PICTURES: Puffins along the Caithness coastline are in the sights of Thurso Camera Club photographers
Members of Thurso Camera Club focused their attention on birdlife during their first meeting since the beginning of Covid restrictions last year.
Puffins were the stars of the show for many of the photographers who headed to the Caithness coastline.
The group were led by club chair Colin Campbell, who was on hand to give his expert advice and assistance on capturing some great bird life shots.
The images taken reflect a thriving, healthy puffin community with plenty of food available for the young.
A beautiful evening and fine weather helped to make this first trip an enjoyable experience. For some newer members this was the first opportunity they had to meet in person.
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6 / 6The club says that membership offers mutual support and help to have the confidence to explore and find great locations – of which there are plenty in Caithness.
One member said: “Thoroughly enjoyed my first outing to see the puffins. Having lived in Caithness for four years I had never ventured out to find them, and thanks to joining the Thurso Camera Club a few years ago I've gotten the confidence to go to places I'd never think of to pursue my love of taking pictures, with the added bonus of getting hints and advice from the more experienced photographers within the club.”
Another comment from a new member was: “For my first outing with the club as a new member it was a fantastic evening. Great to meet members in person and thank you to Colin for all his advice.”
Telephoto lenses are a great asset for good quality images with this kind of photography, particularly the more distant ones of birds in flight. But successful images can still be taken with much more basic equipment or camera phones.
The next online meeting scheduled later in July will have a speaker, Danny Green, on the subject of The Art of Wildlife Photography. This will be a good opportunity for members to add some technical knowledge to the experience they have gained from this first outing.
There are further outdoor meetings scheduled throughout the summer and the remainder of the year into 2022. These will be in a variety of locations such as Buchollie Castle, Dunnet Beach, Dirlot Castle and Loch More.
Later in the year, darker skies will give further opportunities for some interesting outings.