You have to get lucky to get good light on a raptor in flight when the sun’s high in the sky. Typically many parts of the bird you see will be shaded and show relatively little detail as the bird flies above you with the sun above the bird. Depending on the time of year (in winter the sun is lower at a particular time of day than it is in summer) I usually end up deleting most shots of raptors in flight taken in late morning or early to mid afternoon.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 250, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, tiny corner of pole removed, not baited, set up or called in
A week ago today as I was driving a dirt road to a remote lake on the border of southwest Montana and Idaho I encountered this dark morph Swainson’s Hawk perched on a power pole. As usual I scoped out the bird with my lens but it was 3:40 PM with the sun still high in the sky so I had no real intention of photographing the hawk except for documentary purposes. But when it unexpectedly took off my photographers instinct took over and I fired off a burst.
Its initial direction of flight was at a quartering angle away from me but then it quickly turned and banked to my right which gave me a momentary well-lit dorsal view of the bird. I caught the splayed tail, a glimpse of the feet being tucked away for full flight and good light on the face with a catch light in the eye. Despite the fact that the hawk is flying away from me, I like the shot.
My point: though it’s true that the higher the sun is in the sky the less chance the photographer has of getting a well-lit raptor in flight, it can be done.
With a little luck and a cooperative bird…
Ron
Luck, a co-operative bird and persistence. Lots and lots of persistence.
Love this.
Power, grace, style…
Thank you, EC. “Lots and lots” of luck, too…
Stunning shot. I love the sweep of the wing. It just seems so impossibly long. After reading your blog for some time, I find that I look for the light in the eye of other bird images I see. Again, thank you for teaching me how to be a better picture viewer.
“After reading your blog for some time, I find that I look for the light in the eye of other bird images I see.”
Delighted to hear that, Arwen. Light in the eye makes so much positive difference. Eyes without a catch light often look almost dead, especially if the eyes are dark or black.
Are the two center tail feathers always different than the others? In raptors? In other birds?
Good eye, Patty!
That would be a good question for Jerry Liquori. From Jerry I’ve learned that at least some raptor species have central tail feathers that are different from the others – harriers for example have central tail feathers that are darker or less marked than the others.
Patty, I asked Jerry about the two center tail feathers of this bird. Here’s what he said:
“Tail looks normal just that the centers are worn and there are two generations of adult feathers throughout the tail giving it a somewhat bi-colored look”
I suspect that the two generations of tail feathers he refers to are distinguished from each other by the presence or lack of white at the terminal end.
Thanks…interesting….
This is a beautiful shot. I really like the details of the wing feathers. Generally all I see of the Swainson’s Hawks around here is the underside, so this is a nice change.
I like to see the topside too, Susan. The ventral side of raptors is what we most often see.
Lovely shot…for the landing gear not to be fully tucked up, it must have JUST taken off. When the feet are fully “retracted”, the streamlined silouette they make always impresses me with jusnt how aerodynamic and streamlined they are…like a raindrop….
“for the landing gear not to be fully tucked up, it must have JUST taken off”
It had “just taken off”, Patty. It was still close enough to the perch that I had to clone a small piece of the pole out of the lower left hand corner of the frame (as I said in my techs below the image).
Very nice shot Ron, looks like you got him on the down beat.
Excellent clarity!
Thanks very much, Dick.
WOW, Ron – a gorgeous capture of a gorgeous raptor in flight. I just love this & I can feel your excitement in your telling of the tale!! Instead of “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction”, you got some, Ron!! Very happy for you.
Jo Ann – the most exciting moment was when I found this image with good light when I didn’t think any of them would have it. I fully expected to delete all of them of this bird but in the end I did keep this one and deleted all of the rest.
Magnificent Ron!
Charlotte
Thanks, Charlotte.
Nice Ron! Where there is a will, there is a way! I think every feather could be counted!
I agree, Nancy – one thing I like about the image is how well the individual feathers are defined.