American Kestrel

Gallery: AvianPosted February 8, 2010256 views24 comments

We found this female on one of her favorite perches this morning. She was basking in the sun that had just come up so she was unusually tolerant of us. This is a stretch, not a take-off. There's a feather stuck to one of her talons and you can see blood on the post from some of her previous meals.

Mia got a shot almost identical to this one. We arm wrestled to see which of us would post. I won...

7D, 1/1250, f/7.1, ISO 400, +1/3 EV, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, shot from pickup window, lightened darks slightly in ACR, cropped to 74% of original image, sharpened, no other processing, not baited

Comments/critique appreciated

Comments

24 comments

Comment posted by Sally King on February 8, 2010 at 6:48 PM

Okay I am running out of words to describe how wonderful your images are. The raised wings, splayed tail, feather on the talon, happy look on her face, all make an amazingly good image. The light is superb too. Be careful or we're all going to be moving to Utah.

Registered on December 2, 2008, 416 Posts, 4450 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on February 8, 2010 at 7:09 PM

Ron, This is terriffic. Great color, light, background and very sharp. Really like how you caught the stretch. The large view is something!

Registered on February 1, 2004, 752 Posts, 14140 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on February 8, 2010 at 7:10 PM

Ron, I have liked all of the kestrel images I have seen you post, but I believe I like this one the best of all. The pose of the bird including the great eye contact really is special. The sharpness and detail are outstanding. Then add in the wonderful BG and you have a top-tier image. I really can't see how it could be improved upon. Very well done.

Registered on December 6, 2008, 360 Posts, 7132 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on February 8, 2010 at 7:42 PM

Another winner Ron. Aside from the splayed tail and stretched wings, what I like most is the gradient of the BG. Not sure if I like the square crop - maybe a little more room on the left?

Registered on February 4, 2009, 1093 Posts, 7035 Comments

Comment posted by mark cillo on February 8, 2010 at 7:44 PM

Really great detail and I like the pose. Another awesome shot!

Registered on July 27, 2008, 143 Posts, 1483 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on February 8, 2010 at 8:11 PM

Another winner, for sure!

Registered on November 15, 2004, 519 Posts, 8278 Comments

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on February 8, 2010 at 8:15 PM

Ron,

She is a real beauty and in a stunning pose.

You already know what I think of this image so I will just go put a bag of ice on my sore right shoulder from us arm wrestling

Seriously; a fantastic image, great light, details, sharpness and exposure.

I'm wondering what king of monitor Luke is viewing this on, this isn't a square crop at all, it is rectangular?

Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Jenkins on February 8, 2010 at 8:22 PM

Great feather detail, BG and lighting. This is a really outstanding shot, Ron.

Registered on April 20, 2008, 307 Posts, 604 Comments

Comment posted by Gaurav Manglik on February 8, 2010 at 8:35 PM

beautiful light, details, pose - in fact everything. Just an outstanding image.

Registered on December 2, 2005, 191 Posts, 2126 Comments

Comment posted by David Sparks on February 8, 2010 at 9:48 PM

I don't see how they can keep getting better ... but they do.

Registered on May 26, 2007, 290 Posts, 4270 Comments

Comment posted by Sharon Hallowell on February 8, 2010 at 9:51 PM

OK, I get it now. There's two of you so the birds there stay still twice as long, ...right??

And you see, twice as many, too!

A great image with a cool pose, head turn and great dof to capture that far wing so nicely. A beauty! Sharon

Registered on November 1, 2003, 392 Posts, 4810 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Saunders on February 8, 2010 at 10:30 PM

A beauty Ron. You guys sure are getting close-ups. My only nit, if at all, is I'd like a touch more room all around her.

Registered on February 6, 2008, 321 Posts, 3035 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on February 8, 2010 at 11:30 PM

Ok, so now you are upping the ante and only showing sharp, well exposed Kestrel shots having perfect background, "with really dynamic wing poses"!?! Perhaps there is some fault in a fence post perch, but that's definitely debatable.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on February 9, 2010 at 9:13 AM

wow, Ron... as everyone else has said, this is just amazing.... What a pose! I can't imagine a nicer pose. Great light, details, catchlight, everything. wonderful shot. But no fair on the arm-wrestling--you're used to lifting that big 500, Mia uses a lighter lens!

Registered on March 21, 2009, 202 Posts, 4187 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie VanTassel on February 9, 2010 at 10:30 AM

Beautiful, Ron.... and what is this "sun" of which you speak?

Registered on October 18, 2006, 644 Posts, 4801 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on February 9, 2010 at 11:24 AM

Wow, what an excellent image. I like the background, color, detail and the wing stretch adds the final touch. For me it is always good to read a little story about the image and the large photo was a pleasure to view. Well done.

Registered on September 17, 2009, 302 Posts, 5535 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Lotito on February 9, 2010 at 12:18 PM

Very nice detailed shot! The wing pose and feather stuck in her talon add the the drama.

Registered on June 26, 2009, 181 Posts, 1558 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on February 9, 2010 at 12:27 PM

A terrific image. I think you and Mia now "own" this species in terms of quality and variety of images.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1031 Posts, 12705 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on February 9, 2010 at 12:56 PM

Ron,
I cannot say how much I like this image. Great pose, head turn, detail, background
and light. Stunning image!!

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on February 9, 2010 at 1:28 PM

OH ron how I wish to see one of these this close. I think they are so cute. You have a great shot here, its perfect . Too bad for Mia but hey she still has the shot as well

Registered on June 30, 2009, 300 Posts, 5051 Comments

Comment posted by Ed Dubois on February 9, 2010 at 2:24 PM

OK. I'm jealous. The light, the pose and the detail really come together here Ron.

Registered on February 22, 2005, 129 Posts, 4739 Comments

Comment posted by Jude Haase on February 9, 2010 at 8:58 PM

Very nice Ron!! Love the wings up!!

Registered on April 3, 2006, 236 Posts, 1657 Comments

Comment posted by Graham Brown on February 10, 2010 at 5:57 AM

That's another belter Ron. Really lovely crisp detail and nice colour palette. I've never seen any better raptor shots than yours. Graham

Registered on November 20, 2007, 275 Posts, 1365 Comments

Comment posted by Fabio Giarrizzo on February 2, 2011 at 11:23 AM

Stunning image- superb colours, background and details (terrific on larger pic)- congratulations, Fabio

Registered on December 3, 2010, 90 Posts, 1614 Comments