Dalmatians on Ice by Johan Siggesson (Malta). Birds in the Environment.

Johan Siggesson, Malta. BPOTY 2018 Category: Birds in the Environment. Commended.

Dalmatians on Ice

Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus. Lake Kerkini, Greece.

Photographer's Story: ‘For the first time in almost 20 years lake Kerkini in Greece was frozen over. Only two small patches of open water remained - The inlet and the outlet. The large Dalmatian pelicans, normally spread out over the lake congreated in these few spots of open water. After 3 days of shooting, a small group of birds decided to rest on a nearby patch of snow on the ice in the perfect position for a mountainous backdrop. To get some added interest to the image I tried to capture one of the typical behaviours of the pelicans. Once in a while they throw up their head in the air and open their bills. Trying to capture this how I wanted it to be, was quite a feat since the behaviour is over in a split second. Although these birds are often baited with fish for tourists, these specific pelicans where quite far out and not baited.

Equipment and Settins: Nikon D800 with Nikkor 300mm f/2.8 lens. 300mm focal length; 1/1,250 second; f/5; ISO 100.