close up and personal with the fantastic wildlife we have here. There are some projects that I will be doing over the next couple of months to start attracting wildlife to the quinta, mainly a wildlife pond with a sunken hide which I did actually start quite a while back.

So, here are some of the snaps I got today.

Firstly some of the many Golden Orioles. First up, a shot of a male in flight with his breakfast and an onlooking juvenile who clearly wants to be fed.

Juvenile Golden Orioles At Breakfast

9th July 20209th July 2020Craig Rogers

I was enjoying a peaceful breakfast outside now that the fires have gone and a nearby Eucalyptus Tree had a pair of juvenile Golden Orioles calling for their parents. These will be from this year’s brood.

They were a bit far away, but managed to grab the camera and get these two shots.

So Lucky To Have 3 Of My Favourite Bird Species Nearby (Plus A Rare Flyby!)

1st May 20201st May 2020Craig Rogers

This morning, I was sat on the terrace drinking a Coffee and a pair (male and female) of Golden Orioles came into plain view in a Eucalyptus tree about 50 meters away. I wasn’t quick enough to grab the camera and get the female, but I got the male. This isn’t the same location as the nearby “Oriole Terrace” this is so much closer. They actually woke me at 6am with their stunning song, I suspect they are going to nest in this tree which is fantastic news. They also have the choice of many Fig trees nearby so is the perfect location, their Portuguese name is actually Papa-figo as Figs are their food of choice. All of the photos below are shot on my D850 and then transferred with SnapBridge to my smartphone and edited in Lightroom.

Here is a quick shot of the male.

First Session Of The Year On “Oriole Terrace”

18th April 202018th April 2020Craig Rogers

Right next to our land there is a steep bank with Eucalyptus Trees that a number of pairs of Golden Orioles nest in. There is a natural terrace near the top that I can sit and look over the trees, I call this “Oriole Terrace”.

Now that I have confirmation that the Golden Orioles are returning I decided to have a morning session. You would think that this over-looking vantage point would make it easy to photograph them, however, Golden Orioles are renowned for their shyness and even though the male is bright yellow (the female not so bright) they are easily camouflaged amongst the branches.

This morning was more of a scouting trip but I did have the camera and I was luckily enough to grab a few shots of a male whilst he was, almost, out in the open. The light still wasn’t great and I was also using a 1.4x Teleconverter on my 500mm f/4 lens so the photos are not as sharp as I’d hope, but a great start to what has really been a difficult bird for me to capture. Hopefully, my luck with these amazing birds will change. Not only are they beautiful birds, their song is magical, almost flute-like.

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