In the past, every time I introduced foreign friends to the beauty of my country, I “led” them to the majestic mountains and rivers and architectural heritage. Now I often go to the forest to play and sometimes meet guests who fly thousands of kilometers to quietly watch the native birds and listen to them sing, not just for the purpose of taking pictures and filming. I realized that there are only Vietnamese birds, only Vietnamese birds. Even better, it is also the beauty of the country and the common property of this earth.
At first, with my eyes almost completely devoted to the pages on the computer screen, I didn’t believe I would be able to take photos of birds soaring in the sky. Then with time of observation and experience, I finally did what I loved. From then on, I regretted that I did not have enough conditions to go far away, to many places that were habitats for rare birds.
Now I tell myself to continue wishing while discovering 104 species of birds at Son Tra, the beautiful forest in the coastal city of Da Nang where I live and work. And I also realized that sometimes my whole life is not enough to have a truly beautiful photo of a country stork.
I thought that now I don’t have to do journalism anymore, I just have a camera in my hand here on the mountains and rivers for entertainment. Then I gradually realized that “I can’t run away from the sun”, because I realized that the topicality was still haunting somewhere in my photos. Like once following the trail of a stray bird into a deserted hamlet along the Co Co River waiting for the construction of a new urban area, I met a farmer who silently returned to visit the old garden, where lotus still bloomed in the dried-up pond, rice still grew among the reeds, The stork is still familiar with the old flight path. Seeing my shadow, the man quickly turned his back to hide the tears in his eyes… Taking a photo of a bird in the sky made my heart sink to the ground on the day the strawberry burst.
The most beautiful thing about taking photos of wildlife is developing a good love for all animals. In the winter of 2018, I went to Son Tra forest almost every day. That is the time when birds from North and East Asian countries escape the snow and come here to warm up in the sun.
The last week of migratory bird season, I accidentally befriended a Siberian Red-throated Robin. Once, sometimes twice, every day I bring Oanh fat, fragrant rice worms. Once he got used to it, just by hearing my footsteps, it appeared from the thick myrtle bush. Never before have I been able to take photos of wild birds at such a close distance, only about two meters.
On the last day of the lunar year, Oanh returned to her hometown, where spring was coming, leaving a void in Son Tra forest and in my heart. It’s so sad for the little lonely bird during the six weeks of the Da Nang-Siberia flight. Hope to see you again in winter 2020.
