Photography by Ewen Bell
Photography by Ewen Bell


Bird Photography

Ewen's resources and guides for capturing birds on camera.







All About The Birds

   

While it's true that I know a lot more about cameras than I do birds, the feathered variety of wildlife has become one of my favourite photographic pursuits in recent years. As the technology to capture them gets better and easier to work with, so too the possibility for creativity and beautiful photography is more rewarding. This page is a collection of my best bird resources, feature stories and photo essays. Also, visit my tour page for information on specialty bird photography events and workshops.

Featured Articles




Custom Config for G9

My downloadable sweet setup to prime your Lumix G9 for bird action. Full explaination for each of my custom mode setups, taking advantage of the advanced continuous modes and high shutter speeds.



How To Shoot Birds

This is my #longread on bringing the world of Bird Photography into the realm of art. Technique meets creativity.



Lamington NP

Two hours drive from Brisbane or the Gold Coast is Lamington National Park and a patch of highland rainforest surrounded by valleys of eucalyptus woodlands.



Meet The Mistletoebird

Short and sweet, the life if the Mistletoebird is largely unknown to Australians. Discover what makes this little bird so wonderful.



My Other Birding Lens

Most of the bird shots on this website are captured with a 100-400mm telephoto that gives me the equivalent of 800mm reach. My other lens is not quite as long, but does offer some beautiful results.



Malachite Sunbird

Kenya is full of magnificent birds, but you don't always need to be out on safari to find them. In fact, for photographers the very best vantage ppint may be the easiest of all.




We saw some amazing birds on our Grand Outback trip this year, and luckily I had the new LUMIX GH6 to capture some of them in brilliant 4K Vlog. Take a look at our wild journey below.




Walk With Me

Ewen Bell walks through a series of photos, taken while walking local parks with camera in hand. Each video reveals insights into processing those images as well as insights into the experience of capturing them. Birds and flowers will be the main focus for this series. Ewen wants to share the joy of taking a camera for a walk in the park and making beautiful images along the way.


Take A Walk With Me




Magazine Publications




Australian Traveller

The journey south into the Australian Antarctic regions is not for the faint hearted. Dramatic ocean currents slam into an underwater ridge and toss our little ship in all directions. The rewards are magnificent, time on the beach with penguins. Flipping fantastic.


Silk Winds

One of the great charms of Silk Winds as a publication is that they still do photo essays, and usually really really beautiful ones. So I didn't blink at the chance to share a collection of Australian wildlife from the Top End.


National Geographic Traveller

Have always had a soft spot for puffins but most of my encounters have been from a zodiac in the choppy waves enroute to northern waters of the Arctic. Just for once I wanted to stand on shore and photograph them coming in to land. So I headed to the Shetland Islands, and loved it.

Photo Essays




Birds of Uluru

This photo essay shows what you can find just hanging around the bush when you visit Uluru. They were taken during a 3-day stop over with a photography workshop. We chased the sunset and sunrise in the park, but found some time to focus on our feathered friends too.



Arnhemland

Every year I head up to the Top End of Australia and spend a couple days shooting wildlife. This year we went back to Arnhemland and that beautiful wetlands of Mount Borradaile. This spot is marvellous for wetlands birds, big and small.



City Parrots

On the edge of Melbourne CBD are some really lovely parklands, and really lovely flowering gums, and about 17 different species of parrots. This photo essay highlights just how easy it is to walk through Melbourne's parks and find a little colour to photograph.


BIRDING WITH LUMIX

In September 2021 I held a live stream on bird photography with Panasonic Australia. Meet a few of our amazing birds, both in the Outback and the city, plus find out what makes the Lumix G9 such an amazing bit of kit for bringing the joy back to bird photography.


Replay on YouTube



Western Gerygone

This lovely little songster turned up in Melbourne's Royal Park in the winter of 2018, which is a wonderful treat for bird lovers but equally a harbinger of the climate in chaos.


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Birds of Kenya

After two weeks in Kenya the lazy lions were easily overshadowed by the brilliance and diveristy of birds.


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Feathers of the Dragon

In 2019 I instigated a project to raise awareness for habitat conservation in the Himalayas. Thanks to generous sponsorship from Panasonic Australia I was able to gather a team to visit Bhutan and curate an exhibition titled "Feathers of the Dragon". It was displayed at the 2019 Ballarat International Foto Biennale. See below for the archive of that exhibition page, and a video featuring Ray Martin who was our celebrity guest for the project.








More Photos




Birds of Kenya

Many of my favourite moments on safari in Kenya happen when relaxing around the lodges. In the shaded forests and gardens of a tented camp it's possible to enjoy the company of dozens of birds, without needing to drive all over the Masai Mara and without having to worry about a lion eating you.



Shetland Islands

I had the pelasure to join Hugh Harrop for a week of puffin chasing in the Shetland Islands. We gathered lots of gannets and guillemots onto our memory cards too, and enjoyed some beautiful scenery. I highly recommend time with Hugh on his wildlife adventures.



Puffins & Polar Bears

Wrangle Island has the highest concentration of polar bears in the world each summer, as the ice retreats and the bears are left isolated on dry land. The journey to Wrangle through the Bering Strait also allows for some puffin spotting from the water.



Spring Cockatoos

Spring has arrived in Melbourne and the Sulphur-crested Cockatoos are back in town. Some mornings they rumble our apartment block in the middle of the CBD, and other times I have to walk down to the Yarra River to see them. They're friendly and gentle and such a joy in the middle of a pandemic!.