Golden Eagle – Some Progress On A Nemesis

By Ron Dudley, on February 21st, 2012

Anyone who follows this blog knows that I have a penchant for raptors and over the last 6 years of photographing them I can count on one hand the number of good opportunities I’ve had with Golden Eagles.  I had another chance at one yesterday on Antelope Island.  I almost didn’t spot this bird because it was hunkered down so far in the sagebrush (here it is standing more erect in anticipation of flight). 

 

golden-eagle-3278

 1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc

I knew that my only chance for a few decent images would be at take-off or just after but the angle of light was a problem – the bird was facing almost directly into the sun.  If it veered to its right I’d get butt shots and probably lose the head behind the wings.  If it turned to its left the face would be in shadow and I’d get no catch light.  What can you do but wait, be ready for lift-off and hope for the best from a less than ideal situation?

 

 

 golden-eagle-3284

 1/1250, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc

 Thankfully the eagle launched straight ahead which gave me the best light I could hope for under the circumstances. 

 

 

golden-eagle-3285

 1/1250, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc

 

For the first wing-beat I got light on the head and a catch light in two images - then the bird turned slightly toward me and that light was lost.  I got several more sharp shots with dynamic flight poses but the face was completely shaded.  Curses !!!

I particularly like the good look at the golden crown and nape in this photo. 

If the sun had been more behind me I think I might have nailed quite a few flight shots that would have vanquished my nemesis.  As it turned out I got two fairly good images that are better than anything I have in my files on the species.  So the way I look at it I’m making progress but my nemesis quest continues…

Ron

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February 21st, 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , | Category: Antelope Island, Birds, Diurnal Raptors, Favorite Locations, Golden Eagles | 9 comments

Just A Shot That I Like… #21 – Red-tailed Hawk In Dramatic Light

By Ron Dudley, on February 20th, 2012

Strongly directional light can be a blessing or a curse and all too often it’s the latter.  It makes proper exposure a challenge because it’s very easy to blow the highlights and/or have shadows so deep that there’s no detail there at all.  But when things work out the effect can be appealing and dramatic.   

 

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 1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc

This old cedar stump is a favorite perch of Red-tailed Hawks at the base of Utah’s Stansbury Mountains in the west desert.  It’s usually a frustrating situation for me though because I can’t access a proper position to get the sun behind me and for most of the day the sidelight is just too harsh for an exposure that works well.  But on this one morning the hawk was on the stump just as the sun came over the Oquirrh Mountains to the east so the light was soft and warm enough to make an exposure that I liked and I thought the shaded upper background worked well with the light on the bird’s head.

Ron 

Ron 

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February 20th, 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , | Category: Birds, Diurnal Raptors, Red-tailed Hawks | 3 comments
 
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