That parakeet video

Good grief, the tabloids had a field day with my short video on AirHeads, about decoying a parakeet that was shredding my apple trees. I was labelled "deranged" by the Evening Standard, and "super posh" by the Mirror.

In fact this destructive alien invader has been on the General Licence for a while, for the specific purpose of allowing people to protect things like... well, fruit trees. That didn't stop the RSPB, Animal Aid, PETA and other loonies making misleading statements to the press, giving the impression that shooting parakeets was probably illegal and I would most likely be banged up.

The video attracted some classic "hate" comments - the usual threats to kill or maim me (you gotta love these animal lovers), including one from a chap so incompetent that his mobile phone number is still just two clicks away from his threat to "put me in a wheelchair for the rest of my life". My favourite was the one that said I deserved to "be sodomised by a large African man". Tautology, racism and homophobia in one short phrase - that's got to be some sort of record!

Anyway, enjoy the video!

Share|

Pigeon decoying in Essex

The Shooting Show this week features my piece on pigeonshooting in Essex, with Blaze Publishing boss Wes Stanton shooting with gamekeeper Geoff Garrod. It was a lovely day, if anything a bit too hot, but we were set up in the shade of the cherry trees with a nice breeze cooling us so I'm not complaining!

I'm still experimenting with settings on the XF100, and although I'm not there yet, the files come into FCP looking pretty good, with nice exposure and good colour balance and saturation. Oh, apart from the bit where I set the aperture manually (for the interview with Geoff) and then forgot to put it back on auto. Schoolboy error which I largely managed to correct in post - and by good fortune it also gave me a really fast shutter speed for the shots of pigeons coming in to the decoys. I might do that on purpose in future, just so long as I make sure I'm not overexposing in the process.

Also in this video, you'll see footage from my Sony HDR AS15, an alternative to the ubiquitous GoPro. I prefer the shape of the Sony, which lends itself better to being strapped to the side of a gun etc - and the footage is nothing short of amazing for such a tiny cam.

Just as an aside, filming the boss of your biggest client is not good for the nerves!

Share|

Meet the future - FUD

This is a FUD (Fold Up Decoy). Produced by an Australian company, it's supposed to be the next big thing in decoying. I've had a look at them at the Midland Game Fair, where they're being sold by decoying.co.uk, the official UK importer.

It seems great - basically the decoy is made of neoprene with a fabric facing (similar to a mouse mat), printed with photo-quality images of the quarry - there are already pigeons, duck, geese and crows available, with more species coming soon.

The great thing is they're light and easy to carry - you can clip a couple of dozen to your belt. Once in position, fold them out and set them up. The design allows 'feeding' and 'sentry' positions, and the duck decoys will float right-way-up.

Plus the people behind them are full of enthusiasm and promotional ideas - I reckon we'll be seeing a lot more of FUDs over the coming months. They're on sale at the Midland GF for £25 for a pack of 6 pigeon deeks; if you can't make it to the Midland check out www.decoying.co.uk for more info.