The Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxena subs. carteri and called Kanamit by the Nyoongar of Western Australia) is a small bird approximately 14cm long and weighing up to 20g. They are an attractive looking bird with a glossy blue-black body and crown, dark brown wings, and a rusty red face, neck and upper breast. They have a forked dark grey tail which forms two streamers when flying. They are very fast and acrobatic in flight swooping on their insect prey and they often drink water while flying over bodies of water.
An adult Kanamit or Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxxena) taking a breather from catching insects and feeding chicks. York, Western Australia.
When Europeans first colonised Western Australia Welcome Swallows were confined to coastal areas. As land clearing progressed they spread further inland and northwards. They differ from their Eastern State cousins in that they are not migratory. They have readily adapted to human habitation and can be easily found in urban areas. To thrive they require substantial insect populations and large flocks can be commonly found near water. They are often seen perching on fences and overhead power lines. They nest in a cup shaped structure made by both parents from mud and grass and is lined with feathers and fur. This typically takes between 8 and 23 days to make. The nests are often attached to walls, rafters, cranes, bridges, rock faces, and dead trees.The monogamous pairs will re-use their old nest. A warming climate has meant that Swallows in Western Australia are having 2-3 broods per year and lay a clutch of up to 5 eggs. The female incubates the eggs for around 3 weeks and when they hatch they are fed by both parents. The young fledge after a further 3 weeks and become independent after 35 days.
An adult Kanamit or Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxxena) perched on the nest. York, Western Australia.
Juvenile Kanamit or Welcome Swallows (Hirundo neoxxena) impatiently waiting to be fed by their approaching parent. York, Western Australia.
“Where’s my dinner!!!” Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxxena) demanding to be fed by it’s parent. York, Western Australia.
A juvenile Kanamit or Welcome Swallow (Hirundo neoxxena) demanding to be fed by it’s parent.
For me now the orchid season here in the Wheatbelt of Western Australia is effectively over until next May. This year instead of going here there and everywhere I decided to concentrate on what was just around York, with the exception of a trip to Augusta. Despite that limitation I still managed to photograph over 90 different species and the video below is made up of just a small selection of those photos.
Time lapsing at Lake Leschenaultia in Western Australia.
The last few weeks I’ve been spending a day at Lake Leschenaultia. I’ve photographed there often but this time I thought I’d try making a video about some of the wildlife there. In the process I’ve discovered three things:
The animals don’t play ball. Quite a few times I went and they didn’t show up.
It’s harder than it looks. We’re accustomed to seeing the David Attenborough docos on the TV and they spoil us because trying to get anything halfway decent takes an enormous amount of time, dedication and skill.
All the cameramen and directors of photography I know of all complain of having wrecked backs. Having carted the equipment round for a few weeks I now know why – it’s bloody heavy!
Having said that it has been great fun and while I’m not particularly happy with the resulting video I enjoyed the whole experience immensely.
Now for a shameless plug. Autumn, Winter and Spring are the best times to go walking in Western Australia and the walk around Lake Leschenaultia is one of forty two that are in my book Perths Best Bush, Coast and City Walks which can be bought through the link given. Further more if you use the code PAULA15 you get a discount of 15%.
Obviously as I own Canon EF mount lenses this is about the EF version. Sigma state that their adapter is for use with their Global Vision lenses which comprises of three lens lines:
Art
Contemporary
Sport
As of the time of writing there are 44 Sigma lenses that are compatible with the adapter and these allow users to access all the auto focus modes on Sony E mount cameras. This is important to me as I want to be able to use the 150-600 for bird photography.
The Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary lens is one of the lenses that is compatible with the Sigma MC-11 lens adapter.
The first thing you notice when you pick up the MC-11 is that it is very solid and well made. The body is of metal construction and the lens mounts are chromium plated brass. Disappointingly there are no weather seals. On the body is a USB port behind a soft plastic flap and on the opposite side is the lens release button. Just by that is a tiny LED light which is very hard to see when it is off. The purpose of the light is to inform you about how well the lens attached will work it does this through one of four states:
Constant green – the lens is compatible
Flashing green – you need to update the lens firmware
Flashing orange – the adapter firmware needs updating
No light – the lens isn’t compatible
The light only comes on for 2-3 seconds when you switch on the camera.
Speaking of firmware updates to do this you will need to download the Sigma Optimization Pro software from Sigma’s website. To update the adapter just needs a USB cable, for lenses you will need the Sigma Dock UD-01. I find it somewhat frustrating that you can’t update the lens firmware through the MC-11 adapter. The dock isn’t expensive to buy although in Australia the retail price varies between $80 to $120 AUD so it pays to shop around. Luckily there seem to be plenty for sale second hand on EBay for about $40. I ended up updating both the adapter and lens firmware and the whole process was very straightforward.
In Use
Before I updated the firmware I found that there was difficulty in acquiring focus when shooting in low light, backlit situations and with subjects in undergrowth. Once upgraded things worked a lot better. I experimented with the settings on the camera by setting up two custom modes. Custom mode 1 was in shutter priority with the shutter speed set at 1/500 sec, Auto ISO, Auto Focus Continuous, Lock on AF with a medium sized flexible spot and the frame rate was set to low speed continuous. Custom mode 2 was in shutter priority with the shutter speed set at 1/2000, Auto ISO, Auto Focus Continuous, lock on flexible spot large and high speed continuous drive. Both modes had the following parameters set:
Phase Detect Area – on
Pre AF – off
Priority set in AFC – balanced emphasis
AF with shutter – on
AF drive speed – fast
AF tracking sensitivity – high
With birds in trees that weren’t moving too quickly I found that I was getting a hit rate of around 90%. With more erratic moving birds my hit rate dropped to 36% when I was using my custom mode 2. When I switched to mode 1 the hit rate improved to 85%. Photographing my dog running towards me both custom modes acquired focus very quickly, but the results from custom mode two weren’t very consistent fluctuating between 60 to 85%. In custom mode 1 I got very consistent results at 85%. When shooting birds in flight I found that I didn’t get a single shot with critical focus which was disappointing to say the least.
The video performance of the A7r II and the Sigma 150-600 was surprising. Shooting wide open at the short end AF performance is good, it is quick and confident. At the long end the AF is a bit slower but it does acquire focus and lock on. What is very apparent is the noise of the lens motor, it is quite loud and would mean that any sound would have to be recorded using an external microphone.
Conclusion
The Sigma MC-11 adapter allows certain Sigma EF lenses to be used on Sony E mount bodies while retaining autofocus and image stabilisation.
In practice it would certainly seem that shooting at higher frame rates the autofocus struggles to keep up and dropping the frame rate improves the hit rate considerably. Whether using this combination is a good idea depends very much on your expectations and what you want. If you want the performance of a Sony native lens then you are better off getting that. But if you already have the lens and want to change from a Canon DSLR to a Sony full frame mirrorless camera and you are shooting birds in trees, scrub, on the ground or on water then this works very well. For birds in flight you’ll want either a full Sony set up or a full Canon set up.
Sample Images
Menekedang called the Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii) by white colonialists.
Melkullya called the Yellow-billed Spoonbill (Platalea flavipes) by white colonialists.
Menekedang called the Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii) by white colonialists.
Red Wattle bird (Anthochaera carunculata subsp. woodwardi) known to the Nyoongar people as wodjalok. Yellagonga Regional Park.
Three wise corellas – hear no evil, see no evil, and sorry my mouth is full. Yellagona Regional Park, Western Australia.
Manyt or the Western Corella (Cacatua pastinator subsp. derbyi). Yellagona Regional Park, Western Australia.
Dillabirt, known to non Nyoonga people as the Magpie-lark (Grallina cyanoleuca). Yellagonga Regional Park.
Melkullya or Yellow-billed Spoonbills, Platalea flavipes, amongst the paperbarks on Lake Joondalup in Yellangonga Regional Park.
Melkullya or Yellow-billed Spoonbills, Platalea flavipes, feeding at Lake Joondalup in Yellangonga Regional Park.
The eponymous Willie Wagtail, Rhipidura leucophrys leucophrys. Yellagonga Regional Park, Western Australia.
Despite their small size the Silvereye, Zosterops lateralis, has an incredibly loud birdsong. Yellagonga Regional Park, Western Australia.
An Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) feeding on Lake Joondalup in Yellagonga Regional Park.
A white-faced heron looks out from its tree top perch over Horse Swamp. Whiteman Park, Western Australia.
Western Grey Kangaroo, macropus fuliginosus, Whiteman Park, Western Australia.
Like many people at this time I’ve had my movements curtailed. Where I live we are allowed out locally for exercise so I’ve been going out for walks along the river to photograph and video the birds that can be found there. This is the third time I’ve tried to video wildlife and it is very hard.I don’t work from a hide so I have to set up quickly and quietly and often the birds will move on before I can get filming. Shooting mainly just after dawn or just before sunset has meant using high ISOs and made focusing difficult. But, the more you do it the better you get. The purpose of the video was to make something, learn something new and help keep me thinking positive thoughts during this time.
Just out of interest I’ll put the stills up below. They were shot on either a Canon EOS6d with the Sigma 150-600mm f4.5-6.3 Contemporary lens or the Olympus OMD EM1 mk ii with the Panasonic Leica 100-400mm f4-6.3 lens. I wonder if you can tell the difference at web size without enlarging to 100% or checking the EXIF data?
A male Rufous Whistler (Pachycephala rufiventris). York, Western Australia.
Laughing kookaburra, dacelo novaeguineae. York, Western Australia
Yellow Rumped Thornbill, Acanthiza chrysorrhoa, York, Western Australia.
Yellow-billed Spoonbill (Platalea flavipes), Avon River, York, Western Australia.
Great egret, Ardea alba, feeding on the Avon River. York Western Australia
Tatty robin. Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii), York, Western Australia.
Brown Honeyeater, Lichmera indistincta, York, Western Australia.
A pair of Yellow-billed Spoonbill (Platalea flavipes) feeding on the Avon River in York, Western Australia.
A great egret (Ardea alba) and a white faced heron (Egretta novaeholladiae) hunting in the early morning light on the bank of the Avon River in York, Western Australia.
A great egret (Ardea alba) hunting in the early morning light on the bank of the Avon River in York, Western Australia.
Red-capped Robin (Petroica goodenovii), York, Western Australia.
The video is the short version of this article with a slide show of the best of this year’s orchids at the end.
It’s not for nothing that Western Australia is referred to as the “Wildflower State”. There are over 13,000 species of plant to be found, with new discoveries added every year. If we narrow it down to my particular area of interest – orchids – there are 394 species of terrestrial orchids in the South West Corner of the state. Some of these species are so specialised that are confined to very small areas and found nowhere else. Some species will not bloom unless there has been a bush fire the summer before, others if the winter rains are delayed or are insufficient will not put a show on either. This means that no two years are the same. An example of this is my favourite spot near where I live is prolific with the number of orchid species found there. When I first went I was simply amazed by the number of fringed mantis and white spider orchids that were flowering. Over the ensuing ten years I’ve seen such a display of those species since. This year there was a carpet of purple and pink enamels like I’ve never seen before. So this not knowing quite what you are going to find adds to the whole experience. On a few occasions I may be lucky enough to be able to access the flowers by car and a short walk, but most of the time I end up walking through the bush for anything up to four hours.
Pink enamel orchid, Elythranthera emarginata. Mokine, Western Australia. Olympus OMD EM 1 mk ii with Olympus 60mm f2.8 macro lens. Aperture priority, exposure: 1/800 sec, f5.6 at ISO 400.
Purple Enamel Orchid, Elythranthera brunonis. Mokine, Western Australia. Olympus OMD EM 1 mk ii with Olympus 60mm f2.8 macro lens and Metz 64AF-1 flash. Exposure: Aperture priority mode, 1/40 sec, f8 at ISO 200 with -1 stop exposure compensation.
The Canon EOS 6d camera with 100mm f2.8 macro lens that I used to use for photographing orchids alongside the Olympus EM 1 mk ii with 60mm f2.8 macro lens that I use now.
I approach photographing orchids as I would shooting a person’s portrait – using off camera flash and reflectors to fill shadows, separate from the background, bring out the shape and textures. Too many botanic studies show indistinct photos where the subject does not fill the frame and the background is intrusive. To that end I use a macro lens of around 100 -120mm (35mm equivalent). It’s not because I’m necessarily shooting at a 1:1 ratio, it’s just because I’ve found there are very few zoom lens that focus close enough and have a fast aperture to allow control of depth of field.I used to use a Canon DSLR with a Canon EF 100mm f2.8 IS L lens and carry around a Manfrotto 143 Magic Arm Kit to support the lights. I made a video about using that setup some 7 years ago and that can be seen just below. Since making that video I added a full frame 6d, the Canon macro lens, and extra light and a set of TTL wireless flash triggers and consequently found myself schlepping 10-12Kg of kit into the bush on longer and longer forays. Something had to give – and my back did! So fast forward 7 years and I’m now using an Olympus OMD EM1 mk ii with Olympus 60mm f2.8 macro lens. I’ve not given anything up in terms of image quality with this change because I’m generally working at a base ISO of 200 with lighting which means all the usual objections to m4/3 about excessive noise and poor dynamic range have been taken out of the equation. The Olympus 60mm f2.8 is easily the optical equal of Canon’s EF 100mm f2.8 IS macro L lens at less than 1/2 the price and about 1/3 of the weight. The Manfrotto Magic Arm got binned as it was very heavy at 2.7 Kg and replaced with a Manfrotto Table Top Tripod Kit 209, 492 Long which weighs 454g. As far as lighting goes I’m using a Metz 64AF – 1 and an Olympus FL-600R flash with small soft box, snoot and honeycomb grid. The only thing that I have given up is radio TTL triggers for the flash, I’m using a TTL flash sync cable at the moment. I prefer to use the Metz unit when doing a lot of high speed sync work as it is the more powerful of the two. This may change in the New Year, it may not.
Lighting diagram for my basic lighting of an orchid.
The FL-600R is a flash with a guide number of of 50 (ISO200/m). In addition, it comes with a LED lightt for use when shooting video.
Other things in the bag include an 80cm 5 in 1 reflector – I only use the white reflector as the silver is too strong, the gold too garish. Some times I use the diffuser over a plant to cut down on ambient light levels. A Vittorinox CyberTool L is there. It has a good selection of small screwdriver bits that can most screws on a camera body, a set of pliers, wood saw, metal saw and file and a host of other doodads. I once re-assembled my Voigtländer 35mm f2.5 Color-Skopar with it while in on holiday in Beijing. Water – this can be in a 1L bottle for shorter expeditions or a 3L water bladder for longer ones. Extra clothing if needed, sunscreen and insect repellent to avoid nasty encounters. Batteries for camera and flash. Wallet of memory cards. That’s it. The whole process is very simple.
It’s not all beer and skittles at the huge multinational media empire that is Paul Amyes Photography (PAP), but it comes close when we get out to play crazy golf. Last week we managed to sneak off for a game at Wanneroo Botanic Gardens. The aim of the game is to have fun and I took along my Leica D-Lux Type 109 to record the proceedings. It was well suited being small and light and shooting 4K video meant I had some freedom to play around in the edit.
The town hall in the historic Western Australian town of York in pre-dawn light. Sony A7r with Olympus OM Zuiko 35mm f2 lens and Cokin 3 stop graduated neutral density filter. Exposure: 2.5 sec, f8 at ISO 100.
The other morning I got up at stupid O’clock to shoot a dawn time-lapse of the York Town Hall. So what do you do while you’re hanging around waiting for it to finish? Why take photos of course! So while the Leica D-Lux clicked away doing it’s time lapse thing I set up the Sony A7r and started taking snaps of the town hall. Good job I did as the time lapse wasn’t that crash hot.
Last Saturday I found myself in town wandering around with my Olympus Pen EP-5 and the just 3 lenses (17mm f2.8, 25mm f1.8, 45mm f1.8) when I found myself outside the building that is home to Jan de Jong Martial Arts Fitness in Hay Street. I knew the fun day demonstration was about to start as I had received the flier from them a few days previously so I thought I’d pop in and say “Hello” for old times sake. I started attending the school in the early 1990’s as a solution to a problem with work place violence. I had no idea I would become completely fascinated by the martial arts taught by Shihan Jan de Jong OAM and that continues to this very day. Over the years I’ve tried many times to photographically capture what it is that appeals to me. I’m not after a static record shot, but something that shows the grace, beauty, refined power and energy that is inherent in bujutsu. Under equipped and ill prepared I had another go shooting first stills and then some video footage. One day I’ll actually get something close to what I see in my mind’s eye and feel in my heart.
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