Raptors

A juvenile Red-tailed Hawk in really bad light

By Mia McPherson, on May 21st, 2013%

Red-tailed Hawk in really bad light - Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/8000, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited

Sometimes I take the shot despite knowing that I am not shooting in optimal conditions, most of the time the results are awful but once in awhile I actually enjoy the final image.

This image was taken at Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area in northeastern Utah, there were dark, heavy clouds hanging in the sky and the sun was trying to break through the gloom as this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk flew over my head. I stuck my lens out the window, pointed it skyward and fired a few shots.

This image was the result. I like it because it is kind of spooky. Weird. Different for me.

Ospreys of Flaming Gorge

By Mia McPherson, on May 18th, 2013%

Male Osprey in flight – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/640, ISO 800, +1.0 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited

Our trip to Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area in northeastern Utah was great despite my having been ill the last night we were there. We camped in two different locations this time and both had grand views of the Flaming Gorge Reservoir.

Last year at about this same time these Osprey were busy building their nest while this year they were already sitting on eggs. The male pictured above was flying past the nest with part of a fish in its talons. We sat for nearly an hour watching the male eat this fish on a distant power pole before he flew past. Have I ever mentioned that one needs tons of patience to be a bird photographer?

Female Osprey in golden light - Nikon D300, f5.6, 1/1000, ISO 800, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 357mm, natural light, not baited

The light in the morning can be gorgeous at Flaming Gorge, it was when I photographed the female regaining her balance on top of a power pole near the nest. We didn’t see much of this golden light though this trip. The Uinta Mountains can create their own weather and they certainly did the days we were there with clouds building up in the afternoons, some rain and thunderstorms too.

Female Osprey in low light - Nikon D300, f5.6, 1/160, ISO 1250, -0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited

The last morning the light was low with clouds that were blocking the sun and spitting some rain down on us. I bumped my ISO up to 1250 and hoped to get a few useable images of the Osprey before we left. Even at ISO 1250 I wasn’t getting the shutter speed I would have liked and all the flight images I took had plenty of motion blur, I think I was quite lucky to get the female’s face in focus as she came in for a landing in this frame.

The beauty of Flaming Gorge - Nikon D300, f8, 1/500, ISO 400, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 18-200mm VR at 95mm, natural light

Who couldn’t love this view? I know each time I see it I am in awe of the beauty of the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, and this view is just a tiny part of the stunning vistas seen in the area.

I’ll be posting more Osprey images from this journey later along with scenery from other parts of the Recreation Area and Ashley National Forest.

Swainson’s Hawk in the Centennial Valley

By Mia McPherson, on May 15th, 2013%

Adult Swainson’s Hawk calling

Swainson’s Hawks are one of the three Buteos that I see with regularity on my visits to the Centennial Valley of Montana, Red-tailed and Ferruginous Hawks are the other two. I photographed this adult Swainson’s Hawk in the evening last year on the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge after a rainy afternoon, the light was low and I had to bump my ISO up to 1250 to get enough shutter speed for flight shots and because of that I could detect a touch of noise in the background so I applied Noise Reduction to the background of all three of these images.

The Swainson’s was calling to another Swainson’s off in the distance and since it had just defecated I was waiting for the hawk to lift off.

Swainson’s Hawk at the moment of lift off

And lift off it did! This sort of reminds me of the Olympic diver images we see that have just their toes left on the diving platforms. The talons have just left the fencepost and there appears to be a determined look in the Swainson’s Hawk’s eye. I do wish the light had been just a bit better so I could have completely froze the action but sometimes that motion blur helps to emphasize the feeling of motion.

Adult Swainson’s Hawk calling while in flight

As the adult flew it also started calling and flying towards the other Swainson’s in the distance.

By the way, the light colored areas in the background is a mist hanging over one of the lakes within the Red Rock Lakes refuge and the bluish colored area is part of the Centennial Mountains.

Mia

~I’m out of town but will be back soon, please feel free to share this post with your friends and family!

Swainson’s Hawk just after lift off

By Mia McPherson, on May 2nd, 2013%

Swainson’s Hawk just after lift off

This is an adult Swainson’s Hawk just after it lifted off from the barb wire on top of a fence on Antelope Island State Park a few days ago. I love the position of the feet & talons, the flared tail and the position of the hawk’s right wing. I do wish though that bird had looked more towards me.

I did clone out some of the barded wire at the bottom of the frame in this image.

Bird photography isn’t a cake walk, you can have all the gear, know how to use it, know what settings to use and you can still get images that aren’t “great” because the subjects are alive, they don’t always fly off the way we hope and they don’t always do what we would like them to do.

But that is the part of bird photography that keeps it exciting.

Mia

Northern Harriers in flight

By Mia McPherson, on April 29th, 2013%

Male Northern Harrier in flight – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 800, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited

Northern Harriers fascinate me partly because they are sexually dimorphic; meaning that the males and females look different even though they are the same species, and also because of their owl-like facial discs.

The male bird above is in his second year and hasn’t fully gotten his adult plumage which is why there are some browns where grays usually are in adults.

Female Northern Harrier in flight - Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/4000, ISO 640, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited

This female has brown plumage and her eyes are a straw color instead of the bright, lemony yellow that adult males have.

Harriers are agile fliers and can turn very rapidly when they are after prey. Right now it is nesting season for the Northern Harriers in Utah, I will be watching them to see if I can photograph any with nesting materials.

Mia