Workshop series 2022 update

PSNZ Workshop Series 2022

Workshop 1 – Forest Bird Photography at Bushy Park Tarapuruhi with Toya Heatley APSNZ AFIAP

Bushy Park Tarapuruhi is situated just 20 minutes from Whanganui and is a predator-fenced forest sanctuary. In the sanctuary, you will find an abundance of birds, including hihi, tieke, toutouwai, kererū and tūī, to name a few.

The forest is full of bird song, and it is easy to find and photograph the birds. There is also a small wetland area with a boardwalk where pūkeko and kingfishers (kōtare) are plentiful.

The workshop will start on Friday evening at the Whanganui Camera Club rooms, with a presentation on photographing birds in low light situations without using flash. Toya will share tips and tricks that she has learned over many years of bird photography. She will go over camera settings and techniques, including shutter speeds, aperture, focus modes and much more.

On Saturday, we will head out to Bushy Park Tarapurhi and spend the day putting what you have learned into practice. There are toilets at the park entrance, and most tracks are easy walking. There are a few steps on some of the tracks and some steep areas.

While a long lens is useful for bird photography, this venue allows us to get closer to the birds. If your biggest lens is a 70-300mm zoom, you will still be able to capture the birds in this forest setting. Toya will be on hand to assist you throughout the shoot.