{"id":71118,"date":"2019-04-21T06:10:54","date_gmt":"2019-04-21T12:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.featheredphotography.com\/blog\/?p=71118"},"modified":"2019-04-21T07:11:24","modified_gmt":"2019-04-21T13:11:24","slug":"willet-two-shots-i-like-and-one-that-broke-my-heart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/2019\/04\/21\/willet-two-shots-i-like-and-one-that-broke-my-heart\/","title":{"rendered":"Willet – Two Shots I Like And One That Broke My Heart"},"content":{"rendered":"

I got many photos I like of this bird but I screwed up on the only one that could have been spectacular.<\/p>\n

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1\/6400, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II,\u00a0Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n

Willets have been back to Antelope Island for a short while now but two days ago was the first time this year that one of them fully cooperated with me. The bird gave me a few nice frontal poses in good light before…<\/p>\n

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1\/6400, 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<\/p>\n

turning on its perch and then calling. I wish I had more of the rock in the frame but this is the best calling pose I was able to get so I chose to post this shot instead of some of the others.<\/p>\n

This time of year they often call to other nearby Willets which can signal imminent takeoff so I was in that dilemma so familiar to many bird photographers. Using my attached teleconverter I was a little too close optically for takeoff shots because I’d almost surely clip wings or other body parts. But if I took the 4-5 seconds required to remove my TC I had a very good chance of missing takeoff altogether.<\/p>\n

What to do?<\/p>\n

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1\/5000, 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<\/p>\n

I remained in the limbo of indecision for just a little too long and the Willet took off so I clipped a wing. Not only that, I also didn’t have enough room in the frame for a pleasing composition so I had to add canvas on the left which I really<\/em> don’t like to do.<\/p>\n

In my view this shot could have bordered on spectacular. The bird is very sharp where it counts, I have excellent detail, the light angle was just about perfect, the background is clean and pleasing, the setting is natural and the takeoff posture is right up my alley. I love it when this plain Jane species instantly transforms into such a flashy bird when it opens its wings.<\/p>\n

And with all those positives I had to clip a wing.<\/p>\n

There isn’t a serious bird photographer in the universe this hasn’t happened to many times. But it still hurts and the more potential the image had the more painful it is.<\/p>\n

Bird photography ain’t easy.<\/p>\n

Ron<\/p>\n

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Notes:<\/em><\/p>\n