Here’s another reason I tend to use very fast shutter speeds on birds.
The following seven photos, including the first one, are sequential without any skips. But there was a pause between #1 and the last six which were taken in a burst.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Yesterday morning I found this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk perched near the top of a steep hillside in a remote area of the west desert. I got a few shots of ‘him’ perched but as usual I also wanted takeoff and flight shots.
It was at this point that I realized that I was slightly behind him and I’d have a better shooting angle for flight shots if I was further in front of him, to my right in the photo. But starting my pickup and driving slowly forward risked having the bird take off while I was still driving. In fact, it almost guaranteed it.
So I did what I often do in these situations if I can do it safely. I kept the hawk in my viewfinder while I was driving forward on the gravel road. I was driving slowly at about walking speed (3 mph) while steering with my knee.
Sure enough,…
1/5000, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
after I’d driven only about 15′ or so, the hawk took off.
If you compare the first photo to this one and notice the relative positions of the hawk and the sagebrush in the upper background, it becomes apparent that I’d moved my position forward (by driving) by the time this second one was taken.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
You’ll notice that his perch was flexible and springy, so I got two shots as he was pushing off.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Liftoff.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Immediately after he took off he began to veer slightly away from me, which presented more of his ventral surfaces to the camera and provided a flight posture that I thought was most suitable for a vertical composition.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
In the next shot his face and head were hidden behind his right wing. Uncharacteristic of me, I decided to include it anyway.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
This is the last shot I got before I started cutting off body parts.
I was driving forward at about 3 mph on the rough gravel road when the last six photos were taken. Between engine vibration and the rocky, bumpy road, I’d have had virtually no chance to get sharp flight shots if I hadn’t been shooting at very fast shutter speeds. Even then, some of the last six photos aren’t quite as sharp as the first one but I think they’re plenty sharp enough.
I use faster shutter speeds than most bird photographers for several reasons I’ve explained before. This is just another one of those reasons.
Ron
OTHER USERS BOUGHT THIS!!!
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