Magic moments lost.

[hutch--]

I went outside earlier today to stretch but missed a magic moment as I did not have a camera with me. There was this magpie (bird) walking along the footpath squarking its head off with indifference to anyone or anything around it. Cheeky bastard simply did not care who was following it.

They look like this.

[K_F]

 
Probably throwing a hissy fit at C, C++ programmers. 

[jj2007]

They made the headlines here some months ago
Bird Attacks in Australia

"Seek Eye Contact, Then Seek the Distance"

Wednesday, 06.09.2017 16:23

The mating season of the Australian flute birds has begun - and thus the time of attacks on cyclists, joggers and passers-by. There are many injured. If you want to protect yourself, you need cable ties.

Jon Clark , "Mid 40s", founded the website magpiealert.com in 2013. Anyone who is attacked by a flute bird ( Cracticus tibicen ) can publish the exact location and circumstances of the incident there. Clark is a Briton who came to Australia six years ago and works in Sydney as an IT manager for a major supermarket chain.

     

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Mr. Clark, are you afraid of flute birds?

Clark: That would say too much. But when I go jogging in areas where there are flute birds in spring, I have a healthy, nervous tingling sensation in my stomach. You know, Australia is a beautiful country. But we have some really dangerous animals here. Everyone knows stories about sharks, spiders, snakes. But we also have birds.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: When was the last time you were attacked by a flute bird?

Clark: That was last spring. I had just come back from a jogging session and wanted to do some stretching exercises near my house. Then the bird came flying out of nowhere at me. That certainly looked funny.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: How did you get rid of the bird?

Clark: I have followed some basic rules. First, seek eye contact, and then search the distance until they have withdrawn from the territory of the bird. Second, if the animal attacks you, be sure to protect your eyes. Third, keep calm.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: On your website 1070 attacks have been reported this year alone, 169 people said that they were injured.

Clark: We had a warm winter, so the bird mating season started early this year in early August, a little earlier than usual. The males are full of testosterone in the spring and want to defend their territory and offspring. In the end of September, experience shows that it is the worst, and then there can be up to 150 attacks in one day. After that it gets calmer. ...

[sinsi]

The buggers will remember you year to year and even teach their offspring to attack you.

[K_F]

We have a couple of tortoises running around our garden. Usually they'd 'disappear' for months - they hide in the places I never think of.
So we had a few people around for a barbie.. and along comes the male.. everyone is so cute, and it's gone around the corner.
A few minutes later along come the female, with the male after it.. .. everyone is again so cute, but I can see what's about to unfold.

The magic moment is when the male jumps on the female and tries to shag it.. everyone is silent and looks the other way. 
The female is not giving in, and the male is persistent.... then went on for a while and the male eventually accepted the rejection.
 

[hutch--]

I remember when I was a kid living in the country that we had a nest of magpies just down from our house and they were prone to attack people who walked past their tree on the side of the road. My father came from West OZ where they once paid a bounty on dead crows and he was a genuine expert with what we called a shanghia (forked stick with rubber each side and a piece of leather in the middle to hold the stone) so he knocked up a reasonable one, went out and and with a single shot bashed this magpie flat on its arse. It stopped dive bombing people after that.

They looked something like this.

[Vortex]

Hi Hutch,

Great photo. Any chance to get the EXIF info? The lens used to take this photo has probably a focal length of 400 mm or even higher. The image is very sharp and clear.

[GoneFishing]

Hi Vortex,

Here's screenshot with EXIF info for the image above.
EDIT: Attachment deleted

[Vortex]

Hi GoneFishing,

Thanks. How is it possible to come close to this bird with a focal length of 7.81 mm? ( 35 mm equivalent = 39 mm )

[GoneFishing]

Vortex,  I wrote that EXIF info for the image right above. Sorry for misunderstanding.
The photo of a bird contains only EXIF comment that it's original place is wikimedia. Nothing else

[Gunther]

Vortex,  I wrote that EXIF info for the image right above. Sorry for misunderstanding.
The photo of a bird contains only EXIF comment that it's original place is wikimedia. Nothing else

That's refined, in fact.

Gunther

[GoneFishing]

Vortex,
You were right.  Camera has focal length of 400 mm. I had to find original image.
See screenshot below.

[Gunther]

Vortex,
You were right.  Camera has focal length of 400 mm. I had to find original image.
See screenshot below.

The Cannon EOS 450D is a very good camera, at least for me amateur photographer. Whether the camera meets professional standards, Hutch and Erol can certainly judge better.

Gunther

[GoneFishing]

Hi Gunther,
Yes, the photo looks impressive. I know nothing about modern cameras. The only camera I have at home is this


My father used it

[Gunther]

Hi GoneFishing,

The only camera I have at home is this
My father used it

Good, old, reliable analog technology. Is it still possible to buy the necessary materials (films) for it?

Gunther