Red Hot Lovers!!!!

saurora

Drove by my favorite old, dead, gnarly-neighborhood tree last night on the way home from work hoping to see the osprey I had spotted several months ago. When I turned down the street, silohuetted against the setting sun was a huge pair of beautiful birds, sitting side-by-side. By the time I turned down a street, jumped out of the car to get my camera out of the trunk, changed lenses and drove back, they were still there but one had jumped to a lower branch. Would have been a great shot :cry ....but, with my 200mm lens, and teleconverter, it would have come up short anyway!! Mike....I don't know how you get the shots you get with that lens!!! It wasn't until I was home downloading these shots did I realize they weren't ospreys, they were Red-Tail Hawks!!! The shots aren't so sharp and I have cropped heavily. I was so excited I could hardly hold the lens steady. But the experience of witnessing the 2 side-by-side together was the highlight of my week. :lust

Richard

Very nice series, Saurora. I especially like the composition of the first shot. .

Cheers,

gildco

Good job, Saurora. You takes what opportunities come by, and you does yo' best. You did, and made some nice captures. Raptors are truly majestic birds. They sure don't just sit around and wait for photographers to gather.

livinginoz

very nice. they are always fun to catch, and hard, since when i see them, they usually take off before i can even get out the car door.

saurora

Thanks everyone! Laurie I had to shoot from inside my car which wasn't easy....except that I was able to use my car window for a makeshift tripod. I wanted to get out and move closer, but I would have been totally in the open and I didn't want to risk them taking off....that, plus I would have had to stand in the middle of a busy street to get shots!!!! (As it was I was parked illegally) Hey, we do what we can to get the shot, but I draw the line to standing in 6 o'clock traffic!!!

Osprey Whisperer

Ewww hawks. I wish I had some of these close to me. Nice series Susan. Looks like you had some very difficult lighting conditions to deal with. Why don't those darn birds cooperate and sit with the sun in their faces?

saurora

Thanks Mike....not quite as sharp as your Osprey (which by the way, I think rates as the top osprey shots I've seen!). Yep, the light always seems to be working against me. Then again, it might be partly because I have to work all day and don't see them until 6 p.m.!!! I had never seen a hawk that close...these birds were pretty big!!!

raian

You did really well on these!

And the moral of the story is... have your camera fired up and ready on the front seat with you

saurora

Thanks! You are right, of course. I am always amazed at how many "photo ops" turn up on a daily basis. Problem is, I'm usually driving and even if the camera were right next to me I can't get the shot! I have more "visual" memories of shots I didn't get during my commutes than those posted in my gallery, I think!!!

Osprey Whisperer

saurora wrote:

Thanks Mike....not quite as sharp as your Osprey (which by the way, I think rates as the top osprey shots I've seen!). Yep, the light always seems to be working against me. Then again, it might be partly because I have to work all day and don't see them until 6 p.m.!!! I had never seen a hawk that close...these birds were pretty big!!!

My osprey are pretty sharp but don't underestimate the intelligence of your hawks. I bet they are pretty sharp too.:uhoh Thanks Susan...nice of you to say. You know if you quit your job you'll have much more time to shoot birds. You'll also have to learn to fish like the osprey because lobster & steak won't be on the menu anymore. I'm very lucky I've got the time and birds (wildlife) to shoot every day. The only thing I have to worry about is Mother nature and the alligators. :

Keep on shooting those birds. You'll be getting those "wall hangers" quite regularly in no time. Remember..it's not the size of your lens, but rather the size of your bird that counts. :uhoh

saurora

Bird Man Photographer wrote:

You know if you quit your job you'll have much more time to shoot birds. You'll also have to learn to fish like the osprey because lobster & steak won't be on the menu anymore.

I'm considering the option of giving up food for a hobby and becoming a serious bird photographer...