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WC #481 - Hanging out

Gallery: Weekly ChallengePosted May 3, 20111,185 views20 comments

I had just finished shooting a great blue heron fishing at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. As I stood up, some motion behind a nearby log caught my attention. It was this green heron attempting to swallow a frog whole. Of course, my tripod was on the ground, completely collapsed. A 500mm lens with 2x teleconvertor was mounted. I scrambled to extend the screw lock legs, while the camera and lens were still attached! I'm sure anyone watching me was quite amused. I finally gave up and just handheld the shot and crossed my fingers that the 1/1250 second shutter speed was enough to freeze the camera motion. I really didn't expect to get anything properly framed, let alone in focus. What can I say, AF and IS saved the day!

The heron finally gave up trying to swallow the frog. He couldn't quite make the geometry work.

Canon 1Ds2, 500mm + 2x TC, f8, 1/1,250 sec, ISO 800, Handheld

Comments

20 comments

Comment posted by David Thomas on May 3, 2011 at 3:53 PM

Wow, a winner even with your improvised shot! Great composition, color, and detail in spite of the situation. I don't know whether to feel sorry for the heron or happy for the frog, assuming that he survived the shock.

Registered on June 21, 2010, 30 Posts, 178 Comments

Comment posted by Keith A Anderson on May 3, 2011 at 4:10 PM

Great catch, Bill. The composition is very nice with great eye contact between predator and prey. I'm surprised the bird couldn't swallow the frog as I've seen green herons swallow fish much larger than this.

Registered on February 13, 2006, 166 Posts, 1818 Comments

Comment posted by Tina Schell on May 3, 2011 at 5:29 PM

WOW - that really IS a catch (in more ways than one!). Good for you. Somehow they always seem to do their most exciting tricks immediately after we close up shop for the day. Murphy as usual. I just LOVE the expression on the frog's face - so resigned to his fate! Congrats on the get!

Registered on October 22, 2010, 26 Posts, 34 Comments

Comment posted by Grant Collier on May 3, 2011 at 7:08 PM

That's awfully nice of the heron to give the frog a lift across the pond.

Great shot!

Registered on July 29, 2005, 73 Posts, 430 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on May 3, 2011 at 8:16 PM

Great catch - for both of you!
The blues seem over-saturated as the frog has a bluish cast, and the area around the bird's beak seems unnaturally colored.
Sandy

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by scott lanz on May 3, 2011 at 10:31 PM

Bill, great catch.

Grant, good one.

Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments

Comment posted by RL Potts on May 4, 2011 at 12:59 AM

It looks to me like the frog is done for. That heron looks like it has been to war and back. You got close enough to pick up some drama. An interesting peek into life along the river.

Registered on November 24, 2003, 188 Posts, 985 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Roberts on May 4, 2011 at 1:54 AM

Great capture. The heron looks excited and the frog looks unconcerned.

Registered on March 9, 2011, 69 Posts, 501 Comments

Comment posted by Kedar Bhat on May 4, 2011 at 2:33 AM

Registered on April 7, 2008, 77 Posts, 357 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Pelzmann on May 4, 2011 at 3:26 AM

Yes, Grant, the heron did give the frog a lift across this alligator infested lake. A great example of Texas hospitality.

Thanks for the observations, Sandy. I'm not seeing the blue cast on my monitor or in prints.

Registered on January 26, 2005, 27 Posts, 265 Comments

Comment posted by Lucy Aron on May 4, 2011 at 4:47 PM

Totally cool. Must be one very traumatized frog hopping around. Great expression on its face, good colors subjects with nice simplicity of background.

lucy

Registered on February 25, 2011, 189 Posts, 1160 Comments

Comment posted by Varina Patel on May 4, 2011 at 5:25 PM

Wow! This is a fantastic shot. I know these green herons are a lot smaller than the great blues that live around here in Ohio. I can imagine it would be tough to swallow such a big frog! I love that bright eye on the bird, and seeing an eye on each critter makes this extra special. Just gorgeous.

Registered on August 22, 2008, 45 Posts, 1578 Comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on May 4, 2011 at 11:03 PM

Cool image, Bill. I can sure relate to the situation!

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Pelzmann on May 5, 2011 at 1:36 AM

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

FYI the background blue is lake water, with spots of green floating plants.
The DOF at 1000mm is incredibly thin, so getting the heron's and frog's eye in the same plane is just plain luck.
Note the feathers on the heron's wing are way out of the focal plane.

Registered on January 26, 2005, 27 Posts, 265 Comments

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on May 11, 2011 at 7:52 PM

Amazing image with lots of color, detail and action. Poor frog! Congrats on the WP

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

Comment posted by Steve Kennedy on May 12, 2011 at 10:20 AM

Good story and great capture! Congratulations on the well deserved WP!

Registered on March 9, 2009, 79 Posts, 676 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Pelzmann on May 14, 2011 at 11:22 PM

WOW . I just returned from a week long photo trip to the Moab area, so this WP was a most pleasant surprise!

At first, I didn't think I had anything of interest for this weekly challenge. I like WC topics that make me dig deep into my archives.

Registered on January 26, 2005, 27 Posts, 265 Comments

Comment posted by Herb Sennet on May 21, 2011 at 2:10 PM

Great shot! After seeing this one you will never forget it! That says something.
Herb

Registered on September 20, 2009, 87 Posts, 106 Comments

Comment posted by Cheryl Molennor on June 3, 2011 at 7:52 PM

It is truly amazing what a great capture handheld unbelievable

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

Comment posted by Troup Nightingale on June 4, 2011 at 1:29 AM

Nice, very nice! I love the idea of catching something in nature that will not happen...like the heron not realizing this will not work. I watched a great blue heron trying to deal with an extremely large flounder that it caught off my marsh house area. It was too far for my photography to capture, but well within range of my telescope. He/she tried every possible angle for over an hour to get the legal size for eating flounder into it's throat...to no avail. While it was a bummer for the heron, it provided me with an unusual hour or more of entertainment through the telescope! So much for the stars!

Troup

Registered on September 29, 2006, 10 Posts, 47 Comments