32/52 - The Rose

The Rose

This weeks entry for the project was fairly quick and pain free. I used a single strobe and the macro lens to produce the shot above. I did move the flash around a bit to add a bit more depth to the image by creating shadows of the layers of petals. I converted the shot into a black and white image and I'm quite happy with the result.

Lighting setup shots and a black and white version after the jump.

Lighting Setup - The Rose

I used a Canon 580 EX II fired at 1/16th to light the flower. Looking down at the end result, the strobe was positioned at about 2 o'clock. The flower used for the shot is highlighted in the setup above.

Here's the black and white version.

The Rose in Black and White

Rose Ringed Parakeet

A Rose ringed Parakeet photographed in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Of all the parakeets found in Sri Lanka, the Rose ringed Parakeet is by far the most common in the lowlands. A flock of about ten birds visit our garden twice a day to feed on the fruit trees and whatever is left out on the bird tray. More images and info after the jump.

A Rose ringed Parakeet photographed in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Interestingly, this bird is one of the few birds that are not protected. They are actually considered to be an agricultural pest (more info on this here). They have been able to establish feral populations in a number of European cities as well as South Africa and India. Most of these populations have been established by introduced birds as well as escaped pets. Unfortunately these birds are still popular as pets in Sri Lanka.

A Rose ringed Parakeet photographed in Colombo, Sri Lanka

All the images in this post were captured with a Canon 7D and the 100-400mm lens. I didn't have to zoom in to 400mm to capture these images as the birds let me get quite close to them.

A Rose ringed Parakeet photographed in Colombo, Sri Lanka

More info and images of this bird at

• http://devwijewardane.blogspot.com/2009/10/rose-ringed-parakeet.html

Rose-ringed Parakeet

This is the most common Parakeet in the low-lands of Sri Lanka. It is one of the few birds which is not protected as it is considered an agricultural pest. More info and techs inside.

To see the techs for this shot, click here.

The Rose-ringed parakeet regularly visits gardens in urban areas, including gardens in the heart of Colombo, feeding on fruits and seeds. They feed and move around in small flocks which are often heard screeching in flight. They nest in tree burrows and compete for nest sites with Barbets. Only the males have a rose collar and their faces have a powder blue tinge.

A bird feeder which is regularly filled or some fruit trees and a little bit of luck is all that is required to attract the birds to your garden.. The Parakeets do not take flight as easily as some other birds and they can be photographed with ease using a 300mm lens. The image above was taken at 400mm but I am confident that, if required, I would have been able to move a lot closer.