BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA
Ruhulameen Sheikh
My photography journey began with a school photography competition in October 2023. The topic was birds and wildlife on Dharug Country in Spring, and I won Cockatoo week! From that day on, I began to see the potential of photography as a hobby. It was very strange, for whilst I was aware of photography, I had never paid much thought to it. Suddenly here I was, imagining all the possibilities that came with capturing images of birds. After exploring social media and doing research, I found out that not many people know of Australia’s unique and diverse bird life. I decided this would be the focus of my work, to share the species of Australia that were usually otherwise unheard of.
I have always been a huge fan of birds, and after living in the Blue Mountains for a couple of years, I have befriended a few of the birds that visit my garden. I can recognise individual Crimson Rosellas, from their flocks of 20 that come to feast on the native plants, and although Brown Cuckoo Doves are hard to tell apart based on appearance, I have been able to recognise a few based on their patterns of behaviour. As soon as I started taking photos, my hard disk began to fill quickly, with photos of the charismatic Crimson Rosellas, timid Brown Cuckoo Doves, territorial yet sweet magpies, family centred King Parrots, brave Grey Butcherbirds, Honeyeaters and Bowerbirds, just from my garden alone. I even got a photo of the majestic and awe-inspiring Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo, feasting on pinecones during my holiday to Batemans Bay. I was ecstatic to achieve that personal goal. My next aim is to capture a Gang-Gang Cockatoo, so watch this space!
This article first appeared in PRISMA, Issue 15.