![\"northern](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/northern-harrier-9345-ron-dudley.jpg\")
<\/p>\nBanking shots of Northern Harriers don’t come easy. Harriers are low fliers as they hunt and they’re notoriously difficult to get close to – typically they veer off long before they get close enough to the photographer for quality images. But occasionally when concentrating on the hunt\u00a0one will come closer than usual before turning away and when it’s that close to a human it will often bank steeply and turn sharply in order to get away quickly.<\/p>\n
When that happens the photographer is presented with a potentially spectacular though very difficult opportunity – to photograph the bird in a dramatic vertical position\u00a0as it banks that reveals the ventral surface of the\u00a0hawk in good light (if the sun’s low and behind you). Such an image can be a real eye-catcher but it’s\u00a0difficult to get because as the bird banks it changes direction very quickly and sharp focus is\u00a0easily lost (or the bird is partially or completely out of frame before you even have time to\u00a0push the shutter).<\/p>\n
But yesterday morning at Farmington Bay\u00a0I was able to get that shot and that single image made the trip up north worth it. Here’s what happened…<\/p>\n
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1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n I parked my pickup near a spot where harriers often hunt and just waited to see what might develop. Eventually this harrier came along as it hunted over the tall phragmites but it approached me almost head-on as it was looking down for prey\u00a0which is far from an ideal flight posture. As it came in closer I knew it was likely to bank sharply\u00a0but anticipating in which direction is impossible so I just braced myself and hoped that my reflexes would be fast enough and that I would be able to keep it in focus when it happened.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Just out of luck I pushed the shutter at the very beginning of the bank and got a little better light under the wings…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n but this is the shot I was after – a full bank with the\u00a0hawk in a near vertical position\u00a0and giving me\u00a0good eye contact. And I even got the bird sharp.<\/p>\n Some of its feathers are a little ratty-looking and I wish I had the horizon at the bottom of the frame to anchor the bird but I’m not complaining.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Images of banking Northern Harriers don’t come easy but yesterday morning at Farmington Bay I was able to get that shot. <\/p>\n![\"northern](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/northern-harrier-9348b-ron-dudley.jpg\")
1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"northern](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/northern-harrier-9350-ron-dudley.jpg\")
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