Hawk ID

Melvin,

Nice first posting! Welcome to NPN (and in particulary the Avian Gallery which is the best in the Universe!). What (I believe) you have here is a Red-tailed Hawk (note the banding across the chest). As for the "one-leg" it almost certainly has 2 but birds often tuck one leg/foot up to their body for warmth (and I imagine to rest it?) so this is the typical pose of a perched Hawk.

It's so nice to see some green in a photo as we are stuck in Winter and you got nice details here.

- Luke

Welcome Melvin, I agree that it's a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. I like the intent pose of the hawk. From a composition standpoint I would crop some off the left to move the bird out of the center. If you are just looking for ids and not image critique it's best to post in the bird photography discussion forum, but if you are looking for feedback on your image, you are in the right spot!, welcome to NPN

Melvin, welcome!
It's great that you now have time to hone your photography skills. The Avian gallery here is terrific, and you'll learn a lot - and help teach US all too.
Be sure to also join the Canada Forum here - look under the FORUMS at the top of this page. You might find some other local CDN people to shoot with!
Nice little juvie RT here !

Sandy r

Melvin, welcome to NPN. a nice shot of this juvie red-tail. If you are looking for a critique here it is. I would suggest a verticle comp for this with less room on the left and more on the right, the direction the bird is looking. Also, maybe just a tad less DOF to get the BG vege blurred a bit to make the hawk stand out more. This is just a personal preference, as I like habitat in images, but like the subject to really stand out. Sharpness and exposure look good. Again, welcome and I hope to see more of your work and read many of your comments on other people's images.

Welcome to NPN, Melvin. Good to see another Manitoban on here. I'm from near Winkler. Good job on the photo. You might consider visiting the Pembina Valley in March/April. It is a major raptor migration route with tens of thousands of these guys, as well as many bald and golden eagles and other raptors.

Raymond

Hello Melvin,

I hope you will enjoy NPN's Avian critique gallery, the photographers here are very helpful and if you want to improve your photography they have a lot to share.

I agree this is a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk and it does most likely have the one foot tucked up to keep it warm.

Welcome to NPN Melvin. It is a great place to learn and share your work with others. Enjoy your retirement and stop in often.

Hello Melvin,
A wonderful first image to post at NPN, this is an excellent place to learn bird photography as I just joined myself several months ago. For me, I think more of a vertical crop would help the hawk stand out more from the background, good overall detail. Welcome.

I changed this picture to potrait style. Is it better now



Mel

welcome to the group Melvin! This is the best investment in education that I have spent in a long time! I have learned a ton from a great group of helpful people! I like your red tailed hawk in the first posting very much. One thing that will really helps all of us learn more is to list your camera settings for the photo - others will join in and suggest different setting to get a crisper or sharper image. Again, great first post and welcome (from another canuk)