Saltmarsh Willet in flight at first light – Nikon D200, handheld, f5.6, 1/320, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light
Early morning light is a delight and adds a nice mood to images like this one of a Saltmarsh Willet in flight. I took this image at Fort De Soto’s north beach a few years ago.
I could have bumped up my ISO to get more shutter speed to freeze the movement of the wings but I actually liked the motion blur in this frame and I definitely like the golden light.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my Saltmarsh Willet photos plus facts and information about this species.
Update: Willets were split into two species in October 2026. Eastern willets are now Saltmarsh Willets, Tringa semipalmata. Western willets are now Prairie Willets, Tringa inornata. This post has been updated to reflect those changes.
My thanks to everyone for commenting on this post and the image!
Just beautiful, I love the lighting
Beautiful photo! My inadvertent, and sometimes intentional motion photos never turn out so well.
Very beautiful photo, Mia!
Nice capture Mia! I love it when the light is just right!
very nice fligth,
your speed 1/320 is very good to give a bit of move to the wing,
nicely done mia
Beautiful in-flight photograph! I really like the movement captured here.
The light really makes the photograph special. I have a bunch of Willet photos which appear to be gray birds against gray backgrounds. Very nice!
What I love about this image is the way you caught the compact feature of the legs under the tail…. Neat stuff!
Lovely colors, Mia. And I, too, like the blurred wing action – combined with the light it’s beautiful.
A beautiful in flight Willet, love the action.
The blur is perfect as the right things are in focus! As for coyotes, I think many of them are probably starting to den up for the upcoming pups.
Yes, this golden light is a blessing. Motion blur does add to the mood in flight.
Thanks Maria!