I shot a series of these at Ridgefield NWR back in Dec of 05. That time of year the vole are running so thick it looks like the ground is moving. The raptors seem to be as thick in the sky. This shot is handheld from my truck at minimum focus distance on a 400mm 5.6. I actually had to back my truck up to get him in focus! He sat ther for almost an hour on a sign. He took 4 different trip to get a vole and return to the sign to eat it. I just loved the blood and hair that is on his beak. Thanks for looking!
That is stunning, Jeremy. The detail in the feathers looks like a fractal. I need to get out to Rigefield again - I was there in Feb. I think and not much was happening then....
Posted by Ned Fenimore on June 13, 2006 at 7:18 AM
This is really well done. The lighting is perfect!
You got this in the wild, eh? Jeez, damn nice, Jeremy!
Posted by Jeremy Cram on June 13, 2006 at 12:27 PM
Ya know there is a hawk out there that is REALLY mellow. The rangers call him John Wanye(why...I dont know) but he has a chipped or messed up beak. This was shot in Dec between the 5the and the 13th. They had mowd all thegrass down about a month before, and the voles were in season really thick, so the hawks just became gluttonous pigs and didn't seem to care how close you got. On the back stretch of the refuge I counted around 35 raptors in that last miles and half. Thats Hawk, Norther Harriers, and Kestrels.
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9 repliesSean
P.S. Nice avatar ;)