One of the things I love about wildlife photography is that, not only are the various animals we chase beautiful, but the landscapes we find them in can be pretty stunning too. The West Coast National Park is absolutely gorgeous, especially looking out across the turquoise lagoon from the top of the Seeberg View Point. We were buffeted by the wind a bit, but it came with an unforeseen bonus.

Enjoying the wind that was enhancing my mohawk were three Rock Kestrels (Falco rupicolus). I may have mentioned before my soft-spot for birds of prey, but Kestrels are some of my favourites, and with a great background to work with, it was a perfect opportunity. The only problem with photographing Kestrels windsurfing is that, well, they’re rather swift birds.

I managed some shots that I’m quite happy with though, and had a great time watching them hang and dive in the wind. There was a little bit of playful dog-fighting that unfortunately went unphotographed – I need to work on my reflexes a bit! The light, thankfully, was easy to manage with clouds blocking out any harsh shadows and bringing out the colour in the lagoon, which served as a wonderful backdrop.

And finally, a Rock Kestrel actually on a rock. They’re very pretty little birds, and seemed to be curious as to why we were aiming big eyes at them. To see them leap so easily in to the air was breathtaking. Sometimes, I’d love to be a bird.