An 18-image takeoff, flight and landing series. Yes, I got carried away.
Recently I photographed a young and unusually dark Red-tailed Hawk as ‘he’ was practicing his landings by repeatedly taking off and landing on rocky perches that were close to each other. Four days ago I posted a single photo of him about to land on one of those rocks but I think the entire series of photos of that takeoff, flight and landing deserve to be seen. So that’s what I’m posting today.
The first 16 photos below are sequential without any skips. There are skips just prior to or after the last two.
This is takeoff #1 (the only one I’m presenting today.) At the time I didn’t yet know he was practicing his landings so I expected this to be the beginning of a long flight. So when he abruptly landed again I was lucky to keep him in frame for the entire series
He took off at a pretty steep angle for such a large bird but he really didn’t have much choice because there was a fairly steep mountainside in front of him in that direction.
Gaining elevation quickly.
When cropping these photos, whenever I could I tried to keep at least some of the vegetation below him in frame to allow the viewer to judge…
how far above the rocky slope he was but…
I couldn’t always succeed.
With this position of his feet and legs he’s already beginning to provide a hint that he might not be going far but of course I didn’t notice it at the time because…
I was too busy trying to keep him in frame.
This flight angle and body posture also suggest that he might be landing soon…
but on what? I still had no clue and fully expected him to continue his flight.
Finally, we see part of his next rock perch in front of him. But all this was happening too fast for me to process the information and react to it. I was just flying by the seat of my pants as I tried to keep him in frame, no matter what happened.
Another flight posture similar to the one three photos ago that strongly suggests imminent landing.
This is the shot I posted four days ago.
After this photo my luck ran out.
In the next shot his left wing covered his face and in the photo after that…
that wing hid the entire upper half of his body. Things got worse after that.
I cut off a wing when he landed because I still hadn’t had time to process what he was doing so I continued to pan my lens to my left as the bird unexpectedly stopped his forward motion.
Within about 5 seconds of landing he was already looking at his next practice perch at upper left. But I won’t include those photos today because I’ve probably already overdone it.
So, how far do you think he flew before he landed on his new perch?
This photo (even though it isn’t sharp for some reason) provides some clues. It was taken from a different position when I first spotted him but he’s perched on the same rock he took off from. The rock he landed on is just out of frame at upper left (it’s an upper extension of the rock we do see up there.) I’d estimate that he didn’t fly further than 15′ or so.
So why did I post so many photos? Wouldn’t half this many be more than enough? I don’t think so. I believe there’s value in seeing an entire flight series, especially when there aren’t any skips, for the better understanding of the dynamics of takeoff, flight and landing it provides.
I don’t do it more often because I rarely photograph an entire flight from beginning to end (this might be the first time.) And I usually can’t keep the entire bird in the frame for that long anyway.
Ron
Note: Image techs for these photos were at or near 1/5000, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc
The expression at the end! “NAILED IT!”
Nice series, looks like he has a bit of feather damage with his learning curve. I feel like someone should say “ta-da” at the landing.
Thanks, April.
Thanks for posting the whole series! It’s so interesting to see and study images that reflect mere seconds in real time. Such a treat! This boy is certainly dark!
“This boy is certainly dark!”
He sure is, Kathleen. One of the darker ones I’ve seen.
Wowsers.
You fly by the seat of your pants really, really well..
I am awed by both of you..
And love the entire sequence but am for some reason particular taken by the primaries in #6 (and to a lesser extent #3). And those britches. Of course.
Of course!
I’ve spent a lot of time flying by the seat of my pants in various endeavors, EC. I should be getting a little better at it.
So much drama and effort for a hop, skip and a jump! Wonderful series, Ron, and you know there is no such thing as too many Red-tail photos (or, any raptor, for that matter). I have to admit I even like the one where his wings are enclosing his entire body but for legs, tail and talons — perhaps he was hiding his embarrassment that this wasn’t a longer flight? 😉
Also wanted to say, the right wing’s primaries in #6 … remind me of dripping candle wax or paint … I don’t recall ever seeing such an unusual display before!
Thanks for point that right wing out in #6, Chris. It does look kinda… strange.
Thanks for sharing the entire sequence. It’s an instructive and very dynamic series. Even when the head is completely obscured by the wing it still provides a great sense of action and helps pull together all of the various elements that need to coordinate together for the bird to accomplish its task. The single photo you posted earlier is wonderful but the entire series helps us see the action.
Thanks, Dan. Your entire comment pretty much encapsulates how I feel.
Stunning, sensational, exceptional, extraordinary, fabulous, amazing, remarkable, and on and on. Great job Ron and appreciate everyone of the sixteen. Shame you cut off the actual landing because I think that would have been the best. All are worthy to be framed, but my favorites are 5, 7, and the one right before landing. Light was perfect giving you a catch-eye in every photo.
Thanks, Everett. My personal favorite is #13, the one I posted four days ago.
Thanks for sharing the series, Ron. Just incredible! The pictures, however, cannot portray the incredible size of these magnificent birds. When your sister, Mona, and I were building our house, a baby red-tailed hawk had fallen from a nest nearby and broke its leg. We “captured” it and put a splint on its leg and kept it in a large pen with a loose cover. We fed it an enormous amount of meat scraps from a local butcher. In rather short time, it move the cover and hopped or flew to the top of the roof ridge, We didn’t observe how it got there. This baby bird had a wing span of nearly 5′. It finally glided down to the ground where authorities were able to take it to a preserve.
Very interesting story, Larry. I don’t believe I ever heard it. That must have been over 40 years ago.
Simply SENSATIONAL !!!
Charlotte Norton Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Charlotte.
I’m thinking of all the elements that had to come together to accomplish this, both on your part and the Hawk. Well worth posting the whole series. Oh, and the plain blue sky is a perfectly unobtrusive backdrop, so there.
“Oh, and the plain blue sky is a perfectly unobtrusive backdrop, so there.”
Made me smile, Lyle (and rhyme, you’ll make a poet out of me yet.)
In this context I wouldn’t argue with you.
It is enjoyable and rewarding, as well as educational, to read and see your photo stories. Thanks for all your work.
Thank you, Malon.
Excellent series! It is definitely worth seeing the entire sequence. Just keeping it in the frame that long is a challenge.
“Just keeping it in the frame that long is a challenge.”
Bruce, the full frame R5 with its large file size definitely helped with that.
While it’s worthwhile seeing the sequence of actions, I’m impressed that
almost every one of those images can stand on its own merits, as far as
composition, clarity, and dynamism in the bird’s posture– a beautiful
accomplishment !
Thanks very much, Kris. I was pretty happy with that too. Occasionally I get lucky.
Wonderful series, Ron! 🙂 His concentration is apparent……… 😉 Steep learning curve – “fall” isn’t THAT far away……
” “fall” isn’t THAT far away”
Judy, at least he won’t have to migrate to South America in the fall like Swainson’s Hawks do.
Ron these are amazing photos (as usual). I &am greatful that you posted the series.
Can you please share the camera and lens details.
Jerzy
Sorry Jerzy, I ran out of time. In a few minutes I’ll provide them as a note at the end of my post.