Sleepy Sparrowhawk.
22nd April 2019
Over the last week the juvenile Sparrowhawk that is visiting our garden on a regular basis, (see previous blogs), has been resting underneath a Cotoneaster shrub during the heat of the day. A few days ago I decided to try and capture him on video. I don’t have a dedicated video camera so I used the video feature on my canon 5D Mk IV camera to try and get some footage.
I could see the branch that he was perching on regularly, so I set the camera and lens up about 18 inches away, on a small wooden box covered with some camo netting.
There are some inherent problems with filming like this, principally because I had to try and predict what part of the branch he would perch on, focus on that point and then switch off the autofocus to stop the lens possibly hunting around to focus, thereby getting blurred images or even spooking him with the noise of the focussing motor. Also, because of EU regulations, (ARRRGH!!!), top end stills cameras that have video functions are classified as video cameras, thereby, falling under the film industries taxation laws. This means in short that if your camera is able to take videos longer than 30mins then it is liable for tax. This would cost the manufacturers of these cameras money, which would be passed on to the customer, thereby increasing prices and impacting on sales.
As a result of the above, I had to reset the filming sequence, because it had stopped every 30mins and hope that the bird didn’t arrive when I was doing so. More frustratingly, it is not possible currently on Canon DSLR cameras to trigger the video function remotely, because you have to press a button to lock the mirror up before you can take a video.
I went through this procedure a few times until luckily I managed to record him on the branch, he is not ideally framed but that was all I had. On the day I filmed him he sat under the Cotoneaster for two hours but the camera had switched itself off after 30mins. Very annoying, but that’s wildlife and that’s EU regulations.
In the heat of the day he became progressively sleepier – please see video below.
https://youtu.be/Z2PySTmy7zY
I could see the branch that he was perching on regularly, so I set the camera and lens up about 18 inches away, on a small wooden box covered with some camo netting.
There are some inherent problems with filming like this, principally because I had to try and predict what part of the branch he would perch on, focus on that point and then switch off the autofocus to stop the lens possibly hunting around to focus, thereby getting blurred images or even spooking him with the noise of the focussing motor. Also, because of EU regulations, (ARRRGH!!!), top end stills cameras that have video functions are classified as video cameras, thereby, falling under the film industries taxation laws. This means in short that if your camera is able to take videos longer than 30mins then it is liable for tax. This would cost the manufacturers of these cameras money, which would be passed on to the customer, thereby increasing prices and impacting on sales.
As a result of the above, I had to reset the filming sequence, because it had stopped every 30mins and hope that the bird didn’t arrive when I was doing so. More frustratingly, it is not possible currently on Canon DSLR cameras to trigger the video function remotely, because you have to press a button to lock the mirror up before you can take a video.
I went through this procedure a few times until luckily I managed to record him on the branch, he is not ideally framed but that was all I had. On the day I filmed him he sat under the Cotoneaster for two hours but the camera had switched itself off after 30mins. Very annoying, but that’s wildlife and that’s EU regulations.
In the heat of the day he became progressively sleepier – please see video below.
https://youtu.be/Z2PySTmy7zY