Posts in Category: flight
Maine! Ownership dispute
Tree Swallows: York County, Maine, USA, May 2024 — So who owns this Bluebird box anyway? These two Tree Swallows are ready to fight over it…but in the end the Bluebirds are likely to claim it…they did last year. 🙂 Interestingly there were a group of at least a dozen Tree Swallows around the tidal stream when I went out…and none at all when I came back. They do nest somewhere in area. I will see the young on the rail of the bridge before long. OM System OM-1MKii with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
Maine! Ruby in the sun
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, May 2024 — After my rainy day encounter with supplemental light, I tried for hummers in the full sun yesterday. They presented their own challenge…and the gorget is never as deep ruby as it is in subdued light…but still very ruby. Next I will try increasing my minimum shutter speed from 1/2000th to 1/4000th to unblur the wings…though I like the blurred wing effect on hummers. 🙂 OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 584 and 652mm equivalents. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Florida! Spoonbills at Orlando Wetlands
Roseate Spoonbills, Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, January 2024 — Still early and overcast, but the Spoonbills were flying from the night roost to wherever they intended to start the feeding day. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Ruby Thursday
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, May 2024 — The neighbors had seen a hummingbird at their house so I got out and disinfected our hummingbird feeder. We had a couple of nice spring days with no sight of the hummer, and then it clouded over and rained for a day. I saw the hummer a couple of times and went out and stood and then sat on the back deck in the drizzle to wait. After an hour I gave up. That was Wednesday. Yesterday, after the rain stopped, I saw it come twice within 30 minutes so I got my camp stool and coat and hat and went out again to sit and wait. It came several times in the next hour and I managed a burst of shots each time. It was still very heavy overcast so I mounted my new Ulanzi Video Rechargeable Flashlight on the camera for supplemental light. It is a lot like any rechargeable led flashlight but is specifically made for photography and has a very even, high intensity beam, three color temperatures, and a tripod mounting hole. I have a little adapter for the hot shoe of the camera and it seems to work very well. Between the subdued natural and the supplemental light (set to cool daylight temperature) it certainly lit up the gorget on this male Ruby-throat, and shows off exactly where the bird gets its name. (I would guess this is 90% natural light at least. I could not actually see the flashlight beam, but I do think it made some difference.) OM System OM-1Mkii with the M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 436mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications (with give me 1/2000th at ISO 8000). Processed in Photomator.
Florida! Caspian Tern
Caspian Tern: Blackpoint Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2024 — Hunting Caspian Terns are, at least to my way of thinking, fun “birds in flight” targets…with just the right amount of challenge to success ratio. Given enough terns and enough time, you will manage to catch one. 🙂 OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Florida! Mass lift-off
Great and Snowy Egrets: Blackpoint Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Titusville, Florida, January 2024 — When you see this number of birds in a group all looking the same direction as in the top shot, you know a mass lift-off might be coming soon. And indeed it happened…but so fast that I did not even get my eye to the viewfinder. I just pointed the camera and held the shutter button down. 🙂 I am happy to have gotten anything at all. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 372mm and 300mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom bird modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
Florida! Pelicans wave
American White Pelican: Blackpoint Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2024 — I know this looks like one of those trick shots were I have pasted the same bird into the frame over and over again to make a pretty pattern, but it is a natural flight formation of White Pelicans on the move over Blackpoint Drive. The first several days I was in Florida this is the only way I saw Pelicans…in the air. I eventually found some feeding on the water close enough for photography but it was not until my last day there. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Are you looking at me!
Red-tailed Hawk: York County, Maine, USA, April 2024 — Another from the series of shots of the Red-tailed Hawk circling me the other day. He was definitely aware of me as much as I was aware of him. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and Photo Quality.
Florida! Reddish lunge
Reddish Egret: Blackpoint Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2024 — Back to the hunting Reddish Egrets and some of the amazing postures they presume. There were two here interacting…they looked to be squabbling over territory but it might have been mating behavior, I don’t know enough to know. Lots of chasing and lunging and all kinds of wing action. But definitely some hunting going on too, with the umbrella wings. Lots of fun to watch, and to try to photograph. OM System OM-1 with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at
Maine! Red-tail close overhead
Red-tailed Hawk: York County, Maine, USA — I have seen this Red-tailed Hawk in our neighborhood three times now, enough to think it might have a nest somewhere close-by. On Google Earth our neighborhood looks like pretty much unbroken forest so it could be anywhere. This hawk was circling close overhead, and apparently circling me, so I got good looks at it…but only saw the mouse when processing the photos. I don’t know what its interest in me was. It already had its breakfast. OM System OM-1Mkii with M.Zuiko 100-400IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds in flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and Photo quality.