‘Birding with the 3rd eye’
Dushantha Wasala’s photograph “The Battlefield” showing a mid-air fight of Malabar Pied Hornbills was the overall winner of the “Birding with the 3rd Eye” exhibition. Sandaruwan Abayaratne, S.N.P. Rodrigo, Dr. Gihan Rajeev and Dr. Sudheera Bandara won first prize in the categories Bird portrait, Bird behaviour, Endemic and Rare Birds and Birds in Crisis respectively.
Overall Winner : Dushantha Wasala – Battle Field
Today is the final day of the exhibition being held at the University of Colombo with the aim of reminding nature lovers that the birds’ welfare should come first and that the ethical photographer can explore a great deal of birdlife – undisturbed.
The exhibition contains 150 photographs selected from the competition held recently. Nearly 100 photographers submitted close to 500 bird photographs and an independent panel of judges – wildlife photographers – Kithsiri Gunawardane, Mendis Wickremasinghe and Isuru Udana de Zoysa selected the winners.
“It is good to see people are getting more and more interested on nature, but at the same time the same excitement should not disturb nature. Our main aim is to raise awareness that the animal’s welfare should come first,” said Dr. Sampath Seneviratne of the Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka (FOGSL) that coordinated the exhibition.
Photographers always try to go close to the birds to take their photos. But it is important to keep a safe distance. If the animal shows signs of distress, then you should stop disturbing it. You also need to be patient – never force an action. The most beautiful photographs result from natural action,” Dr. Seneviratne added.
Nest photography is another area that photographers need to be careful about. Never encroach on nests as certain species will abandon the young. Some birds select a safer place that is hidden from the predators, but if you remove foliage to get a good shot, you could be exposing the nest.
So educate yourselves by learning about birds that will allow you to take a good bird photograph without disturbing them, appeals the Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka.
Veteran Herpetologist and expert wildlife photographer Mendis Wickremasinghe says the competition is unique as it has different categories helping to recognise different aspects of bird photography. The competitors could submit the photos under categories such as Bird portrait, Bird behaviour, Endemic and Rare Birds, Birds in Crisis. “If these are judged under the same category, it is natural that a Bird Behaviour photo emerge the winner. But in this format, even a portrait kind of photo is recognised,” he explained.
With the experience of judging the photos, Mendis said there were lots photos submitted for Bird Portrait and Behaviours; but very few for categories such as ‘Birds in Crisis’ and ‘Birds Habitats’. “It looks like photographers have not properly understood these categories, meaning their attention is mainly on taking a photograph. But these are categories photographers can contribute toward conservation through educating others through their photos,” Mendis added.
The Birding with the 3rd Eye exhibition and the P.B. Karunaratne Bird Exhibition are open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. today at the Department of Zoology, University of Colombo.