Foto at top: Gitzo tripod and Wimberley tripod head with Nikon V3 + FT1 adapter (“F-mount To System 1“) + Nikkor 300mm f/4D TC-14E with 35mm equivalent 1135mm, top quality lightweight tele with home made sight, a very stirdy one when carried in backpack, home made viewer, hat, dark gloves, remote control. As ancient as the design of this lens may be, this combination is still an optically perfect lightweight setup with equivalent up to 1620mm and great image quality. And this V3 mirrorless may be quite old-fashioned since we are using Z7 II as our main camera in bird photography, but the V3 gave us many years of fine photography and nice reach. So did the great optics of the rightfully famous oldtimer Nikkor 300mm f/4D.
We almost always are using: hat and dark gloves and occasionally remote control to avoid vibrations of unstabilised equipment. We always use at least some grade of (improvised) camouflage. Most shy birds including endangered species will notice any unnatural move or sound or move of uncovered hands in their neighbourhood.
Tip: if it makes sense, try to remain silent whatever people next to you or around you are saying or doing. Birders or hikers often tend to get social and start talking in the middle of beautiful quiet nature …
These are our so called three “grades” of camouflage:
- standard camouflage: hat, green jacket and trousers.
- substantial camouflage: hands (gloves) and sometimes also face covered with camouflage towel
- total camouflage: completely covered: hide, screen, in car, etcetera …
Some examples of total (improvised) or almost no camouflage at all of used equipment:
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