Bird photographer Kuo Keng-kuang is known to many as "the Birdman," but in his other life he runs his own business; in the course of this, when he was 58 his company secured the Taiwanese retail rights to Olympus' E1 single-lens reflex camera, and he decided he needed to give the product a trial run. As a member of the Wild Bird Society of Taipei, and armed with beginner's courage, he decided to try his hand at one subject even old hands at photography are wont to avoid, birds.
Picking up his E1--a camera known as "The Cannon"--Kuo hit the hills to chase down some birds, shooting at anything so much as a silhouette, not even sure what he'd photograph most of the time. Gradually he became more and more skilled, until he could accurately capture the birds' poses, movements, and even the looks in their eyes. Kuo would go out and shoot at least once a week, spending a full day at a time, and in three short years he had already held two exhibitions, had two books published, and become a sensation in Taiwan's avian photography circle.
Over 200 species of bird have been the subject of Kuo's passion so far, including not only the four beautiful specimens on display here, but also the glorious red face and blue chest of the rare Swinhoe's Pheasant; the Crested Goshawk; the spread-winged dance of the Yellow-bellied Prinia; and the Pheasant-tailed Jacana's coquettish poses amidst the lotus leaves.
Whether it's some special feature of the E1 or Kuo's own special knack for understanding our feathered friends, the most surprising element of Kuo's photos is the way each bird's expression comes through brightly, vividly, and seriously, as though it were a model, striking a pose for its own photographer.
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