Photo fest puts feathers in focus

Birds and wildlife will be in the spotlight in a captivating photo-graphy display this month.

The sixth annual South Coast Festival of Birds and Biodiversity, hosted jointly by BirdLife WA and GreenSkills, will kick off in March with a photographic exhibition by internationally acclaimed 2018 Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2018, Georgina Steytler.

Her free exhibition, Feathered & Furred — Celebrating South Coast Fauna, opened on Friday, March 1 at Three Anchors, Middleton Beach.

The passionate photographer said guests could expect to see images of birds and other wildlife in the region. “It’s a photography exhibition based around the festival and I’ve put together some photos of birds that are found in the area as well as some other furry animals, too,” she said.

“I’m hoping to encourage people to think more about what animals are in the region and to appreciate the animals.

“My photos are about capturing the birds and animals, and some have such big, beautiful, personalities.”

Mrs Steytler said she enjoyed shooting around Albany and the Great Southern region.

“I take a lot of my photos from around the Albany area. I love taking photos from the King River area and the port. I think it’s important to show animals in their environment co-existing with humans,” she said.

“It’s incredible down in Albany. I love Two People’s Bay and the beautiful coastline.”

She said she would also do a talk in March on her top tips on photographing animals.

“My top tips are shooting in the right light and utilising natural light, capturing the animal’s personality and just enjoy seeing the animal’s personality shine through the photographs,” she said.

The exhibition will be open from tomorrow at 6pm and run until the end of the month, with daily openings from 10am-4pm.