Yesterday morning I decided to break with one of my long-standing traditions and brave the potential crowds by visiting one of the more popular birding sites in the area on a weekend – Glover Pond near Farmington Bay WMA. One of my goals was to locate and photograph the Little Blue Heron that has been hanging around in the area for the last couple of weeks. That bird is causing a lot of excitement in the birding and photography communities because it’s so far out of its range. I never did find that heron but this one more than made up for it.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
It’s virtually unheard of for me to get this many sharp shots of a landing bird in relatively good light with no body parts clipped, interesting flight postures and a good look at the eye. In addition I only had to add canvas to one of the thirteen images to make the composition acceptable. I’ll provide very little narration and let the images speak mostly for themselves – for better or for worse. All images are presented in sequence.
By the time I saw the heron coming in and was able to lock focus it was already dragging its feet slightly in order to slow down so it could hit its chosen landing spot.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Still mostly gliding but with the feet raised again.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I like the flattened flight posture here even though the horizontal wing position doesn’t present much surface area for the viewer to see.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
In this image I enjoy the head and neck poking out from the curved wing canopy.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
The heron is now becoming serious about landing as it begins to draw its legs and feet forward.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
It flares its wings…
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, canvas added for composition, not baited, set up or called in
and prepares to plant its feet in the shallow water. As I said in yesterday’s post I’m often interested in (obsessed by?) the “little things” and I did notice that the small, white floating feather in the water in this image and the previous one gives an indication of how far the bird has traveled from one frame (and pose) to the next.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Entry. This pose made me smile.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Apparently the bird still had a little too much momentum as its feet entered the mud…
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
so it needed…
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
one more wing flap to stick the landing.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
It held this position for a moment…
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
and then began to fold its wings back. If I remember correctly it was at this point that my buffer filled up so this was the last shot I got of the landing and recovery process.
I’ve said many times before that luck plays a significant role in bird photography and this series is no exception. This pond and the air above it were loaded with birds (what a nice change!) and it’s only by chance that there were no background bird blobs in any of the shots to ruin the image. There was a gull wing in the upper left hand area of the frame in this last image but I was able to crop it out without cloning.
Ron
Amazing! What an incredible series.
Wow, Ron, every single one of those is such an amazing capture … I think I’d hang up my camera if i ever got even ONE of those and just call it a day. Job well done, kiddo!!!!
This is a fabulous series of shots. I especially love the pose that made you smile. In looking at all these photos I became fascinated with the legs on this bird. I’ve spent a lot of time watching great blue herons, and have always known they had long legs, but these photos really shed new light on exactly how long they are. Seems like the landing process is about as interesting as the take off process, where I always wonder if they’ll actually become airborne.
Great sequence of photos Ron. It is great how you captured every movement he made. If you scroll down fast the the photos almost turn into a motion picture. Thank you!
Great sequence! What got me, in addition to the amazing detail and beauty of the images, is how confident and aware of his(?) environment the bird is. Throughout the sequence he never altered the position of his head. He knew exactly what he was going to do and where he would do it. For my part, I can’t step of a ten inch rock into a four inch puddle without looking side to side and down again to check my footing.
Oh my. So much grace, so much beauty, so much style.
Megathanks.
Majestic series of shots, Ron!
Fantastic shots! Very nice work (not to mention a little good luck too!).
Fabulous. In one shot the bird looks so impossibly awkward. I really enjoyed this series.
What a thrilling sequence, Ron. To quote a teenage granddaughter, “Totally awesome.’
big WOW for this series. Beautifully captured.
Thanks very much, Ellen.
great series !
kind regards.
Thank you, Spencer.
Why fret even a little about not capturing the Little Egret whrn all you have to do is make these images smaller….P 🙂
I guess you’re right, Patty – from “great” to “little”…
Lovely! Congratulations on the series!
Thanks, Alison.
What a great series! Between you and Mia, I’m able to see a sequence of landing positions that happen too fast for my eyes to capture on site…like stop action.. It always amazes me how these big birds can look so huge yet so slim and how they can look almost gangly and gawky, yet balletic, dainty and graceful at the same time. Each image is my favorite…
You’ve described the contradiction of these birds very well, Patty.
Awesome series of pictures!
Glad you enjoyed them, Deb.
Fantastic series Ron, thanks for sharing!
Charlotte
Thanks, Charlotte.