![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/loggerhead-shrike-9848-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"loggerhead-shrike-9848-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nPlus a surprising reacquisition of focus on the shrike by the 7D Mark II\u00a0after it took off directly at me.<\/p>\n
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1\/6400, f\/5.6, 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<\/em><\/p>\n When the water’s a beautiful blue (it often isn’t) I try to get the Great Salt Lake in the background of my photos\u00a0whenever I can. That preference of mine is a little ironic because homogenous, featureless backgrounds like blue sky generally aren’t my favorite\u00a0but the color of the water is often\u00a0subtly\u00a0but distinctively\u00a0different from that of plain blue\u00a0sky\u00a0and that difference appeals to me.<\/p>\n Three days ago on Antelope Island I deliberately tried to maneuver my pickup to get the lake in the background for this Loggerhead Shrike perched on sagebrush. Doing so can be a huge gamble because I take the chance of flushing the bird but this time it worked out reasonably well even though the shrike’s catch light is a little funky, as if it’s\u00a0nictitating membrane was closed.\u00a0I’m not convinced that it was but it may have been.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/4000, f\/5.6, 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<\/em><\/p>\n When the shrike took off it launched almost directly at me and I was very pleasantly surprised to get the front part of\u00a0its body and his feet sharp in this situation. This is actually the second shot after launch and the first\u00a0one was dreadfully soft but somehow my camera reacquired focus on this one. With the bird coming directly\u00a0at me with great speed that’s a pretty nifty trick, especially since the 7D Mark II is now almost four years old and it’s far from Canon’s most sophisticated autofocus technology. The older I get the more I’m a fan of “old stuff”…<\/p>\n This bird took off after prey on the ground close to my pickup. I couldn’t photograph it on the ground when it snatched up the prey because my side mirror was in the way but…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/4000, f\/5.6, 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<\/em><\/p>\n when\u00a0it landed with\u00a0the prey\u00a0on another nearby sagebrush I recognized it as some kind of larval insect. He quickly gobbled it down and then…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/3200, f\/5.6, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, canvas added for composition,\u00a0not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n took off to my right. I quite like this takeoff shot because the bird is sharp with good detail, I still have the lake in the background, I love the leg and\u00a0foot positions and we get a good look at the fierce, hooked beak of this “wannabe raptor” (including, if you look closely, the tomial tooth or falcon tooth).<\/p>\n I do wish I hadn’t had to add canvas for composition though.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Plus a surprising reacquisition of focus on the shrike by the 7D Mark II after it took off directly at me.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/loggerhead-shrike-9878b-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"loggerhead-shrike-9878b-ron-dudley\\"")
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