After years of planning for the perfect photo for birds, Liron Gertsman of Vancouver did it.
Now, he has been appointed bird photographer of the year, for a photo he took in 2024 off the coast of Mexico during a total solar eclipse that captured the silhouette of a frigate in flight.
The story behind the photo goes back to 20 years, when Gertsman was five years old.
“At that time, my parents had a little one, one of the basic and simpler cameras that you could get at that time, and that is what I started to take photos of birds,” he told CBC’s The early edition.
From there, his passion for photography and wildlife grew. Then, in high school, astronomy aroused its interest.
“I had these two passions: bird photography and the night sky: heavenly events. I decided that I wanted to combine them in a dramatic photo.”
It was then that he hit him: a bird in front of a total solar eclipse.
Liron Gertsman is on a mission to capture a photo of the white -tailed ptarmigan, an evasive bird that spends his entire life to great elevations. Short documentary produced for CBC Creator Network.
Total solar eclipses occur when the moon passes in front of the sun, blocking its light.
According to Nasa Fred Miranak astronomer, total solar eclipses are rare in the sense that they are only visible from a very small area on the earth’s surface. The average of any place on Earth to see a total eclipse is about Once every 375 yearsMirad said.
Gertsman discovered when and where a total solar eclipse would happen.
“On April 8, 2024 I really caught my attention because it crossed the west coast of Mexico,” he said. “The west coast of Mexico has some incredible sea bird colonies.”
He planned to know a boat to the ocean, placed next to some small islets off the coast of Mazatlan.
“I thought that during the eclipse, I would obscure. The birds would think it was night, they would fly to their island to perch,” Gertsman said.
Using the boat, you could get under them and get that perfect photo.
“I could see hundreds of frigate birds flying in front of the most spectacular I have seen, which is that total solar eclipse.”
Bucarte up and down in the ocean is not exactly the easiest way to take a picture. But Gertsman is not interested in doing things traditionally.
“You don’t get photos that have never been taken before doing things in the way they do them,” he said.
To deal with the movement in the boat, he had to obtain the configuration of his camera perfectly, and that meant a lot of practice in the days before the eclipse. He spent a lot of time adjusting the configuration of his camera and monitoring Figatebird’s behavior before April 8.
Even with all that preparation, Gertsman was nervous, the climate would hinder his photo: the clouds were in the forecast.
“I was fully prepared for the fact that it could or may not happen in the way I imagined it, and I was willing to accept the result regardless of whether it was a successful photo shoot or not, because I knew it would be a remarkable experience to simply see the total solar eclipse,” he said.
Finally, the heavens were clear and he received the shot.
Being a bird photographer of the year means that people are seeing their work, which includes other wildlife shots such as a bear that catches a fish, a group of bald eagles and a particularly patriotic photo of Canadian geese under the lights of the north.
He also won an £ 3,500 cash award, which is a little more than $ 6,500 CDN.
But the real reward, Gertsman said, is the attention that competition brings to preserve nature.
“The power of photography is to communicate how special and valuable are things like birds,” he said. “Birds really play a really shocking role in the ecosystems of the world. They inspire people.”
The early edition9:40Local wildlife photographer appointed bird photographer of the year
Vancouver -based photographer, Liron Gertsman, won by his photo entitled “The Figatebird and The Diamond Ring” taken in Mazatlan, Mexico, during a total solar eclipse.
