After a week of cold, wet weather, we spent most of our time indoors keeping warm. The changing conditions have brought even more visitors to my garden, making it an excellent time for photographing New Zealand garden birds.
Winter Weather Brings More Birds to the Garden
The biggest surprise has been the number of silvereyes. Their flock has grown dramatically with the colder weather, and they now arrive in such numbers that the sparrows barely get a chance to visit the feeder.
It has also been fascinating to watch the changing relationships between the birds. Our two resident male bellbirds have finally learned to tolerate each other and can often be seen sharing the feeder with the tūī. Even more rewarding is recognising some of the tūī as familiar visitors that have been returning to our garden for years.
Moving Outside for a Better View
Until now, I have photographed these birds from inside my dining room through a large bay window. While this has produced many enjoyable images, I wanted to see what would happen if I removed the extra layer of glass between my camera and the birds.
When I took my camera onto the deck, I expected the birds to keep their distance. Instead, they completely ignored my presence, despite me sitting only a few metres from the feeder. They simply carried on feeding as though I wasn’t there, allowing me to capture some of my closest and most natural photographs yet.
Building Trust with Garden Birds
An unexpected bonus of photographing from outside was that the local cats stayed well away while I was sitting nearby, giving the birds even more confidence to visit the feeder.
As long as the weather cooperates, I plan to spend more time on the deck with my camera. Building trust with these beautiful New Zealand garden birds has already rewarded me with more relaxed behaviour and better photographs, and I look forward to seeing what opportunities the coming weeks will bring.
Looking Forward to More Close Encounters
One of the greatest rewards of spending time quietly observing these birds is seeing them become increasingly comfortable with my presence. Every session brings new behaviour to photograph and a greater appreciation of the remarkable birdlife that visits my garden each day. I’m excited to continue documenting these moments throughout the winter.
All the images in this post were taken using my Lumix G9II using my Leica 100-400mm lens. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to contact me through my website, or follow along on Facebook or Instagram.