‘Talking’ to another curlew as he flew.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 640, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
This is an older photo, taken in May of last year, of a male Long-billed Curlew flying in front of one of the Great Salt Lake beaches on Antelope Island. This bird and another curlew were ‘talking’ to each other as he flew. I wish he hadn’t been a little past me already but I like the background, his wing position and the fact that he’s calling.
I’ve posted a couple of other photos of this bird in the past but this one is new to Feathered Photography.
When I took the photo I was actually driving forward at about 10 mph – it was either that or miss the shot. Rest assured that I did it safely. It was very early in the morning (6:56 AM), the road and the island were deserted and before I did it I made sure there’d be no chance of any mishap. I’m chicken that way.
Thankfully I had enough shutter speed to minimize lens shake while hand holding my gear. I try to keep my default camera settings in a range that will give me the best chance of that and this time it worked.
Thinking about all you folks in the path of hurricane Hilary.
Ron
Maybe the conversation between the curlews involved comments about a photographer driving his truck at 10 MPH while taking photos of flying birds at 6:56am! Steering with your knee?š
Such a handsome bird. That long bill doesn’t look as weird in flight as when they are on the ground. It almost could be a hummingbird!
“Steering with your knee?”
Yup. Well, not really steering. Just holding the steering wheel steady with my knee. The road was straight.
Beautiful image!
Thanks, April.
Another stunner. And another feat of difficulty that would be well beyond me.
It’s often well beyond me too, EC. Thanks.
Fablous flight shot,thanks for sharing!
Charlotte Norton
Thanks, Charlotte.
I would think that while flying, an open beak of that length would prove a hindrance to aerodynamic efficiency ? Down here in. S. Utah, we
received a good and gentle rain–last night , so far, no flash flooding or horrific windstorms , for which we were bracing .Hope our luck
continues !
Kris, given what was possible, a “good gentle rain” sounds pretty good.
Beautiful shot! Of course, I’m partial to Curlews…….. š Hell, I couldn’t get it standing still let alone driving! š
Bit of light rain this morning – we’ll take whatever we can get. Appears the Kalispell area “may” get some today also – BOY do they need it with all the fires over there!
Family in Southern CA are fine so far…….WHEW!
Yeh, “Hawkeye” = Mash………. š
Thanks, Judy. M*A*S*H* was one of my favorite shows of all time.
Now that’s “shooting from the hip!” š Lots to really like about this shot. I’m drawn to his beautiful markings and that little alula peeking out from his left wing (and yes, I had to look up the spelling — again — I keep wanting to add another “L” somewhere).
Thanks for the good thoughts about yesterday. It was quite the wild ride. We seem to be not too the worse for wear here. Hope that’s the same for folks north and east of the coastal areas. š
“I keep wanting to add another āLā somewhere)”
Marty, what I have to be careful about with that word is singular vs plural. I keep wanting to add an “e” at the end when I mean it to be singular.
Glad to know you made it through the storm OK.
That is a great photo. And while driving even more impressive. Even if you stood there with me and guided me while using your camera I would never have taken a shot that good.
Was this pre R5?
I went out to one of our lakes very late yesterday afternoon and found a large contingent of White-faced Ibis and two strange visitors probably blown in due to the storm – one lone Ring-billed Gull and one lone Herring Gull. But no rain here in northern AZ yet.
Thanks, Everett. Nope, took it with the R5.
There are lots of birders looking for unusual birds blown off path by this storm..
“When I took the photo I was actually driving forward at about 10 mph…”
As I pondered this I had a recall of that scene in Last of the Mohicans where Hawkeye is reloading his muzzleloader while running.
All things considered, a remarkable photo.
Thanks, Michael. To me, Hawkeye is first and foremost a doctor in a M*A*S*H* unit… š
Ron, my mind immediately went to M*A*S*H* also, then re-booted and got me to the book. Guess I need to watch the movie now.
In one early episode of M*A*S*H*, Dr. Benjamin Franklin Pierce tells of his father giving him the nickname Hawkeye, because Last of the Mohicans was his father’s favorite book.
Michael, I remember that episode.
Michael – wow great memory. Daniel Day Lewis portraying Hawkeye in a movie of one of my all-time favorite books as a kid. James Fenimore Cooper son of the founder of Cooperstown NY home of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Thank Everett! While very violent, the movie was probably one of the most beautifully shot movies I have ever seen. And Daniel Day Lewis (as he usually does) really dives deep into the character. I read that he spent considerable time practicing things like the running reload to add authenticity to his role.
BTW – My memory tends to retain useless bits of information about movies. Drives my wife crazy.