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Old 2nd February 2025, 14:45   #1
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A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Keoladeo (pronounced as Kevladev locally) Bird sanctuary in Bharatpur, Rajasthan is one of the best places to observe migratory birds during winter.
While Feb is probably the best month to have a high count of species including the famous Pelicans, last week of Dec till Jan end is when the park is covered with fog on many days. Coupled with the splendid landscapes and the soft winter light, the park offers one of the best opportunities for honing one's creative photography skills. No wonder Bharatpur is always on the annual trip plans of several birders and bird photographers.

I joined up with 4 of my friends from Pune and embarked on my first trip to this winter wonderland. 3 of us first timers while the other 2 had already done several trips to Bharatpur. Based on the suggestion of the most experienced one in our group, we decided to plan for 4 full days around 2nd week of January.

We flew from Pune to Jaipur and travelled by road to get to Bharatpur.
We booked Iora Guest house (which is not too far away from the main gate) for our stay. There are other good options like Birder's Inn, Sunbird hotel etc which
are slightly more expensive. We hired a couple of electric rickshaws and fixed them for the entire duration of our stay in Bharatpur. The daily tickets to the park etc was booked by our rickshaw driver. Since the light during afternoon is generally not very harsh, we decided to stay put in the park throughout the day. Our homestay would send the breakfast and lunch inside the park which we would have in the canteen area, get some rest and move on with the rest of the day's work.

Since most of the information about Bharatpur is generally available, I am skipping that part. However in case anyone needs any info, I am happy to share the same.

Our main focus of the trip was not to cover lot of specifies of birds or portraits. Instead we wanted to get more of the landscape, get creative images with the fog and the light. Given this objective, I shunned my trusted Nikon 600 mm prime lens and instead rented the Nikon 180-600 Z lens to be paired with my Nikon z8. I also carried my old workhorse Nikon D850 which I paired with my 24-120 kit lens for wide angle images.

I will now let the images take over.

Starting with the park entrance
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_1665.jpg

We saw several colonies of birds (esp Painted Storks) which were raising their young ones.
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_1613.jpg
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_57942.jpg

The soft morning light provided us with several opportunities to capture several common subjects in all its glory

A spotted deer stag wandering around

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_57582.jpg


Purple Moorhen
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_57712.jpg

A pair of Bar Headed Geese
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_68292.jpg

There are several walkways inside the park which presents unique opportunities to capture some of the common subjects

Purple heron which appeared in a well lit section of the pathway allowing me to underexpose and get this image
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_57292.jpg

Portrait of a Common Kingfisher
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_73072.jpg

The action started picking up once the light improved.
Confrontation between a Purple heron and Pond heron
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_73452.jpg

We moved to other areas of the park to explore and go to see one of the most important denizens of Bharatpur.

Sarus Crane
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_75302.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_80382.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_75542.jpg


We then were greeted with some great opportunities for capturing them against the setting sun during the golden hour

Painted Stork silhouette
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_59012.jpg

Cormorant
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_5933a2.jpg

The next couple of days was quite foggy and provided us with the perfect opportunity for which we had planned the trip

Ducks and storks amidst going about their morning rituals
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_54002.jpg

Cormorant
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_55352.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_72542.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_72972.jpg

Postcard from Bharatpur
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_76372.jpg

Bharatpur scape showing some of its denizens basking the foggy morning
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_85672.jpg

And some of the images from the inside walkways with the magical canopies

Nilgai

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_63372.jpg

In monochrome
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_62732.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_62822.jpg

Jackal with its winter coat
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_64102.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_64152.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_86032.jpg


A flock of Pelicans (mix of Rosy and Great White) had arrived a few days before our trip
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_84302.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_84712.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_86742.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_86902.jpg

Last edited by ramnath_77 : 2nd February 2025 at 16:43.
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Old 2nd February 2025, 16:46   #2
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Continuing with the Pelicans

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_87412.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_87972.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_88262.jpg

Some interesting scapes
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_1621.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_1656.jpg

Interesting patterns of nature.
A sub-adult Painted stork got pretty close to us allowing us to capture these images


A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_66722.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_73052.jpg

Time for some action

Yellow throated kingfisher with a catch
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_67182.jpg


Cormorant landing
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_65462.jpg


Darter landing
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_66392.jpg


Cormorant with catch
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_78702.jpg


Darter with catch
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_79042.jpg


Grey Heron with catch
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_69072.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_69932.jpg

Northern Shoveler
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_67932.jpg

We had one final opportunity to capture a few more silhouettes on the last morning of our trip

Painted Stork against the rising sun
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_59612.jpg

A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_60392.jpg

Cormorant and Painted stork basking in the early morning light
A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland-dsc_56212.jpg


Thus ended a very productive trip to Bharatpur. I am definitely planning to go back again next year

I hope you like these pictures as much as i liked clicking and sharing them in this forum.

Last edited by ramnath_77 : 2nd February 2025 at 17:15.
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Old 2nd February 2025, 19:17   #3
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!
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Old 3rd February 2025, 10:32   #4
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Quote:
Originally Posted by ramnath_77 View Post
Our main focus of the trip was not to cover lot of specifies of birds or portraits. Instead we wanted to get more of the landscape, get creative images with the fog and the light.
Wow! Wow!! Absolutely fantastic images. Loved seeing these photographs. Top class work in both the technical and creative aspects of photography! The photographs become a joy to see when both these elements come together as in your photos here. You have used the fog and the light so well. Thank you very much for sharing these photographs with us.

Quote:
Given this objective, I shunned my trusted Nikon 600 mm prime lens and instead rented the Nikon 180-600 Z lens to be paired with my Nikon z8. I also carried my old workhorse Nikon D850 which I paired with my 24-120 kit lens for wide angle images.
I also rented the same lens (Nikon 180-600 Z) for using with my Z5 on a couple of occasions and loved it. It gives great versatility in focal lengths.

You have done really great use of both telephoto and wide angle photography. Thanks again for sharing these photos which are a treat to the eyes!

Last edited by Dr.AD : 3rd February 2025 at 10:33.
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Old 3rd February 2025, 13:18   #5
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

I have been a yearly visitor to Bharatpur due to my close proximity to the park(am from New Delhi) and I still haven't lost interest in this place. The yellow mustard fields enroute, fatehpur sikri fort nearby make it an excellent winter attraction for me. You have captured the essence of the park beautifully!! I also feel that this sanctuary is not only about counting the different species of birds but landscapes, dusk shots with silhouettes and early morning foggy scenes make it a great photo touring place.
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Old 3rd February 2025, 15:55   #6
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

I have been following your safaris for a long, long time - but this time I felt that I must comment .Some excellent photographs there and its not only the birds but also the other wild life (the picture of the Nilgai in the mist is extraordinary) that are captured well.

Noted that you use both a mirrorless Z8 and the traditional 850 - can you highlight some examples of which photos were taken with which camera? and what are your thoughts about the difference in the resulting quality?

Cheers,
Sayak

Last edited by sayakc : 3rd February 2025 at 16:08.
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Old 3rd February 2025, 18:22   #7
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Fantastic images! The foggy landscape pictures are especially nice. Which 600mm do you have? The G or the E FL?
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Old 3rd February 2025, 19:26   #8
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr.AD View Post
Wow! Wow!! Absolutely fantastic images. Loved seeing these photographs. Top class work in both the technical and creative aspects of photography! The photographs become a joy to see when both these elements come together as in your photos here. You have used the fog and the light so well. Thank you very much for sharing these photographs with us.

I also rented the same lens (Nikon 180-600 Z) for using with my Z5 on a couple of occasions and loved it. It gives great versatility in focal lengths.

You have done really great use of both telephoto and wide angle photography. Thanks again for sharing these photos which are a treat to the eyes!
Thank you Dr. AD. Happy you liked the images. I agree with you on the versatility of the Nikon 180-600 lens. The only potential issue is that if we are used to the sharpness of prime lines, then we might get a tad disappointed with the sharpness esp if the light is challenging.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Maverick Avi View Post
I have been a yearly visitor to Bharatpur due to my close proximity to the park(am from New Delhi) and I still haven't lost interest in this place. The yellow mustard fields enroute, fatehpur sikri fort nearby make it an excellent winter attraction for me. You have captured the essence of the park beautifully!! I also feel that this sanctuary is not only about counting the different species of birds but landscapes, dusk shots with silhouettes and early morning foggy scenes make it a great photo touring place.
Thank you Maverick Avi.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sayakc View Post
I have been following your safaris for a long, long time - but this time I felt that I must comment .Some excellent photographs there and its not only the birds but also the other wild life (the picture of the Nilgai in the mist is extraordinary) that are captured well.

Noted that you use both a mirrorless Z8 and the traditional 850 - can you highlight some examples of which photos were taken with which camera? and what are your thoughts about the difference in the resulting quality?

Cheers,
Sayak
Thanks Sayak. Some of the wide angle images have been clicked using the D850 + 24-120 combo. The main advantages i have experienced with the z8 is the faster and more advanced Autofocus system (with the subject detection mode), the instant changes we see in the EVF whenever we change exposure compensation, white balance etc which helps us to understand the changes better before we click. With the DSLR that is not possible and we have to click an image and then observe the changes. This saves precious time esp during action.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kartik Kumar View Post
Fantastic images! The foggy landscape pictures are especially nice. Which 600mm do you have? The G or the E FL?
Thanks Kartik. I have the newer 600m f4 FL lens
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Old 3rd February 2025, 20:34   #9
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

This thread is about about Bharatpur and the stunning birds but I am awestruck by the fifth picture of your second post ramnath_77. You have been brilliant in always clicking the wildlife and the avians in your past threads and this is no different. That reflective shot of trees on the water is my favourite here and it is almost at par with some of your Corbett shots from your past trips. Thanks for sharing your travel, again. In anticipation of your next,

Regards
Abhi.
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Old 4th February 2025, 09:32   #10
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Stunning is an understatement, the stork silhouettes with the sun in the backdrop and the early morning deer photos under dog are superlative perspective shots. Also the purple heron in golden light is just wow. You got several birds in action with a catch, another feat. The only thing missing is the Terminator with his minigun, would have loved to see that here . The 180-600 seems to have done a pretty good job with such great contrast and details as seen on the close up of the stork.

Thank you for bringing this wonderful thread to us. Keep travelling.
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Old 5th February 2025, 19:18   #11
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Quote:
Originally Posted by ABHI_1512 View Post
This thread is about about Bharatpur and the stunning birds but I am awestruck by the fifth picture of your second post ramnath_77. You have been brilliant in always clicking the wildlife and the avians in your past threads and this is no different. That reflective shot of trees on the water is my favourite here and it is almost at par with some of your Corbett shots from your past trips. Thanks for sharing your travel, again. In anticipation of your next,

Regards
Abhi.
Thank you Abhi. I definitely will continue to share pictures from my wildlife trips in this amazing forum.

Quote:
Originally Posted by haisaikat View Post
Stunning is an understatement, the stork silhouettes with the sun in the backdrop and the early morning deer photos under dog are superlative perspective shots. Also the purple heron in golden light is just wow. You got several birds in action with a catch, another feat. The only thing missing is the Terminator with his minigun, would have loved to see that here . The 180-600 seems to have done a pretty good job with such great contrast and details as seen on the close up of the stork.

Thank you for bringing this wonderful thread to us. Keep travelling.
Thank you haisakat. Yes i found the 180-600 to be pretty decent with the Image quality, contrast etc to go with the versatility in focal length allowing you to try out different compositions. However when it comes to autofocus speed and sharpness esp under challenging light conditions, nothing beats the primes.
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Old 8th February 2025, 07:25   #12
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Re: A winter sojourn to Bharatpur - A bird photographer's dreamland

Splendid, I enjoyed the morning cup with these beautiful shots and composition.
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