Petr Podzemny

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Google ranked my web for the first time
31.10.2007 | Internet | 9579 views

Regular Google PageRank upgrade took place last week and resulted in excited discussions on many blogs as lot of blogs suffered serious PageRank tumble. Reasons for that are not known but it is axpected it was due to buying links. Little explanation at the beginning: Generaly speaking, Google Pagerank is a way Google uses to rate [ ... ]

Time to refill the feeders is about to come
28.10.2007 | Birds | 9606 views

Drizzly weather of these days enhanced with first snow last weekend reminded me of replenishing the bird feeders. I consider sunflower seed to be the best choice to feed the birds with. With this you please almost all the diners. It is fine to add apples for blackbirds or waxwings and fat for tits in [ ... ]

Seppo Leinonen - Environmental Cartoons
28.09.2007 | People | 9616 views

When I was writing about great results of Alaskan Bar-tailed Godwit satelite tracking last week it came into my mind that there was a tracking project running in Europe as well. It concerned the critically endangered Lesse White-fronted Goose. Obviously I decided to write something about this project and started googling as much related information [ ... ]

Importance of using remote shutter when shooting from tripod
31.08.2007 | Photography | 9421 views

Having some time waiting in the hide for some waders I made small test. Using Canon 400mm f/5,6L USM lens with Kenko 1,5X SHQ on Manfrotto 190PROB tripod with 141RC head I made two shots to compare. One normally with my hand on the camera body, the other using remote shutter. The difference between the [ ... ]

The Power of Better Beamer
25.08.2007 | Equipment | 5713 views

I write this post to show how powerful the Better Beamer might be in the field. Last week I visited a place where thousands of Swallows (Hirundo rustica) roost over night. Observating thousands of swallows is amazing experience itsel. Like I expected, such great amount of pray had to attract a predator. And so it [ ... ]

Insect close-up - to flash or not to flash?
14.08.2007 | Insects | 4986 views

Exact explanation of the word photography says it is drawing with light. But what to do when there is no appropriate light? Wildlife photographers have to face this problem very often. I was struggling this stuff some days ago shooting butterflies. It was cloudy, not much light and quite cold so the moths were not [ ... ]

The Arctic Tern and a fish
11.08.2007 | Animals | 5234 views

Great sharpnes of the famous EF 400mm f/5.6L USM lens brings some surprises when viewing the full resolution images from time to time. In swedish Skuleskogen National Park I was taking shots of Arctic Terns resting on stones by the sea shore. There were full grown juveniles still beeing fed by the adults. What [ ... ]

Birds of the arctic - A Little Different View
10.08.2007 | Birds | 6749 views

I guess most of you have already visited YouTube to watch some video when you had nothing better to do on the net. As there are millions of users it is no surprise that also arctic bird videos are to be found there. I wondered whether I could succeed searching for arctic birds I observed [ ... ]

Kevo Strict Nature Reserve, Finland, July 12-16 2007
08.08.2007 | Travelling | 6715 views

The Kevo Strict Nature Reserve is situated in northern Finland near Utsjoki. Finnish strict nature reserves (or natural parks, which is exact translation of finnish luonnonpuisto) are protected more strictly than national parks and the so called "every man´s right" is not valid there, so visitors are allowed to move on marked trails only [ ... ]

Be careful using the Better Beamer!
01.08.2007 | Equipment | 5399 views

Better beamer flash extender is great tool to enhance power of flash when using a telephoto lens. A Fresnel lens with simple attachment to the flash head - what a simple construction on one hand and very usefull tool on the other. But users have to realize that the Fresnel lens is nothing but a [ ... ]

Great Snipe (Gallinago media)
08.06.2007 | Birds | 8244 views

Great Snipe is one of those many waders that do not breed in the Czech Republic but can be only seen on migration. It is one of the rarer species, furthemore it´s determination from other similar species like Common Snipe or Jacksnipe requires some experience. Every observation of this species should be submitted to [ ... ]

Breeding of the Common merganser (Mergus merganser) in NE Czech Republic
05.06.2007 | Birds | 8063 views

Last year I managed to discover female Common Merganser with some ten chcicks on the Odra river near the town of Bartosovice, NE Czech Republic. Unfortunately I didn´t have the camera with me. This year I searched the area for this duck and succeeded again. On may 12th I recorded a female with 12 [ ... ]

My first record of the Ortolan (Emberiza hortulana)
04.06.2007 | Birds | 5616 views

In the beginning of may I was laying on the ground under camouflage waiting for the little ringed plover when I saw small bird landed on the opposite pool bank. I turned the lens that direction expecting the Reed Bunting which is quite common at that area but surprisingly I saw the [ ... ]

Unusal behaviour of the Common Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus)
03.06.2007 | Animals | 5661 views

When waiting with the camera somewhere you can easilly witness wierd sights. Few days ago I was sitting by a small pool where the muscrats live. I alwas thought they were strictly herbivorous but that day I had to change my opinion as I saw one muscrat grabbind dead fish and carrying it away [ ... ]