until it wasn’t.
Finally, we had a some light yesterday so I ended up in extreme northern Utah looking for birds.
When we’d nearly reached our primary birding destination for the morning we spotted an adult Bald Eagle close to the road and in good light but there was already a pickup with two photographers in it photographing the eagle with one of them shooting over the top of the pickup. They had staked out their spot close to the eagle and I didn’t want to flush their bird by pulling up behind them so I just drove on by and continued down the road without even trying to photograph the eagle.
I mention the above photographers for reasons that will soon become apparent.
Focal length – 105mm
After a very long drive (at one point on this trip we were only about 10 miles from the Idaho border as the crow flies) the only good chance I had to photograph birds all morning was this flock of Wild Turkeys feeding on a stack of very old hay.
But it was a sweet setup! I stayed far enough away from the turkeys that they weren’t nervous at all, the early morning light angle was perfect, I had lots of birds to choose from and it looked like I was going to have oodles of time with them. After I’d passed the photographers shooting the eagle I’d turned off onto two different remote roads and there was no traffic at all on the country road that early in the morning.
But the shooting wasn’t nearly as easy as I thought (hoped) it would be. The turkeys mostly kept their heads down as they were feeding which doesn’t make for great photos. Most of my shots had one bird in front of another or partial birds in the frame so that complicated matters further. Often I chose the “wrong” bird to aim my lens at. And as you’ll soon see, I didn’t have as much time with them as I expected to. There was a single tom in the flock but I wasn’t able to get any good photos of him.
So none of the photos below are “great shots” and many of them are only of documentary quality, at best.
1/1600, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This turkey caught my eye because she has so much white on her which made me wonder if she was leucistic or possibly a hybrid Wild Turkey/domestic turkey cross. Probably not – she isn’t much lighter than many of the others but I wondered.
1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Immediately after I took this shot I changed my aperture to f/10 to give me a better chance to have enough depth of field to get both large birds sharp. That was a mistake because…
1/500, f/10, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
when one turkey unexpectedly attacked the other I now didn’t have enough shutter speed to prevent motion blur so their heads are soft. The attack surprised me a little. In my past experience with Wild Turkeys they’ve seemed unusually peaceful. For birds anyway.
1/400, f/10, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
The aggressive turkey had a pretty good grip on some of the neck feathers of the victim but eventually the bird on the left was able to escape.
1/1600, f/8, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
I managed to get a few shots like this one that were pretty good of an individual turkey but with most of them I had to crop too tight to keep parts of other turkeys out of the frame. I don’t like to crop this tight on my birds.
I’d had 7 minutes with the turkeys and was just beginning to figure out some patterns in there behaviors that might give me a better chance for good shots when everything fell apart.
The photographers in the previously mentioned pickup that I’d passed something like 30 miles behind me drove up, saw the turkeys, and stopped on the road within no more than 30′ away from the haystack to photograph them. They were far too close to begin with and the driver compounded that error by leaving his extremely noisy diesel engine running for the entire time.
For the first few seconds the turkeys were surprisingly tolerant but within about 15 seconds that rattling, knocking diesel engine was just too much for them to tolerate any longer so…
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
singly and in small groups they began to fly off…
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
with most of them landing on the far-off hillside. Within a few seconds every last turkey was gone.
Focal length – 50mm
Here’s a wider look at the haystack while the turkeys were still there and before the diesel pickup showed up. If the pickup had been there when this shot was taken we’d see its right front fender just above my driver’s side mirror at the bottom right of the frame – they were that close to the haystack and that’s where they stayed to photograph the turkeys. Their closeness compounded by their very noisy diesel engine that they left running the entire time meant there was zero chance the turkeys would stick around.
I don’t think they flushed the turkeys on purpose. My best guess is that they were inexperienced bird photographers and just endlessly oblivious. And to give credit where credit’s due, after the turkeys were gone the driver stopped to apologize for flushing them, saying to me “We didn’t see you.” (even though we were right in front of them with two huge 500mm lenses sticking out my windows and aimed at the turkeys).
I hold no animosity for the photographers in the diesel pickup. Who knows, even though I’d never in a million years own a diesel pickup I may have done something similarly stupid and inconsiderate when I was still a wet-behind-the-ears bird photographer (but if I did I don’t remember it). But I surely hope they learned from this experience and don’t repeat the performance.
If the driver of that pickup had made other choices I’m quite sure that four bird photographers would have been able to fill their memory cards with hundreds of quality photos of Wild Turkeys.
Ron
Dammit! You beat me to the “Turkey in the Straw” connection! 😉
I think these are pretty slick shots — especially the ones of turkey “beak-ti-cuffs.”
And, you’re welcome, for NOT including a link to the aforementioned song (was going to use initials, but this is a family channel). 😀 😉
Marty, truth be told I had to be reminded of “Turkey in the Straw” by a good friend of mine on Facebook.
Well, the possibilities for turkey jokes are numerous, so I’ll just say you had a very nice, albeit cropped, turkey shoot.
Turkey jokes and turkey songs, as in “Turkey In The Straw.”
Do you said a tight crop and I immediately looked at the bird’s crop. 🙂
In a way I guess that bird has two crops!
Given that he didn’t see you there perhaps he NEEDED to be that close to have any chance of seeing the turkeys (and with vision that suspect perhaps shouldn’t be driving), but the apology surprised me and says there is hope.
And, as Everett said, it did give you some take off shots. A big sigh just the same.
EC, I was more aggravated by him leaving that loud diesel engine running than I was about how close he was. If he’d have shut it down right away it was obvious to me that the turkeys would have continued feeding, even with him as close as he was.
Sadly there are self-entitled oxygen thieves the world over.
There’s no arguing that!
But I’m thinking (or at least hoping) that this guy isn’t really my definition of an oxygen thief – otherwise he wouldn’t have apologized which probably wasn’t comfortable for him to do. He just didn’t THINK and he may not have had enough experience as a bird photographer to instinctively know the best tactics and practices. I hope he learned a few of them yesterday morning.
Nice find, sorry about the other truck. It is a bummer. The light was very nice too with it reflecting an even warmer glow off the yellow hay bales.
Thanks, April. I love that warm, early morning light.
Amazing photos, Ron, each wonderful and unique. I love the elegant tall turkey in the cropped photo and adore the next photo of the turkey leaping off the hay. Here is a question for diesel vehicle owners, especially diesel truck owners: Why is it common practice for these vehicles to be left running indefinitely, making noise and polluting the air for everyone else? I have never heard a satisfactory explanation.
Melanie, I’m aware of the excuses they use to keep them running but these days, especially with diesel pickups (as opposed to the big rigs), I’m convinced they do it mostly to aggravate others around them. They’re making their “mark” just because they can get away with it.
I agree! Seems to be a red-neck guy thing. I don’t see women do it that often except when sitting in grocery store parking lots while looking at their phones! I have considered offering to trade places with them. I can sit in the cab of their pickup or truck and they can stand outside and inhale the lung clogging fumes.
Beautiful. I love wild turkeys. I ave a field I pass almost every afternoon on my search for Northern Crested Caracara that I have seen at least 40 turkeys in at one time. Quite the sight.
I’ll bet. Thanks, Barbara.
Well OK—-I’ll be the outspoken CRANK this morning, and just say it out loud–in my not-so-humble opinion, folks who even OWN those big, loud,
diesel trucks tend to be quite oblivious of their effect on anyone else around them, human or animal, and I’m surprised that they were even interested
in animal photography at all ( maybe there’s a shred of hope that they may develop some sensitivity in the future ! )I’m sorry that they spoiled a great
opportunity for you.
I largely agree with what you said, Kris.
As a Montana farm boy I realize that when a diesel truck engine is needed it’s really needed. But I’m convinced that in a large percentage of diesel pickup owners their diesel is just for show. Diesel is a “status symbol” among a segment of the population. Diesels are very expensive to purchase and to maintain but they think they can afford them and they want the status (although I’d call it a stigma rather than a status).
I really don’t like diesels, in part because they’re loud and they tend to stink.
They can be more fuel efficient BUT these days with on-road diesel costing more than gas…… 😉
When I first looked at the photo, the shape of the birds made me think of peacocks. That many peacocks out in the middle of nowhere was quite a surprise to me. Then I looked more closely at the birds.
Of course, peacocks and turkeys are closely related and the toms will fight each other.
I’ve never seen peacocks in that area, Pam. But one rancher/farmer has so many goats (which is unusual) we just call him the “goat guy”. He really seems to love his goats too.
That is quite the story Ron……. Some folks are just blissfully(or not) ignorant and/or so locked in on what they’re after they aren’t paying attention. Frustrating no matter what. Love seeing all the turkeys on the old hay bales. 🙂 Wonder what the aggressive bird’s issue was – her “territory” or grub was particularly good there and she didn’t want to share.. 😉 Also love the shot of the one “baling” off the mound… 🙂 Not a lot of snow here from yesterdays storm but sure left a lot of ice on the car – hopefully sun comes out and clears it off for me as scraping is not real workable with this…. 😉 (Do have deicer)
Judy, I could see no reason why that turkey attacked the other one. Perhaps it was just in an ornery mood… 🙂
Got up on the wrong side of the rock?
TOO funny! Any rain of consequence for you yet EC?
Thank you Judy. There are still more than fifty fires burning across Australia but today (finally) we are getting rain. I have my fingers crossed (tightly) that the fire closest to us will be extinguished. It has already destroyed more than 80 per cent of the Namadgi Nature Park. Sadly other areas of Oz are being flooded. This has been the summer from hell.
Very nice experience with the turkeys. They are a nervous lot for sure. I really like the ‘too cropped’ photo ‘as you referred to it’. The bird is really showcased nicely…the colors, sheen of the feathers, nice pose, hay, muted background and the eye catch all came together greatly for you. 😍 A keeper photo for sure! You do put on the milage don’t you…have you ever calculated how much milage you do monthly with looking for birds? To me every mile is worth it when I consider the sanity nature gives me.
I’ve never calculated it because I don’t want to know, Kathy. Ignorance is bliss I guess…
One thing I do know, I’ve been putting on a LOT fewer miles this winter than I ever have because of the rotten light we’ve had almost constantly.
Interesting story Ron, and some good photos as well. Of course if you change your aperture Murphy will cause one of the turkeys to change its behavior. Shame about those guys pulling up like that in the big diesel truck, but that did get you some nice take off shots. Having a smaller camera with less zoom than your class of photographers I have on a couple occasions discovered that I have flushed out a bird that others were also shooting from a greater distance. When I discover that I have done so, I always go back and apologize to those further back. And on those rare occasions I am pleased to report that the photographers I have apologized to were very cordial and understanding. Have rarely met an AH out there among nature photographers.
“Have rarely met an AH out there among nature photographers.”
I wish I could say the same thing, Everett. I truly do!