A grab shot. But thanks to my fast shutter speed things still worked out pretty well.
1/5000, 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
Four days ago this immature Bald Eagle gave me an unexpected fly-by that I was unprepared for.
When shooting from my pickup window I rest my long and heavy lens on my handy-dandy pool noodle for stability. Typically I quickly raise or lower my window to get an appropriate shooting angle on my subject. But all the electronics in my pickup, including my windows, automatically shut down a few minutes (maybe 10 minutes?) after I turn my key to off so when this eagle showed up my window was “dead”. And I didn’t have time to turn the key again before the eagle would be gone..
So all I could do was shoot completely hand-held with no lens stability provided by my window-mounted noodle, which for me is a recipe for soft photos (and cut off body parts I might add.) The only thing that saved my bacon was my typical, unusually fast shutter speed,1/5000 in this instance, that prevented lens shake from being a significant problem.
Because of the eagle’s wing position I liked this shot from the short burst best but I wondered what was making the bottom of ‘his’ beak look a little fuzzy or misshapen. My first thought was that it might be ice or snow on his lower mandible but it turned out to be…
a feather. A small down feather to be more precise. It doesn’t take much to make a bird look a little weird.
When my window goes “dead” I don’t always have the SS to give me sharp shots so it’s ruined more potentially good photos than I care to think about. Next time I visit my Ford dealer it’s my intention to ask them if the electronics can be tweaked to give me more time (20 minutes perhaps) before they shut down.
It doesn’t hurt to ask.
Ron
Great capture…in spite of serious challenged…👍
Pretty slick shootin’ from the hip (or off the noodle) there, Ron! I like to think that this is a “teenage” bird who was prettying himself up for the ladies and accidentally left a little post-groom lagniappe. At least there’s no Axe Body Spray involved.
“Teenage” is a pretty accurate descriptor for this bird, Marty. My guess is that he’ll be in full adult plumage after his next molt.
Somehow I had missed your detailed description of how you outfitted your then-new vehicle. I followed the pool-noodle link and got an inspiring dose of ideas about how to manage better. Thank you!
Also, good shot of the eagle. I wonder if it was his feather or some duck’s.
“I wonder if it was his feather or some duck’s”
I wondered the same thing, Nancy. It could have been either.
I’m glad you enjoyed the linked post. Thank you.
Nice fly-by catch! Juvenile balds are at that awkward stage … neither an adorable chick nor a stunning adult … but their transformation over a few years is just amazing! 🦅
If other tweaks can’t be done, maybe your Ford guy can disconnect those annoying bells & whistles so you can have it on “silent” auxiliary. Good luck!
Chris, I’ll just have to see what they say and take it from there. The chances probably aren’t good but it’s worth asking.
It is hard to argue with results. Superb!
The only thing, of course, is to closely examine your subjects before you shoot to be sure they don’t have “preening leftovers” hanging from their beak which will reflect poorly upon the photographer. We wouldn’t want that.
And – another thank you to to both you and Mia for the handy-dandy pool noodle construction tips. Have used it satisfactorily for a few years now.
Wally, and noodles are CHEAP! This one has lasted for over four years now but it’ll only cost me a couple of bucks to make a new one when I need to.
Isn’t that just the way of things? You’re ready, settings are good, you’re prepared and aware of your subject, you take the shot and it’s crap. Then we have what happened to you. Out nowhere comes something, you swing the camera around, spray and pray and you get a keeper. LOL
Thomas, when my window doesn’t work there’s lots of times my shots are soft. Or I don’t even get them off.
This time I was just lucky because the bright sky contributed to bumping my SS up to compensate for not being able to use my noodle.
What an amazing shot. How I envy your reflexes. And hear you on the other bits…
Thanks, EC.
If you hadn’t said this was a handheld shot I certainly wouldn’t have known. The Eagle looks very sharp to me.
Which segues into a question: since you shoot in aperture mode does the camera choose the shutter speed?
Also, in looking back at your bespoke camera caddy I don’t see any accommodation for a doughnut. A thought for the next iteration. Or perhaps the dusty dash fulfills that role.
“since you shoot in aperture mode does the camera choose the shutter speed?”
Yes, that’s part (but only part) of the reason my tend to be so high and vary so much.
My chocolate donut fits perfectly in the spot where the cutout for my teleconverter is (my tc is nearly always mounted on my camera and not in the cutout). Don’t worry Lyle, my donut is always well taken care of. Until it becomes sacrificed for my sweet tooth.
There seem to be a lot of eagles this year. Nice to see the return. Can you leave your key one click on so the auxiliary is on?
Yes, but it leaves other annoying bells and whistles on too.
Nice. Thanks for sharing your photog tips.
Thanks, Michael. You’re welcome.
love that answer Ron ……..and, and, and …………………..
An almost limitless number of “ands”.
Look. You must remember those halcyon days of youth. Where the slightest hint of fuzz on your chin or upper lip was to be celebrated!
Let the young bird have his beard moment. 😝
I do indeed remember those days!
We saw several good birds yesterday just outside Rolla Missouri, a town in the central southern part of the state. A solitary (!) turkey vulture, a great blue heron, a pair of some sort of hawk (maybe red-tailed) and an adult bald eagle.
The eagle and the turkey vulture were circling together, as if enjoying the same updraft or thermal, or eyeing the same fresh carcass.
What a terrific morning!
Good.
It worked! Beautiful shot of a beautiful bird even with the “fuzzy”! 🙂 Always interesting me me that they look “dirty” during the maturing process… 😉
Hope the dealer can tweak it tho guessing they won’t – probably mess with the computer and battery time….. 😉
Judy, I know from experience that they’re sometimes reluctant to make that kind of tweak. But a couple of the service managers are pretty good friends of mine and I’ve bought 13 new Ford pickups over the years so I plan to put on some pressure…
Outstanding Ron. You have the reflexes of a 25 year old. Don’t know anything about automobile electronics, but am guessing they can adjust that for you. Fortunately sometimes grab shots turn out to be good ones.
Thanks, Everett. I’ve always had quick reflexes and they seem to be holding up in my old age. Wish I could say the same about my eyesight. And my back. And…