There are lots of reasons why bird photography isn’t easy. Here’s one of them.
Many photographers have difficulty getting even a perched bird critically sharp while using a long lens that by definition will have a shallow field of focus. But when the bird is in flight the degree of difficulty is magnified exponentially because of the challenges of keeping an erratically and fast-moving subject in sharp focus. With skill the task can be manageable if the background is clean (sky for example) or far away from the bird which makes it significantly easier for the focusing mechanism to lock on to the bird instead of the background.
But if there’s a textured background very close to the bird a hurried plea to the gods of photography is in order because without their help you’re most likely to get a sharp background but the bird will be a blurry blob.
But occasionally, very occasionally, the photography gods do interdict on your behalf…
1/2000, f/8, ISO 500, 500 f/4, not baited, set up or called in
This male Northern Harrier was hunting the edges of a relatively straight wall of phragmites next to a dirt road at Farmington Bay. In order to hunt this productive area he would fly very close to the wall of plants as he passed between me and the phragmites, which kept him as far away from my pickup as possible. He made several passes like this, looking down most of the time but when he was closest to me he would quickly glance my way to check me out.
Somehow I managed to get two sharp shots of him as he passed – this is one of them. His right wing-tip was only inches from the plants so I ended up culling dozens of sharp shots of phragmites. You’ll notice from my techs that I wasn’t using my teleconverter (tc) at the time – if I had been, even those two shots would have been blurry (the tc slows down focusing). Ironically this image is one of the sharpest flight shots in my portfolio.
Which just goes to show that if you plug away at it long enough you can eventually get lucky.
Ron
For those who follow your blog, it sometimes seems a foregone conclusion that we’ll be seeing superb, tack-sharp images on a daily basis. It is all too easy to forget what goes into obtaining those images. Expensive equipment, research of subjects and areas, travel, technical skills developed over a long period and, most of all, patience.
Thank you for sharing your life with us, Ron! I’m still relatively new at this but sure appreciate what you go through for a photograph!
Stunning! Wow!
Hey Ron,
Beautiful shot…It is hard enough to get a great shot of the female Harrier. I have only seen a male on two or three occasions and he was there and gone in a matter of seconds. This is a great capture. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Paul Marto
Beautiful image what more could I say. Patience pays off.
Did you have to take your converter off quickly? Male harriers
are my holy grail. Beautiful
Craig
“Lucky” is what one might say if I had taken that picture, lol…..you my friend, are a skilled photographer! What an awesome shot!
Tim
Fantastic! I feel like I could pick him right out of the photo.
Thank you to all who commented and said such positive things about this image. As always I appreciate your support and input.
I realize that many who follow my blog are not photographers and when I publish posts like this one (heavy on the process of photography rather than the results) much of what I have to say may not be of great interest to some. But you still comment and support.
I think that’s pretty neat…
Really nice!
He may be checking you out, but to me He’s saying, “How do I look, Ron?” I’ve seen you before, so this pass is for you!!
Excellent shot Ron!!
And a photo like this would have to go a loooong way towards making up for all the frustrations that you experience. And I agree with Dick – I don’t think luck had a great deal to do with this shot.
An extraordinary, memorable shot. And that expression on his face, a mysterious invitation to anthropomorphize. I love the settings too which are my own inverted: 1/500, f8, ISO2000. Are bird call apps popular there? An unforgettable photo.
Are you sure the bird was checking you out? It looks more like he was aware of the camera and posing for it! (I know he really was checking you out, because that’s what any smart bird would do.)
it’s a stunner!! well done!!!
Hi Ron,
Remember the old saying? Luck come to the person who is prepared? I believe your knowledge, skill and preparation contributed to this “lucky” shot.
And, we’re lucky to benefit from your “luck”…
Cheers, Dick
Yes Indeed – Luck and Skill.
Great moment! Congratulations
Stunning shot.
Simply Gorgeous, Ron!
Beautiful shot of a beautiful, super streamlined bird…he looks like he was flying only a few feet above the ground…Those pesky phragmites sure are packed close together….seems like they can grow almost anywhere. I wonder how they got here…they aren’t a native specie and have crowded out so many that are, like cattails…
“I wonder how they got here”
Patty, there are many strains of phragmites and some are actually native to N. America, though those strains are less invasive and problematic than the introduced varieties. Many of those came from Europe and they don’t know for sure how they got here though one possibility is in ship ballast.
Thanks very much, Charlotte and John.
Incredible Photo Ron , Congrats !
Wow! That’s sensational Ron!
Charlotte