I have a lot of friends who are bird photographers that I refer to as “birders”. I have never been that interested in capturing photos of birds, preferring to capture landscapes instead. The few times I have tried to capture photos of birds, they are never good, especially when they are in flight. It takes great skill and practice to be a good bird photographer and I simply have never wanted to invest the time (and money for the long lenses that are a requirement to be good at it). Last December, on safari in South Africa, I decided to give it a try since I had my long lens for wildlife photos. I read up as much as I could before the trip and was fortunate to be with two of my best friends on the trip that gave me tips along the way. I shot quite a number of shots during the trip and sometime in the middle of the trip, I got some photos that I was pleased with for the first time. This Lilac Breasted Roller was the first one I liked and, while it was my first decent shot, it doesn’t match the work of my birder friends.