flight – Page 58 – Feathered Photography

Male Western Kingbird In Flight

Until this past spring my cupboard was largely bare of flight shots of Western Kingbirds. But this male gave me plenty of opportunity to practice my skills as he encouraged his mate at nest-building.

East Canyon Red-tailed Hawk

I spent yesterday morning in the Wasatch Mountains looking for raptors and other birds. I had my best luck with Red-tailed Hawks.

An Acrobatic Red-tailed Hawk

Raptors sometimes pull some pretty crazy maneuvers during take-off (the last 9 images in this post are sequential with no images in the sequence left out).

Curious Swainson’s Hawk Checking Me Out In Flight

Occasionally soaring raptors fly in quite close to observers and I’m convinced that sometimes it’s simply a matter of curiosity.

Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk Presenting Its Best Side In Flight

I realize that choosing a “best side” of this beautiful hawk might be a matter of opinion but for me this is it.

Double-Crested Cormorant Flying Among The Clouds

I’m not much of a fan of plain blue sky backgrounds for flight shots and on this morning I was resigned to such an outcome in any flight shots I might get because the sky was virtually cloudless. But just as I snapped the shutter this bird passed by one of the few small clouds to be found anywhere and there was even a tinge of pink provided by the color of the rising sun.

Swainson’s Hawk Face-plant Into Rabbitbrush

Sometimes raptors risk serious injury as they go after prey – especially to their eyes.

Forster’s Tern In Flight

The Forster’s Tern is the only tern that is almost entirely restricted to North America year around. They’re sometimes called “marsh terns” because they breed primarily in fresh, brackish and saltwater marshes, including here in northern Utah. Prior to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act Forster’s Terns were hunted for the millenary trade and because of their habit of hovering over other individuals that had been killed they were particularly vulnerable to being shot.

Red-tailed Hawk – The Power And Grace Of Take-off

Bird photography isn’t easy and the resulting images are often missing an essential element (or two, or more…) but sometimes I like those shots anyway. Case in point: