Behold the cassowary, declared by the Guinness Book of World Records to be “the most dangerous bird in the world.” The distinction is mainly due to its huge claws that it uses to defend itself, usually aiming for the torso of would be intruders, human or otherwise. Native to northeastern Australia and Papua New Guinea, it is the third largest bird in the world behind the ostrich and the emu. Like those birds, it is flightless, and it can grow to over 6 feet tall and weigh more than 150 pounds. Lucky for me I had a 600mm lens on my camera and could photograph from a safe distance. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm manual focus lens, ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/5th of a second.
Here’s another one that goes back quite some time. I went to Australia in December of 2006. It was my first trip with a digital camera and I was blown away by the convenience of being able to change ISO whenever I wanted without having to back a roll of film carefully out of the camera. Or tell a developer I wanted to “push process” if I shot at a different speed value than that of the film. Everything got so much easier. Long lens auto focus and vibration reduction would revolutionize things for me yet again a few years later. And now, with mirrorless systems and their subject detection eye tracking, those old days seem pretty archaic. Who knows what’s next. As for the subject of the photo, this is a red kangaroo, captured in Flinders Ranges National Park in Southern Australia on a beautiful late afternoon. A low angle combined with a 600mm lens was a great combination for subject isolation. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm f/5.6 manual focus lens, ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/40th of a second.
The golden brushtail possum is a color variant of the common brushtail possum. In other words, it’s just a common brushtail possum with a fancier name. And a cooler-looking coat. This was a captive individual photographed at a rehabilitation center in Tasmania. Like so many other of the mammals I photographed in Australia, brushtail possums are nocturnal marsupials. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 20mm) ISO 1600, f/2.8 at 1/2000th of a second.
Tasmanian devils are the world’s largest carnivorous marsupial. They once thrived throughout Australia, but are now confined to the island state of Tasmania. Their numbers have been plummeting due to the lethal facial tumor disease. There seems to be no stopping the disease, which is spread through social interaction when they nip and bite each other. Saving this iconic symbol of Tasmania might mean they have to first go extinct in the wild, before healthy populations, raised in quarantined areas, can be released to re-populate. Many captive breeding centers have sprung up throughout Tasmania and the southern Australia mainland. This devil was photographed at one of these centers adjacent to Cradle Mountain National Park. I also saw and photographed a few devils in the wild, where they are strictly nocturnal. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 2000, f/4 at 1/160th of a second.
The trick to photographing a blotched blue-tongued lizard is getting it with the tongue out. This is a rather large lizard found in south eastern Australia. I met this one at the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary in Tasmania. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 105mm macro lens, ISO 800, f/4.5 at 1/320th of a second.
Monotremes are egg-laying mammals. There are only 5 monotremes in the world — the platypus and four species of echidna. This is the short-beaked echidna. I spotted him/her on the side of the road, while driving to Cradle Mountain National Park in Tasmania, Australia. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 270mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/1600th of a second.
I do love environmental wildlife shots like my last few posts, but simple headshots help to tell the story too. In this case, a Bennett’s Wallaby photographed on Bruny Island in Tasmania. A small percentage of the Bennett’s Wallabies on Bruny exhibit a genetic variance and are completely white, but the vast majority look like this handsome guy who was posing in the ferns just outside the lodge I was staying at. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 350mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/160th of a second.
The sun was slowly setting when I came across this troop of kangaroos (also known as a mob or a court) in northern Tasmania. I liked in this shot that I was able to capture the main room in profile, two looking forward, one hopping and even a joey in a pouch — a lot to take in without any detail in any of the faces. These are eastern grey kangaroos, known locally as foresters. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 400, f/16 at 1/2000th of a second.
Wombats seem to do one thing — eat grass. Lawns are always well manicured in areas where they live, like this field in Cradle Mountain National Park in Tasmania, Australia. They’re often so consumed with the task at hand they don’t notice a close approach with a wide-angle lens. This guy came right up to my camera and didn’t miss a beat. Nikon D800 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 800, f/5 at 1/400th of a second.
This will be my last post until I return from Peru first week of November. When I went to Tasmania back in 2015 I was hoping to see a few Tasmanian devils in the wild. I saw quite a few in rehab centers, before finally capturing this guy on Maria Island. Here’s hoping I see several of my target species in the Amazon next week. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/250th of a second.
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Behold the cassowary, declared by the Guinness Book of World Records to be “the most dangerous bird in the world.” The distinction is mainly due to its huge claws that it uses to defend itself, usually aiming for the torso of would be intruders, human or otherwise. Native to northeastern Australia and Papua New Guinea, it is the third largest bird in the world behind the ostrich and the emu. Like those birds, it is flightless, and it can grow to over 6 feet tall and weigh more than 150 pounds. Lucky for me I had a 600mm lens on my camera and could photograph from a safe distance. Nikon D200 with Nikkor 600mm manual focus lens, ISO 200, f/5.6 at 1/5th of a second.
