Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron In Flight

I don’t have a great track record with Black-crowned Night Herons in flight but yesterday morning I had some success with juveniles of the species at Bear River MBR.

Before we go any further, my camera settings for these images were a mistake. I certainly didn’t need shutter speeds and ISO’s this high but just prior to this series I’d been shooting birds buried in the reeds and I simply forgot to change them for birds in flight against a bright blue sky.

 

black-crowned night heron 2416 ron dudley

 1/8000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in

Several young birds were hanging around on the road in front of me so I had no choice but to flush them as I drove around the loop. This one circled back, apparently to be with its buddies, and came in very close. There are deep shadows on the right wing but I like the flight angle and bent wing position. The hanging legs suggest recent take-off but it had been airborne for some time.

 

 

black-crowned night heron 2427 ron dudley

  1/6400, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, canvas added for composition, not baited, set up or called in

Here the legs are in a more typical full-flight position and shadows aren’t problematic.

 

 

black-crowned night heron 2446 ron dudley

  1/8000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in

This image is similar to the previous one but I like it because we see more of the right wing.

 

 

black-crowned night heron 2458 ron dudley

  1/8000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in

I also like this image, largely because good light on the top of the left wing reveals its interesting colors and patterns.

Now that I have some acceptable flight images of the juveniles of the species I definitely have some work to do on the adults.

Ron

 

20 Comments

  1. Great images…especially lie second image because I can actually count every, single wing feather! These are all great references for feather patterns as well as beautiful photography…

    • HD evil iPad!!! I try to ignore it but just can’t help myself sometimes!!!!!!

    • “These are all great references for feather patterns”

      That’s your artist’s perspective coming out again, Patty – and you’re right, that second shot gives a very good look at the individual feathers.

      I love your evil iPad. I can see the steam coming out of your ears from here…

  2. Just beautiful.
    A photographer’s work is never done.
    And a photographer who is a woman and a farmer is waaaay behind the eight ball.
    Another great series Ron. Thank you.

  3. These are all beautiful. I’ve seen lots of Black-crowned Night Herons, but they always seem to be hunkered down in trees, not flying. So it’s nice to see them in flight.

  4. Charlotte Norton

    Fantastic flight shots Ron!

    Char9

  5. Jorge H. Oliveira

    Beautiful images. Those colors and patterns are wonderful.
    Concerning those settings I have a doubt. What happened on the second image? It is the only one with a different speed. Did you change it yourself or it was the “little devil”?
    I wish my mistakes could produce such great results as yours did.

    • Thank you, Jorge. No, I didn’t “change it myself”. It isn’t unusual to have slight changes in shutter speed like this when you’re shooting in aperture priority. Slight changes in brightness of subject or background tend to do it.

  6. Beautiful images Ron ! I love the quality of the morning light that shows the subtle shades of brown and gray, highlighted by the eyes. Very crisp and sharp too !

  7. Great shots, Ron, glad you mentioned about your settings, I was beginning to wonder.

    • Dick, I didn’t even know I’d screwed those settings up until last night when I was processing the images. A rookie mistake…

      • Well, if you are a rookie then I’m just a beginner!!
        I think we all make those kind of mistake. Just a slip in focus or something else got in the way of the synapses.

        • I know what happened. I was trying to maneuver my pickup into position to get the bird in flight when it suddenly appeared so I was involved in driving when I should have been thinking about camera settings…

  8. I love herons. I’m from Louisiana so I saw these and the GBH and Great Whites as well a lot. The Night Heron has such an interesting look. They will scare the poop out of you when you are canoeing. 😀 They just explode out of the cypress if you startle them. 😀

    • “They will scare the poop out of you when you are canoeing”

      I agree, Arwen. And that choking squawk they make when alarmed adds to the effect.

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