One Last Sage Grouse

Gallery: AvianPosted April 2, 2016118 views6 comments

Canon 1D-X, 500mm x 1.4TC, handheld from truck window
f7.1, 1/1500, ISO2000

I find the the Greater Sage Grouse lekking behavior fascinating and challenging. Here's one last shot, attempting to show the immense effort these birds put into the competition on the lek. They do this for 2.5-3.0 hours, as well as occasionally quarreling with another male, performing that strange gliding movement and vocalizing.

70% of full frame. slight adjustments to Shadows/Highlights; slight selective sharpening of bird. The entire series is at my blog.

C & C, please. Thanks for looking.

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on April 2, 2016 at 10:57 PM

Superb detail in the bird, Jim. I'm particularly impressed that you captured texture in the sacs on the breast. Nice light on this one as well. A very good series of images.

devil

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

Comment posted by Richard Teller on April 3, 2016 at 10:26 AM

This has been a great series of images. Very nice detail, sharpness and lighting on this bird. I was going to go to northeast Colorado this spring and photograph sage grouse, but alas other things interfered.

Registered on August 23, 2010, 1162 Posts, 6692 Comments

Comment posted by David Schoen on April 3, 2016 at 2:20 PM

Your whole series on Sage Grouse has been very interesting for me. I think you have done a good job in portraying this bird and its habitat quite well and some of its behaviors as well. All of the images have generally been quite sharp with perfect color balance. Thanks for sharing the whole series.

Registered on November 6, 2006, 1213 Posts, 4587 Comments

Comment posted by Floyd Hopper on April 3, 2016 at 6:28 PM

Wow.! Every thing works for me.

Registered on May 1, 2009, 652 Posts, 762 Comments

Comment posted by Pete Bengeyfield on April 4, 2016 at 10:10 AM

I guess it's impossible to get them with their head out when they're fully inflated. I've sure never been able to do it. Nice shot.

Registered on December 2, 2003, 1247 Posts, 3439 Comments

Comment posted by Kurt Bowman on April 4, 2016 at 10:45 PM

Another nice pose form this Grouse Jim. Looks like you had a production day at your lek. BTW....the lek I was going to visit was plowed over after our last snow storm and the grouse are somewhere else and cannot be found right now. cheeky

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