Taking advantage

Gallery: AvianPosted April 20, 2013157 views19 comments

Just taking advantage of the opportunity with these birds. A couple more weeks and it will be another year before these birds are available again.

This one if for Ken. No leg bands.

I like the fast, steep bank this bird is in. Not your typical flight or hovering position for these birds.

Please view larger version for max detail. Thanks.

Canon 1DM4
Canon 500mm f/4
ISO 800
1/1600s
f/7.1
Manual exp.
Hand held from my boat

Comments

19 comments

Comment posted by Patrick O'Healy on April 20, 2013 at 6:54 PM

Ron,
You have so consistently posted extraordinary photos of these subjects this past two years that you have established a standard we have come to expect! Good job.

Registered on March 13, 2011, 326 Posts, 1679 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie VanTassel on April 20, 2013 at 8:34 PM

You keep it up and you're gonna get a good shot of this bird one day.

Excellent, Ron.

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

Comment posted by Mike Ramy on April 20, 2013 at 9:00 PM

Excellent Image Ron,
The detail and feather positions that you captured as the manuver is being made are very interesting. That red eye really pops also.
Well Done

Registered on June 16, 2012, 567 Posts, 2809 Comments

Comment posted by Charles Gangas on April 20, 2013 at 9:27 PM

Excellent capture...as usual Ron. I really like the feather detail this hard bank angle offers.

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

Comment posted by Kirk Greene on April 20, 2013 at 9:43 PM

Another excellent image! Keep them coming

Registered on May 12, 2004, 191 Posts, 1578 Comments

Comment posted by Richard Ditch on April 20, 2013 at 10:20 PM

Terrific, as usual.

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

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on April 20, 2013 at 10:57 PM

You sure are giving a guy a lot of reasons to be envious and jealous...

This is simply stunning Ron.

Registered on June 19, 2008, 1005 Posts, 8028 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Watkins on April 21, 2013 at 2:22 AM

Ron,
This is a real beauty, perfect position and great detail.

Registered on December 15, 2010, 1537 Posts, 4877 Comments

Comment posted by Rob Drummond on April 21, 2013 at 2:51 AM

Great banking pose Ron

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

Comment posted by Stephen Kaluski on April 21, 2013 at 6:35 AM

Hi Ron, Rob said it all, great banking position, superb detail in the wing/flight feathers and a killer BKD, you nailed this one.

TFS
Steve

Registered on March 25, 2007, 189 Posts, 1064 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on April 21, 2013 at 11:30 AM

Sweet shot Ron!

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

Comment posted by Ken Archer on April 21, 2013 at 3:23 PM

Another stunning flight photo Ron

The detail is incredible as usual.

Someday I would love to spend some quality time with these guys, the series of great images of this species you have captured is very alluring to me, leg bands or not. I under-stand the necessity of leg bands for the biologist studying these endangered birds, but for some reason I have a hard time accepting them.

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Ron Bielefeld on April 21, 2013 at 3:39 PM

Ken, I too do not prefer leg bands in images, but their value, as you state, is much greater than any inconvenience they pose to a photographer. There are birds with no bands, so you get a mixture of images with and without. Sometimes bands add a story or element that takes a photo to another level. In my Caracara image that will be in the National Museum of Natural History as part of the Windland Smith Rice exhibition the bird had leg bands and that is one element (conservation) that helped that image place in the competition. So, they are good in different ways at times.

Let me know if you want to take a trip to see and photography these awesome birds. Not sure how many more years we will be able to see them here in the US.

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

Comment posted by Luke Ormand on April 21, 2013 at 10:06 PM

Just a stellar image all the way around. I like seeing this angle

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

Comment posted by Jim Hackley on April 22, 2013 at 12:11 PM

Way to cool with the wing spread and eye contact. A stunning image Ron and a pleasure to view, excellent shot.

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

Comment posted by Rick Andrews on April 23, 2013 at 12:50 PM

Stunning shot Ron, especially for a hand held shot from a boat. Awsesome!