Guillemots - part 1

One of the birds I had relatively few images of, despite their numbers on the Farnes, is the Guillemot. Nesting on cliff edges, they can often be seen in large groups on top of the cliffs, but until this trip I had relatively few opportunities to photograph them close up. They also present a photographer a couple of challenges. Firstly the simple challenge of both dark (chocolate brown) and white plumage. The other related challenge is that of a dark eye that can often get lost within the chocolate dark plumage. So I was actually quite pleased when the conditions became overcast, reducing the contrast and making photographing these birds slightly easier.

My first set of images is of individual portraits or group shots.

GuillemotsFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

GuillemotFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK GuillemotFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

GuillemotsFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

GuillemotsFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

GuillemotsFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

GuillemotsFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

These last two images are of a Bridled Guillemot, with the striking white eye line and line back from the eye.

Bridled GuillemotFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK

Bridled GuillemotFarne Islands, Northumberland, UK