13 



TENTH WINTER MEETING— FEBRUARY 25th, 1902. 



•'PHOTOGRAPHY OF BIRDS' NESTS AND OTHER NATURAL OBJECTS. *• 



By Mb. F. C. Snell. 



AraoDET those present were : — Messrs. S. Harvey 

 (in the chair), J. F. Whichcord. W. G. Austen. W. 

 Suny, C. Buckingham. T. G. Marsh, C. A. Gard- 

 ner. E. Coin, VV. R. Dunham, W. Cozens, Miss 

 Abbott, Mrs. Bowler, Mrs. Scell, Mrs. Marsh. Miss 

 Palin. Miss Harvey, Mr. W. H. Hammond, Mr A. 

 Lander, etc. 



The lecturer spoke of the fascination of this 

 branch of photography, and reL-ommended all 

 photographers who had not a special branch of 

 work to take ap the study of nature and illustrate 

 it by means of photography. Early mornings 

 before breakfast was recommended as the best 

 time to see and enjoy nature, giving the photo- 

 grapher more frequent chances ot getting into 

 the country. Reference was madetu the difficulties 

 to be met with in the early stages of the work, 

 and mention was made ot the works of our lead- 

 ing naturalist photographers, and an account 

 given of some of their latest achievements, and 

 beginners were recommended not to expect too 

 much success, nur to be discouraged with a few 

 failures at first. Slides were shown, and descrip- 

 tions given of the nests, eggs, nesting bites, and 

 in some cases the young of the following birds : 

 Thrush, blackbird, linnet, yellow hammer, pied 

 wagtail, blackcap, wren, missle thrush, and sedge- 

 warbler. Two or three pictures in some cases 

 showing each bird's nest built in different situa- 

 tions. The beautiful warm cosy domed nest of 

 tde long tailed titmouse was shown in contrast 

 with the nest of the lapwing, and the neat pretty 

 nest of the chaffinch was followed by the rough 

 rude platform of sticks which does duty for a 

 nest for the turtle dove, the young of which were 

 also shown. Robins' nosts in different situations, 

 young linnets, nightingales' ne^ts, greenfinches, 

 whitethroats, reed buntings, sparrows, red backed 

 shrikes, and young tree pipit, plover, moorhens, 

 partridge, and young tomtits. Methods of work- 

 ing, description of apparatus, plates, and various 

 hints were given. A series of spiders, their nests, 

 webs, and snares were shown, which was followed 

 by dormice and nests, butterflies, bees, newts, 

 snails, caterpillars, dragon fly, and galls on elms, 

 and in concluding the lecturer referred to the 

 almost unlimited scope tor the photographer's 

 energies that lay close at band in the common 

 objects of the woods and lanes and fields, and 

 expressed the wish that more photographers would 

 become naturalists, and more naturalists photo- 

 graphers, that valuable efforts, time, and 

 materials might be used in studying and record- 

 ing some of the many phases of the wonders and 

 beauties of nature, and promised anyone, with 

 only a moderate love of nature, that they would 

 find it a most interesting and fascinating branch 

 of photography. 



tn describing the method of work the lecturer 

 said : — " No special apparatus i« necessary beyond 

 fiome form of tilting table, which will allow 



the camera to be pointed upwards or down- 

 wards at any angle. A simple arrangement can 

 easily be made or obtained in the form of two 

 shore boards hinged together, one of which is 

 fixed to the tripod top with a thumb screw, and 

 the other, which is supported at any angle by a 

 stay bar and screw, has a slot cut in it to take 

 the screw of the camera, the slot allowing the 

 camera to be moved a little from side to side. 

 This small piece of apparatus, which need 

 only be about six inches fquare, will be 

 found to be absolutely necessary in order 

 that the camera may point downwards to 

 the nest. For this work a stand camera is 

 required, as exposures are often very long, and 

 focussing, also, must be very accurately done. A 

 camera with a long extension of bellows is also 

 necessary, as for birds' nests, which are taken 

 at short range, the camera must be extended 

 considerably more than when taking ordinary 

 landscape views, and when we come to small 

 objects such as insects, etc , the bellows must be 

 extended to about twice the normal length in 

 order to get the object of a reasonable size on the 

 plate. For this reason a hand camera is out of 

 the question. This long extension of camera, 

 therefore means, that a less amount of light 

 reaches the plate, in other words our object is net 

 so bright on the focussing screen as when we are 

 using the camera at its normal length, so that it 

 is often necessary to use a fast plate that the 

 exposure may not be unduly long, as wind, and 

 the movement of the object itself force us to 

 give as shoit an exposure as the subject will 

 allow. No guide can be given as to the exposure 

 required for any given object, the quality of the 

 light, the nature of the situation, the speed of 

 the plate, the stop, and extension of camera must 

 all be taken into consideration, and as the first 

 two conditions can never be exactly the same, it 

 is exceedingly difficult, if not almost impossible, 

 for the worker to judge for himself without some 

 form of exposure meter. With one of the.«e handy 

 little instruments our calculations can be quite 

 easily made if we only remember to allow extra 

 exposure for the extra extension of camera, ai the 

 exposure meter figures are of course b ised on the 

 normal extension of camera. Should the camera 

 be extended one-and-a-half times, about twice the 

 amount of exposure will be requited ; if extended 

 double the usual length then about tour times the 

 normal exposure will be necessary. In a well 

 lighted spot, with the camera extended about one- 

 and-a-balf times, and a plate of the speed of 

 Imperii! Sovereign, an exposure of one to two 

 seconds at f. 16 is often sufficient, whilst under 

 opposite conditions, that is, a badly lighted spot 

 in thick bushes or under dark, heavy trees, a deep 

 dark nest may require as many minutes. With 

 moving objects, young birds in nests, etc., it is 

 almost always necessary to use a ehutter. A very 



