[shuttertalk]

Hiya all! Just got back from my trip to Phillip Island, where the main attraction for tourists is the Penguin Parade. They've built some seating right up on the beach where the little fairy penguins come at dusk each night, to return to their burrows. It's quite a good experience, just watching the little tackers bob in on the waves, gather in groups and then march inland...

I was quite disappointed though, after bringing my tripod and long zoom lens, to find some large signs saying "no photography outside of the visitor centre". Yes, you read right. No photography period. Not "no flash photography", but rather, "no photography".

I do understand that these are wildlife and it's in very dark conditions - so thousands of flashes going off will probably have some adverse effect on the penguins. But a couple of things - people generally get there about 1 to 1.5 hours before sunset/penguins - and I wanted to get some photos of the sunset and my family, but still no photography means no photography. The other thing is that I was planning on using a tripod and no flash, but no photography means no photography.

I suppose the counter argument is that most people with point and shoots wouldn't know what long exposure means let alone know how to turn their flashes off. And as soon as one person pulls out a camera, everyone else would follow suit. But still, it's quite disappointing when people who know what they're doing get disadvantaged because of the ignorance of others...


Anyway, I did manage to sneak in a few penguin photos, so enjoy:

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