Canon Camera Store Week 2026: A Day of Bird Photography at the Hawk Conservancy with Ellie Rothnie

Canon Camera Store Week 2026: A Day of Bird Photography at the Hawk Conservancy with Ellie Rothnie

As part of our Canon Camera Store Week 2026 celebrations, we were delighted to return to the Hawk Conservancy Trust in Andover for another fantastic day of bird photography.

This year, we were joined by Canon Ambassador and wildlife photographer Ellie Rothnie, who spent the day sharing her knowledge, experience and enthusiasm for photographing birds in flight. With three spectacular flying demonstrations, plenty of opportunities to try Canon's latest cameras and telephoto lenses, and expert guidance from Ellie throughout the day, it proved to be a brilliant experience for everyone who joined us.

A fantastic setting for bird photography

The Hawk Conservancy Trust is an incredible location for wildlife photography. Set within 22 acres of countryside, the Trust is home to a wide variety of birds of prey and hosts spectacular flying demonstrations throughout the day.

For photographers, it offers something particularly special: the chance to photograph birds at close range as they fly, swoop, glide and soar through a variety of environments.

Our customers had three opportunities throughout the day to put their photography skills to the test, with each flying demonstration providing different birds, backgrounds and lighting conditions to work with.

And, of course, there's nothing quite like the moment a bird suddenly comes towards you at speed with your camera trained on it!

Credit: David Cutler

Learning from Canon Ambassador Ellie Rothnie

One of the real highlights of the day was having Ellie Rothnie with us throughout the event.

Ellie is a Canon Ambassador, professional wildlife photographer, tour leader and photographic guide, with extensive experience photographing wildlife both in the UK and around the world. Her work has been recognised in a number of international photography competitions, and she has spent many years helping photographers improve their skills in the field.

Rather than simply talking about wildlife photography in theory, Ellie was able to work directly with our customers throughout the day.

She helped photographers understand how to get the best from their cameras, offering practical advice on shutter speed, autofocus, tracking moving subjects, exposure and camera settings.

Most importantly, Ellie encouraged everyone to think about the type of image they wanted to create and then showed them how to adjust their camera settings accordingly.

Whether someone was trying to freeze the wings of a fast-moving bird, capture a bird gliding gracefully through the frame or simply get sharper and more consistent results, Ellie was always on hand with advice.

Three flying demonstrations, three opportunities to shoot

With three different flying demonstrations taking place throughout the day, there was no shortage of opportunities to practise.

Each display brought its own challenges, from birds moving quickly across the sky to those flying directly towards the photographers. The changing backgrounds and light also meant that customers had to adapt their settings as the day progressed.

Credit: David Cutler

This was where Ellie's guidance really came into its own.

After making adjustments between displays, customers could immediately put the advice into practice and see how those changes affected their images.

Credit: David Cutler

It's one thing to read about bird photography settings or watch a video about autofocus techniques, but being able to make a change and immediately see the difference while photographing a bird in flight is a completely different experience.

Trying Canon's latest wildlife photography equipment

As well as learning from Ellie, customers had the opportunity to get hands-on with a selection of Canon EOS R cameras and RF telephoto lenses.

Credit: David Cutler

The Hawk Conservancy provides the perfect environment to test this equipment in a genuine wildlife photography situation. Rather than photographing static subjects in a shop, our customers could put cameras, autofocus systems and long lenses through their paces while trying to track real birds in flight.

For anyone considering upgrading their camera or investing in a longer telephoto lens, it's an invaluable opportunity to find out what different combinations can actually do in the field.

And there were certainly some impressive pieces of Canon kit being put to work!

Credit: David Cutler

Inspiration as well as practical advice

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the day was just how inspired everyone was by Ellie and her approach to wildlife photography.

Credit: David Cutler

Her enthusiasm for photographing birds was infectious, and she demonstrated that getting great wildlife images isn't simply about having the biggest lens or the latest camera. Understanding your subject, anticipating behaviour and knowing how to configure your camera for the situation are all hugely important.

Throughout the day, Ellie encouraged everyone to experiment, try different settings and, most importantly, enjoy the process of photographing wildlife.

Credit: David Cutler

By the end of the day, our customers weren't just leaving with memory cards full of bird photography — they were leaving with new ideas and techniques to take away and try on their own photography.

Another brilliant Castle Cameras event

We'd like to say a huge thank you to Ellie Rothnie, Canon and the team at the Hawk Conservancy Trust for helping to make the day such a success.

Credit: David Cutler

Most of all, though, we'd like to thank everyone who joined us.

Seeing our customers enjoying themselves, sharing photographs, trying new equipment and helping each other throughout the day is exactly what we love about running events like this.

The Hawk Conservancy Trust has once again provided an incredible backdrop for a day of photography, and having Ellie with us made this year's Canon Camera Store Week event particularly special.

Credit: David Cutler

If you're interested in bird photography, wildlife photography or photographing birds in flight, we'd certainly recommend putting the Hawk Conservancy on your list of places to visit. The Trust's flying demonstrations provide some fantastic photographic opportunities, while its beautiful grounds and wide variety of birds make it a great day out for photographers of all abilities.

We'll be looking forward to seeing what photographic adventures we can bring you next!