Look closely at the picture below. The eye belongs to a Macaw. The camera helps us to see the astonishing colour, design and functionality that nature hides from our naked eye.
My campsite friend, Amanda, says photography saves her mind from wandering into darker places. We packed our camera gear and drove a short distance to Lagos Zoo to spend time enjoying our joint hobby earlier this week.
The Zoo is a tranquil, lush place disturbed only by raucous monkeys and hundreds of feathered friends. My idea was to open up the beauty of eyes. Lots of clicks and patience are required to get these photos, but it is a most enjoyable experience when the results are viewed on a big screen.
This intense “down-the-barrel” stare, comes from a male Emu.
His partner, close by, sits on a clutch of nine smooth slate-blue eggs, each one the size of an infants head.
She periodically rises and moves the outer eggs into the centre, using her beak and neck as a hand. Then she begins the painstaking process of lowering her massive body gently down to cover the eggs.
Meanwhile, Dad gives me the eye(s).
To see our red-eyed and magnificently coloured friend in the wild, you would need to travel to the swamplands of New Guinea in the South Western Pacific.
You might see a glimpse of fear in the eye and that is because the Victoria Crowned Pidgeon is on the “threatened species” list.
At 75 cm in length, Victoria likes to hunt for food in company and wears the most attractive mohawk of any other bird.
Now for a change. Amanda has an artist’s eye for composition, her best work (below) shows her perspective on our photo trip. Thank you, Amanda.
The perfect final act for my blog, comes from my artist friend, Judith, from Madrid. She created this picture today using gouache, an opaque watercolour.
Stunning photos and painting. How lucky you were to capture it.
Beautiful Des !
Simply brilliant !!!
“Eyes Right!” says Martin.
Beautiful Des, so beautiful.
Nature is stunning and the camera is our new pair of eyes.
Wow! Absolutely Awesome ly Amazing painting Judith!
Go JuDes!