Cooper’s Hawk: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, February 2026 — Yesterday, I decided to have Carol drop me off at the pond so I could see what was happening there and then walk home the mile and a half. Since I was walking that far, I only brought the Sony a6700 and the little Sigma 16-300 Contemporary zoom…my walk-around kit. Nothing much at the pond but some more river ice scenics. A Red-tailed hawk flew in and out, being chased by crows, but too quick for any decent photos. But the crossing the bridge over the river, there was a Cooper’s Hawk sitting in the first tall trees, just slightly above my eye level. It let me approach (I went very slowly), sat for me for a series of photos. At 450mm equivalent field of view, cropped mostly for composition, not scale. Program mode with birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.