Getting this close to a Cooper’s Hawk in a wild setting is a rare occurrence for me.
Of all the hawk species I photograph regularly Cooper’s Hawks are probably the most difficult to approach when I’m away from the city. In the urban environment they’re somewhat easier to get close to but that setting often includes the less than ideal hand of man.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in
So early yesterday morning I was pretty tickled to get close to this one in a remote area of northern Utah. Typically they fly off as soon as I see them (or before) but this one was so intent on ‘his’ hunting he let me get unusually close.
I probably spent 20 minutes with him before he eventually took off after prey but most of my photos were slightly to moderately soft. Or worse. I’m hoping it was just another instance of extreme temperature disparity between the cold outside air (about 20° F.) and my warm lens but lately it’s been happening more often than it should.
To be honest I’m beginning to wonder if I’m having a lens or camera issue. That’s all I need…
1/6400, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in
When he didn’t spot prey right away he relaxed for a while. When he decided to stand on one foot he puffed up and spread his belly feathers forming a perfect open path in his plumage for him to tuck his right leg and foot into. That foot completely disappeared in his feathers when he flattened them again.
Cell phone photo, cropped to almost square
I had enough time with him that I decided to take a few cell phone photos to document the type of area I found him in. Here I’ve marked the hawk with a small red arrow.
I know that I appreciate this kind of ‘context’ shot in the photos of others so I suspect some of my blog followers do too.
Ron
Wowzers is that second shot special!!! He looks like a king about to make a decree. I always enjoy seeing context shots too. And like EC, I thank you for the arrow. I was never very good at “Where’s Waldo?” books. 😉
I had my own bird close encounter Thursday afternoon when I found a couple of my neighbor’s young chickens in my backyard. It was fun watching the chooks forage in my yard for a couple of hours and I was more than relieved that they used one of my orange trees to climb up to the fence and get back home.
Marty, if we ever actually meet each other in person remind me to tell you a chicken story. It’s long and convoluted but I think you’d enjoy it, in part because I was the victim of a pretty elaborate practical joke.
We may have to become phone or Zoom friends! 🙂
In the first photo he reminds me of a judge looking down at a first time juvenile offender!
I see what you mean, Pat.
Ah, Cooper’s Hawks…a favorite because they’re the one raptor I can admire up close (with binocs) on a regular basis…but then they snatch a backyard bird for a meal and I’m sore at them for days. I had a very sticky Cooper’s in a tree overhanging my yard 4 winters ago, marveled at how he spent 2 full hours with one leg pulled into his chest feathers, got my best pics ever. Not of your caliber, of course, and maybe he doesn’t count as “wild” because of his hunting ground.
Sure he counts as wild, Chris. Just more acclimated to humans.
I hope you are not having camera issues, I do not want to welcome you to my world! I have mostly given up and just going with what outcomes I get. A good part of my enjoyment is just being out in the wild and watching. My photos will just be soft fuzzy reminders of a good day!
I did take my camera back to original factory settings and reset the few changes I like when shooting wildlife. Some of the issues have cleared up. My camera takes a beating when I am on my bike and the camera is in my backpack. It is still making the new noise it started making after the hard blow in my car. When I power it on and off from it has a soft rattle for a few seconds. I should send it in but I have separation anxiety!
Yup, sounds like your camera needs a Canon technician’s touch, April.
Such great photos of the Cooper’s. I especially like the second one and agree that he looks like an old English gent – cape and all. I have a Cooper’s who visits daily and perches on a branch that is part of a wooded area right behind my deck. This morning he was enjoying his prey as the snowstorm here in southern RI swirled around him……..seemingly oblivious to all.
Thanks, Peg. A Coop has been hanging around my neighborhood for years but that bird is pretty spooky.
Love the fearsome armament being tucked away. And am grateful for the context shot. I strongly suspect that without your red arrow I would have your missing snowball’s chance in Hades of spotting this beauty.
I almost didn’t include the arrow, EC. Glad i did.
Beautiful shots, Ron. I really like the one of him tucking his foot into his belly feathers for a little comfort on a cold winter morning.
Glad to hear you got your first dose of the vaccine this week. The faster we can get those in arms the better for everyone.
Thanks Bill, A little soreness in my arm was the only side effect I had and the soreness is already gone this morning.
Thank you for adding the context photo – great eyes! Love the second photo of the hawk all puffed up. You know I love your hawk photos 🙂
That’s good to know, Kathleen. Thank you.
The context photo makes Where in the World is Waldo look like child’s play. Well ok, they are kids books, but you get my point. Your vision appears to be plenty sharp.
We have Cooper’s and Sharp-shinned here (always an ID puzzle), but they are great at hiding in the shadows, so your sunny photos show the colors and details so well.
This is a juvenile, is it not? Also, seems weird that there is no snow. Appears to be a streak of ice on the road.
Lyle, yes he has the yellow eye of a youngster. That may be part of the reason he was so approachable.
There was still a little snow on the north side of slopes and in the shade but the little snow we got in the valleys from the last storm is mostly gone.
I love that first photograph of the hawk. It is great to see him in the environment and it seemed perfectly framed! Kudos!
Thanks, Joanne.
I really admire that second shot– all of those gnarly branches are
a perfect foil for his puffy cape…..a Cooper’s hawk claims the big
Cottonwood tree between my house and a field of about 500 acres
of alfalfa just beyond as his “happy hunting ground”, and I often see his
“cape” puffing in the wind as he relaxes after a meal–handsome dude !
Thank you, Kris.
Nice! He’s a beauty alright. 😀 I probably wouldn’t have spotted him until he flushed either! Old eyes NOT helpful with that. Love the detail in the 2nd shot..
LEO or whatever in the “lush” top of a 50′ spruce the past couple of days. Swooped out over me last evening – good luck with that! 😳😄
Judy, I’d love to have a Long-eared Owl hanging out in my area, high perch or not.
Showing the context really surprised me. I think if you showed us four different places he might have been I don’t think I would have chosen that. I take all my photos on foot and have had decent luck with Red-tails hanging in there for me. I have not found them to be especially flighty.
In that second photo he looks like an old English gent like Sherlock Holmes out for a walk with his cape on and his cane. 🙂
Everett, I think it’s pretty neat the way his belly feathers seem to almost hang down in sheets in feather tracts that are well separated from each other. It sure makes for a convenient place for him to tuck his foot and leg.
Coopers are a fact of life around here…I have two that make daily backyard fly-by’s and stops. They try to be too sneaky! I am no one to offer info but I think I agree with Laval. I have the same problems at times since I remain in my car also. I try to keep the heat off in my car and just use the seat heater and do see an advantage to that. When I happen to get out I used to shoot over the hood of my car and do not do that anymore…I’ll slip around to the back and use the back as a brace to steady my arm…definite improvement there for sure. Seeing your last photo I can see all the shots I’m missing because of my lens (100-400)…I do need to get a stronger one or perhaps a better camera that would be more accepting of a tele-converter. Time to start saving in the old change jar again! 🙂
Kathy, I actually wish I’d used my 100-400 on this bird. I was so close I could have and I don’t have that temperature disparity issue with that lens so my photos most likely would have been sharper..
That lens was on the seat next to me but I just didn’t think to use it.
Hi Ron,
The context info is wonderful. I would never have thought to look in the bushes for a hawk that, in my neck of the woods, hangs out pretty high up in fir trees, and then flies at the drop of a hat (or muffled cough, sigh).
Yup, they’re pretty spooky aren’t they Rick.
You’d probably be surprised how close I got to this one. I sure was. And I never spooked him even as close as I eventually was. He just flew off after prey on the other side of the road.
Boy, he’s a beauty. Very cool juxtaposition of his vertical plumage and horizontal tail stripes. I like how the top branch in the first photo bends around his head. Well done! I always find it funny how a good-sized bird can balance on one spindly leg. Thanks for the context shot. It illustrates how keen of an eye you have to spot a fairly well camouflaged hawk.
Mark, I was actually surprised I spotted him in time. I’m an old fart so my eyes really aren’t all that good and I often flush smaller raptors on the side of the road before I see them.
You can be sure Ron that I am the kind of person who likes to see the context in which a shot has been taken and also all the exif information. It shows that you don’t have to be close of the subject to realize a good take. Doing so, you don’t bother too much the animal as it’s clearly shown in your today’s photos. When the bird takes time to relax in front of you, it’s because he fills safe. I don’t think that you have a camera or a lens problem. As you mention it often, it’s the difference of temperature between the inside of your vehicle and the outside air. I am just not able to take photos when I’m sit inside my vehicle. I tried often and it’s impossible to get sharp takes. The Cooper’s Hawk is beginning to be more and more common in our area near Quebec city. Thank you for your generosity to provide all the exif information for each of your photographs. It helps me a lot to figure out what I could do to improve the quality of mine. Have a great one!
“I don’t think that you have a camera or a lens problem”
I sure hope you’re right, Laval.
Glad to know you appreciate the exif info. It’s extra work to include it and sometimes I get lazy and leave it out but when I do I often catch hell for it… 🙂