This was one of my most challenging bird photography sessions ever but the behavior was fascinating to watch.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Five days ago I photographed this male Common Goldeneye as it foraged for invertebrates and small fish in some rapids of the Jordan River near my home. The water was extremely swift and turbulent and it required an extraordinary effort from the duck to avoid being swept downstream but it was obvious that he preferred to forage in the fastest-moving water, probably because those areas were most productive. Most of the time he was under the surface and I could barely follow him through the shallow water – often it was his flashing yellow-orange feet breaking the surface that gave away his position.
Occasionally he would move to a less turbulent spot behind a rock for a brief rest as he’s doing here – those were some of the few times I could actually see most of his body.
1/2500, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
But much of the time he was underwater or nearly so. I never did see any prey because this species normally consumes its food beneath the surface.
This entire session was an exposure nightmare because of the combination of bright light, almost inky blue-black water and the blacks and whites of the bird in the foamy white water. But I haven’t had this much fun in a long time as I watched this bird and a female for over half an hour as they struggled with the current and dived for food.
This clip should give you a feeling for how fast the current was and how much effort was expended in the quest for food. I’m still having quality issues with some of my clips (it’s an uploading problem) but I’ll figure it out eventually.
This was the session that finally convinced my that I was having focusing issues with my 500mm lens. I took over 800 shots of this bird but none of them were as sharp as they should be and only a few were marginally acceptable.
The next morning my lens was on its way to the shop.
Ron
Wow, wow and wow.
And I suspect our ancestors had to fight nearly that hard to feed themselves and their families. A salutary reminder.
Interesting thought, EC. And I’m sure that many of them barely found enough.
Again, my standing WOW! And thanks so much for the video. I’m seriously amazed at how that duck managed the rapidly-flowing water. And like Judy, I sure hope there was enough grub down there to make it worth the while! That had to be a huge struggle. Just WOW!!
And I’m so sorry about your lens. I’m wondering if the racing world doesn’t have something to help with mitigating vibration–well, I’m sure they would because it’s a huge issue for them, too.
Here’s something to ponder. Several years ago, NASCAR designed their cars with rigidity–in other words, the chassis (and necessarily the driver cockpit) of the cars were designed to take all the shock/energy of a crash, despite that engineers in other forms of racing designed their cars so that peripheral parts absorbed the bulk of the energy before it could reach the cockpit. That rigidity concept took a huge toll on the drivers, but they didn’t get that was the problem until Dale Earnhardt died following the death of three other no-name drivers. It was one of three key elements that caused his death in what should have been a totally survivable crash. They have since changed their design, going with the flow of engineering knowledge.
I’ll try to dig up some of my 20-year-old racing contacts to see what they have to say. But given the 20 years part, I might not get an answer. I’m not the internationally-INfamous motorsports journalist I used to be.
Thanks, Laura. I can use any help I can get on the vibration issue. I don’t want this to happen again, that’s for damned sure! I’ve already made some adjustments to my lens caddy but I won’t know how well it works until I get my lens back.
I’m so glad you included the video ! It illustrated the power of the animal’s swimming ability in a way that a still could not–I can hardly imagine the calories
required to fuel the quest for yet more calories…….
Thanks for the feedback on the clip, Kris. Much appreciated.
There’s lesson here. If you really want something, you will go against any current.
Yup, a good lesson indeed.
Very nice series Ron, love the clip! I agree with Judy that had to be a ton of fun – mesmerizing!
It was loads of fun, Dick – until I got home and saw how soft most of my shots were. Oh well, I did have a wonderful experience with those goldeneyes!
When one is a perfectionist, as I believe you are… such problems with malfunctioning gear can be extremely frustrating.
Those of us who have “been there” understand, and wish you well. ;-)))
Thanks for the good wishes, Roger. Yes, it was “extremely frustrating” this morning when after a long dry spell with birds I had some great opportunities again and all I had was my smaller zoom lens.
Sounds like fun. 🙂 The rapid water and lighting certainly were an exposure challenge – hopefully the bird was getting some good grub as he sure was expending a lot of energy to do it!
My thoughts exactly, Judy. There must have been a lot of food down there to make this much effort worth it.