Particularly with birds in flight our backgrounds can have a major impact on our images, one way or the other.
1/6400, f/6.3, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Two days ago at Farmington Bay WMA this Northern Harrier made an unexpected pass reasonably close (for a harrier at least) to my pickup. The bird was traveling at a pretty good clip so I had a difficult time keeping focus locked on the hawk while shooting out my window. This is the only sharp shot I got that I liked.
For my tastes this would have been a nice but still fairly run of the mill photo if the background had been featureless sky or anything else that was homogeneous. But in this case the marshes and grasslands of the refuge provided at least nine horizontal layers back there to make the photo more interesting. As a bonus the layer colors are complementary to the hawk which in my view enhances the aesthetics of the image.
I’ve always been a fan of soft layering in my backgrounds but your mileage may vary. That’s as it should be.
Ron
It is just gorgeous! The bird, the background, the colors…I love it all. I was at an event yesterday to welcome the Sand Hill cranes back to our area. They had a rehab group there. I got to see a sharp-shinned hawk, along with others. I was very taken with how small this bird was. A delicate killing machine for sure.
Excellent panning shot!
Gorgeous! Love the curl of the first two primaries on the right wing. So much fabulous detail on this guy.
Thank you, Marty. Interesting how swept back those right wing primaries are.
Nice colors, nature is good and creating the best color combinations.
You’re sure right about that, April.
I couldn’t agree more with you Ron regarding the background colors. I’ve had the pleasure the last two years to have a resident Northern Harrier on my property in central WA. He is a really majestic hawk. Unfortunately I have no photographic evidence he exists. He is very elusive to my camera. Anyway I’m always struck by how closely the Harrier’s face is to some of the Owl family with that ring around the outside of their face. Beautiful picture Ron, as always. Thanks for sharing.
That ring is actually a modified facial disc similar to the facial discs of owls, David. It’s used in the same way too.
Makes sense given their hunting habits. Thanks for confirming what I’ve thought all along.
I agree with Kathy on all points. Wonderful photo, for all the reasons she gives, and I agree right down to the Congratualtions!
I was just thinking as we drove around Cherry Creek State Park this morning how there used to be lots of female harriers there at this time of year. There were only a few of any kind of birds except gulls.
Nancy, I remember a nice guy on Nature Photographers Network(NPN – a photo critique forum) that some years ago used to regularly post wonderful photos of goldfinches in natural habitat that were taken at Cherry Creek SP. I hope that at least the goldfinches still visit there.
Just so you know, you’re a spectacular photographer. Now, I won’t allow any quibbling or picking of nits. Trust me on this! You’re spectacular! Days have been getting away from me, but I LOVED the redtail series (now there’s a shocker), your roughie, the song sparrow and now, this lovely Harrier! Thank you for beginning my days with splendor!
And I love your attention to backgrounds and lighting, too!
I hope you’re at least partially right, Laura… 🙂 Thanks for your confidence in me.
Nine layers, wow! That sure makes for a great photo, of course you have to get that cagey Harrier in place too. Beautiful!
No rain in our part of Northern California, can’t ever remember an autumn with no rain this far in. Hope everyone fares well this winter, birds too.
More layers than a multi-layered cake, huh. Thanks, Dave.
Beautiful image. Composition, eye catch, and the Harrier pops from the background. Also nice that it came so close; they always seem to be waay out their in the field.
Thank you, Lyle.
Beautiful! 🙂 Wonderful detail on the bird – it’s colors really “pop” and the background is perfect for the bird in this situation. I’d take this photo any time! Weird fall/winter so far – raining at the moment – hope it doesn’t ice up this time! 😉
Thanks, Judy. Wish we had some of your precip. Parts of Utah are now officially in a drought pattern and that pattern is spreading.
I am envious Ron. Great photo especially considering that they are certainly not easy to photograph in flight. I am often trying to get a good shot of one of ours here, but it is difficult. The one I most often try to capture operates close to a lake, but mostly flies close to the ground that for the most part is the same color that she is. And then when she does suddenly take a turn toward the water Murphy shows up and I am either unprepared or just take a couple of poorly focused shots. Fortunately I do have a few good photos of her sitting. But hoping for a shot like yours keeps me out there trying.
Don’t feel bad, Everett – this species has a well deserved reputation among bird photographers as a difficult subject.
Ol’ Murph is a pain in the patootie!
That is a great photo. You really captured the facial disc, brow and eye beautifully. Those legs are tucked to accent that smooth undercarriage…really a nice keeper. I agree about the background quality…if this had a pale gray flat look it would have lost points. Congratulations! I spent the better part of four hours yesterday looking and only came across one hawk and three mallards…very disappointing. Even songbirds were hard to come by.
“Even songbirds were hard to come by”
It’s that way here too, Kathy. The situation with birds in far too many areas is incredibly depressing. Thank you.