Ferruginous Hawk

Gallery: AvianPosted November 17, 2010312 views34 comments

We've been working hard on Ferruginous Hawks in Utah's west desert the last few weeks but we're finding them to be quite difficult to approach. This one had just lifted off from a fence post perch.

7D, 1/4000 (faster than I needed), f/6.3, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, shot from pickup window on 11/2/10, small exposure adjustment in ACR, cropped to 54% of original image, added canvas right and top, I also clipped the end of one primary on the right wing which I "repaired", sharpened bird, no additional processing or adjustments, natural light, not set up or baited

Larger image provided

Comments/critique appreciated

Comments

34 comments

Comment posted by Robert Bunch on November 17, 2010 at 7:33 PM

Sweet! I like the head on view and the BG. Is that a mountain?

Registered on May 18, 2004, 124 Posts, 2503 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on November 17, 2010 at 7:34 PM

Amazing! This makes the hawk look very big.

Well done!

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

Comment posted by Ron Dudley on November 17, 2010 at 7:40 PM

"Sweet! I like the head on view and the BG. Is that a mountain?"

Thanks Robert. Yes, the background is the Stansbury Mountains.

Registered on March 30, 2007, 437 Posts, 10915 Comments

Comment posted by Keith Bauer on November 17, 2010 at 9:40 PM

Beautiful capture. Love that wing position. Very nice post processing!

Registered on November 20, 2003, 458 Posts, 4836 Comments

Comment posted by Neil Rossmiller on November 17, 2010 at 10:02 PM

Hi Ron.
Another beautiful image of a tough subject.
Very nicely done.
Neil

Registered on October 30, 2009, 156 Posts, 749 Comments

Comment posted by KC Choo on November 18, 2010 at 5:16 AM

Fabulous, Ron! And, that remark also applies to your canvas and wingtip repair skills!

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

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on November 18, 2010 at 5:38 AM

This is magic Ron - great light and detail and i love the pose.

cheers
Rob

Registered on November 8, 2003, 617 Posts, 8267 Comments

Comment posted by Karen Summers on November 18, 2010 at 6:07 AM

An absolute beauty beautiful detail to

Registered on December 3, 2009, 83 Posts, 818 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Gatlin on November 18, 2010 at 7:36 AM

Very nice wing position and comp, great work on the repair. This really conveys how "big-bodied" a ferrug is.

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

Comment posted by Jagdeep Rajput on November 18, 2010 at 9:13 AM

Terrific body language n excellent frame !
Jagdeep Rajput

Registered on April 29, 2008, 686 Posts, 2857 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on November 18, 2010 at 9:48 AM

Ron,
I love everything here, the dynamic flight pose, the splayed tail and the diagonal comp. Great work.

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

Comment posted by Ronnie Gaubert on November 18, 2010 at 12:09 PM

Very nice Ron. I like the head turn he offered you. The diagonal crop looks good.

Ronnie

Registered on November 1, 2003, 810 Posts, 3495 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on November 18, 2010 at 1:38 PM

This is one of the best flight shots of a Ferruginous Hawk I've seen posted here, Ron. Terrific detail, lovely comp and tack-sharp throughout. Simply outstanding!

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by David Williams on November 18, 2010 at 2:20 PM

These guys are definitely tough to get close to Ron, and you have done an outstanding job capturing this flight shot....well done (as usual)!

Registered on March 8, 2005, 315 Posts, 2291 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on November 18, 2010 at 2:22 PM

Your hard work is paying off, the larger image looks great, I like the slight head turn so we can see the eye, way to go.

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

Comment posted by Ian Mason on November 18, 2010 at 4:06 PM

Absolutely fantastic! One of your very best.

Registered on December 14, 2005, 399 Posts, 2305 Comments

Comment posted by Rohn B. McKee on November 18, 2010 at 6:05 PM

Wow Ron this is terrific! Hard work and skill paid off again. Thanks for sharing, and for bringing these beautiful creatures into our lives.

Registered on November 18, 2008, 109 Posts, 415 Comments

Comment posted by Rohn B. McKee on November 18, 2010 at 6:06 PM

Wow Ron this is terrific! Hard work and skill paid off again. Thanks for sharing, and for bringing these beautiful creatures into our lives.

Registered on November 18, 2008, 109 Posts, 415 Comments

Comment posted by Geoffrey Baker on November 18, 2010 at 6:17 PM

An amazing capture Ron

I like the diagonal composition too.
Well done.

Geoff.

Registered on August 20, 2010, 192 Posts, 980 Comments

Comment posted by Darren Colello on November 18, 2010 at 6:37 PM

Ron, this is stunning. Probably the best image of this species I have seen. Exceptional work.

Registered on July 27, 2009, 175 Posts, 1100 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Moore on November 18, 2010 at 7:58 PM

The crop is splended as is the image. Hats off to you on this one!

Dan

Registered on February 11, 2010, 143 Posts, 1248 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on November 18, 2010 at 8:18 PM

Just a super shot Ron. Very nice job on the wing tip and adding canvas. Love the head on view and the great light in the eye. Love the Mtn. BG too.

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

Comment posted by Mia McPherson on November 18, 2010 at 8:19 PM

This is excellent Ron and I'm very glad you posted it. Your postprocessing/repair looks wonderful. Great pose, light and comp. I hope that we get many more chances with these hawks this winter.

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

Comment posted by Steve Balke on November 18, 2010 at 9:29 PM

Wow, this one looks like it's coming out of the frame at me, Ron! Fine comp. Nice detail. Great repair job.

Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments

Comment posted by Randy Bacon on November 18, 2010 at 10:55 PM

Killer shot Ron - love it. Beautiful lines, all leading to the head and that engaging pose. Well balance exposure with beautiful light on the head, talons and upper wings, a nice catch light and enough light into the underside of the wings to see some of the shadowed detail - sweet!

Registered on November 24, 2008, 56 Posts, 492 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on November 19, 2010 at 6:57 AM

This is pretty darn good Ron, I especially like the frontal POV and diagonal wing presentation

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Danny Laredo on November 19, 2010 at 2:55 PM

Ron, I really like this image. great flight pose.

Registered on March 18, 2008, 71 Posts, 332 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Lotito on November 19, 2010 at 5:50 PM

Ron,

This is absolutely beautiful!

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

Comment posted by Sally King on November 19, 2010 at 7:33 PM

I love the way you placed him across the frame. Your flight shots are amazing as are you BOS images. I always love looking at them.

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

Comment posted by Nate Chappell on November 19, 2010 at 9:39 PM

Sweet take off pose and I really like the bg Ron. Nice job repairing the clipped wing tip.

Registered on February 1, 2006, 1158 Posts, 19528 Comments

Comment posted by Charles Gangas on November 20, 2010 at 11:38 AM

Sensational flight image Ron. The wing position exhibits a classic slow flight, or "dirty" position-full cambered wings, spread tail, and talons not quite tucked up. The size of this hawk reminds me a real large"wide body", which is of course what it is.

Registered on August 12, 2009, 544 Posts, 2414 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Bristol on November 20, 2010 at 12:07 PM

Beautiful shot, Ron. This is one of the best I have seen.