Get Medieval

galaxycowpoke

I captured these Saturday at a medieval fair. Jousting is the main sport with some birds, horses, and people thrown in.

Comments welcome.

Enjoy!

Shaun



A knight squeezes on his helmet in preparation to joust.



An armor-plated knight and horse stand at the ready.



One knight chases another on the battlefield.



Two knights aim their lances



A dismounted duel between two knights



Two hawks light on the falconer



A falcon stretches its talons to land



A barred owl



The fastest bird on Earth, the peregrine falcon.



Two actors play out a medieval drama



Meet my two friends!



Maid Marion with an attitude



Two warriors practice medieval battle



A Friesian horse native to Holland



A fair-goer plays with juggling sticks

Steve Cavigliano

Really nice Shaun

You've got a real mix of shots here. I really liked the 3rd one. Nice composition The raptor shots are very nice too. I just love birds...

You did capture some kewl action, but I was looking for the pic of the knight who was in the process of being un-horsed.... J/K

All good and thanks for sharing,

Steve

JCDoss

All are great shots and capture what must be a little bit of everything that went on! I've always wanted to go to one of these Medieval fests... now I feel like I've been to one!

galaxycowpoke

Steve Cavigliano wrote:

You did capture some kewl action, but I was looking for the pic of the knight who was in the process of being un-horsed.... J/K

Yes, that would have been the ultimate moment! Thinking back, I remember only one fall. It was a close combat "stunt fall" kind of rolling off the back of the horse. I imagine jousting falls are too dangerous.

But I did get that other fall! And the other knight in mid-air jumping down from the horse (WWF style ) onto the other knight. When I have some time to process and upload, I'll try to post it.

galaxycowpoke

JCDoss wrote:

All are great shots and capture what must be a little bit of everything that went on! I've always wanted to go to one of these Medieval fests... now I feel like I've been to one!

That's cool. Glad you liked them!

DoctorIt

All the shots were great, but the bird shots, wow!, those were awesome!

Very cool to see birds, especially raptors, in a "different" setting than most of the talented bird hunters around here see them in.

galaxycowpoke

DoctorIt wrote:

All the shots were great, but the bird shots, wow!, those were awesome!

Very cool to see birds, especially raptors, in a "different" setting than most of the talented bird hunters around here see them in.

I used to be okay with bird hunting until I saw the documentary _Winged Migration_ a few years back. Rarely does a movie had that kind of impact on me.

There were some musicians in particular I wanted shots of; but I ran out of card space and by the time I'd finished deleting some images, they were finished playing. You can never have enough memory cards! I'm hoping prices drop on storage in the future.

DoctorIt

Saxon wrote:

I used to be okay with bird hunting until I saw the documentary _Winged Migration_ a few years back. Rarely does a movie had that kind of impact on me.

Are we talking about the same kind of bird hunting?

I was referring to group of bird photographers we have here - Harry and his group with all their gorgeous Egret and raptor captures. I love their shots, but your shots caught my eye because they show raptors interacting with humans. Pretty unique and a nice difference.

galaxycowpoke

DoctorIt wrote:

Are we talking about the same kind of bird hunting?

I was referring to group of bird photographers we have here - Harry and his group with all their gorgeous Egret and raptor captures. I love their shots, but your shots caught my eye because they show raptors interacting with humans. Pretty unique and a nice difference.

Ah, different "hunting."

I'll have to check out Harry's shots.

The birds were well trained and some were allowed to fly around quite a bit. I haven't done many bird shots, so it was a welcomed change. Much easier captures than ones in the wild.

There's a National Geographic shot out there with Mongolian falconer handling this giant eagle on top of a mountain. Gorgeous wide-angle shot.

Maybe I can find it.

galaxycowpoke

Here it is.

Caption

"A golden eagle grasps Kosan’s fist as the Kazakh falconer strains to support the bird’s weight in the winter winds. Following a tradition more than a thousand years old, Kosan will release his bird to hunt in the Mongolian valley below, then race down the mountain on horseback hoping to reach her before she tears the valuable fur of her quarry—perhaps a lynx—or she is herself injured in the struggle."

DoctorIt

Saxon wrote:

Here it is.

Caption

"A golden eagle grasps Kosan’s fist as the Kazakh falconer strains to support the bird’s weight in the winter winds. Following a tradition more than a thousand years old, Kosan will release his bird to hunt in the Mongolian valley below, then race down the mountain on horseback hoping to reach her before she tears the valuable fur of her quarry—perhaps a lynx—or she is herself injured in the struggle."

Wow! very cool link and story. I love NG

Steve Cavigliano

DoctorIt wrote:

Wow! very cool link and story. I love NG

I agree Kewl story and what a bird It goes after lynx and isn't supposed to tear the fur :uhoh

Steve