West photographer Richard Austin has spent more than quarter of a century focusing his lenses on birds, but this is the first time he's had to pretend to be one in order to grab ornithological images.
Yesterday Richard was given exclusive access to a secret location on the Somerset Levels making him the first photographer to ever successfully take pictures of cranes flying in the region's skies.
The last time the tall wetland birds lived and bred here was 400 years ago.
But now 20 young cranes are in the process of being released on the Somerset Levels as the first stage of a unique project comes to fruition. The birds were imported as eggs from Germany and have since been raised by Wildfowl and Wetland Trust (WWT) and RSPB staff wearing special crane costumes so that the youngsters would never form a bond with humans.
"It was difficult taking photos dressed as a crane because you have to hide your facial features behind gauze," said Mr Austin. "They are all-in- one suits that break up the form of the human being – the young birds simply think you are another crane.
"If you took off the suit they'd fly off quick," he added after his successful mission. "You even have to wear it all the way back to the car so they don't see you take it off."
The Great Crane Project aims to reintroduce cranes to where they were once common. Project manager Damon Bridge said: "From first collecting the eggs from Germany back in April our aviculturalists have been working round the clock to give these birds all the care and attention they need. We are now at the point where they are making their first forays into the wild and over the next few weeks we are looking forward to them getting used to their new home in the Somerset Levels and Moors."
The project, a partnership between RSPB, WWT and Pensthorpe Conservation Trust, with major funding from Viridor Credits Environmental Company, hopes to establish a wild population of the species in Somerset over the next decade.
Aviculturalists Amy King and Roland Digby with the cranes
