Cooper's Hawk On The Move
And now for something a little bit more serious than my previous offering.
This juvenile Cooper's Hawk gives me the high five as it takes off after a parent who delivered a freshly-captured meal.
Canon 5D III with the 500L f4 lens handheld @ 1/500, f4, ISO 1600, +3 1/3 exposure compensation. I don't do this often, but I threw in a bit of Gaussian blur for the background.
The low-light capabilities of the 5D III is superb as compared to my 7D.
Cheers,
Mike
The Exorcist Linda Blair Head Spin - Cooper's Hawk Version
It's summetime, so it's time for some foolishness!
This Cooper's Hawk seems to be giving us the old Linda Blair head spin from the movie The Exorcist.
The bird was feeding on a dead bird and suddenly began vomiting. While vomiting, the bird shook its head violently. With a very slow shutter speed due to a very low light situation, the body stayed in focus while the head gave us this effect.
Certainly not one for exposition purposes, but funny nonetheless!
Canon 5D Mark III with the 500L f4 lens handheld @ 1/160, f4, ISO 800, +2 2/3 exposure compensation. Very slight crop.
Cheers,
Mike
It's All Mine! Juvenile Cooper's Hawk With Breakfast
There's not much light early morninbg in a tall stand of trees with branches.
This young Cooper's Hawk just received breakfast delivered by a parent, and he is in no mood to share it with a sibling.
Canon 5D Mark lll with the 500L f4 lens handheld at 1/200, f/4, ISO 2000, +3 exposure compensation.
Slight crop for composition purposes. A small branch on the left clonned away. Saturation reduced a dull the green/yellow dominance.
This was my first day with my new 5D Mark lll, and the low-light handling is great.
Cheers,
Mike
Snack On The Run - Female American Kestrel
This female American Kestrel whizes by with a yummy snack in her beak.
A hello to good friends who were present!
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens handheld @ 1/1250, f/5.6, ISO 400, +1 1/3 exposure compensation due to the light sky.
Small crop for composition purposes to frame at 12 x 16.
A bit of fill-in in post-processing to lighten up the bird.
Cheers,
Mike
Exposition tableaux et photos
Snowy Owl With Dancing Billowing Snow - Danse De Rafale De Neige
This Snowy Owl at dusk stands on guard in a wind-swept field with dancing billowing snow at its feet and a background formed by a far-off forest.
As you can tell by looking at my photos, I enjoy birds in dynamic poses. But once in a while, I break with my preferences to present a posed bird as a portrait.
This, and many more of my photos will be on exhibit, printed on canvas and framed in wooden frames next weekend the 6, 7 and 8th of July at the outdoor
"Village en arts" art symposium at St-Nicolas on the south shore near Quebec City. My wife, Louise Labbé will also exhibit her nature oil paitings.
Canon 7D with the 500L f/4 lens handheld @ 1/1000, f/8, ISO 400, -2/3 exposure compensation. Very slight crop to format to a 12 x 16 frame.
EXPOSITION d'art champêtre: Village en arts, le 6, 7 et 8 juillet, 2012 sous les chapiteaux dans le parc Le Picart et rue De l'Entente du quartier Saint-Nicolas à Lévis.
Mon épouse Louise Labbé exposera aussi ses tableaux d'oiseaux.
Cheers,
Mike
Snowy Owl - A Backlit Male On The Go
This older male Snowy Owl leaves his perch with an early morning 9 o'clock sun behind him. This gives a minimalist colour shot with shadows and light the opposite of what is normally seen.
However, this type of lighting accents the transparency of the wings and legs of the bird. The backlight also gives a beautiful highlighted outline of the rest of the bird and specks of snow lifted off the perch. It also gives the image a nice soft pastel look.
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens handheld @ 1/1250, f8, ISO 400, no exposure compensation.
Slightly cropped to off-centre the Snowy.
This photo will be available printed on canvas as a 12 x 16 for my next exhibit the weekend of 6-7-8 July at St-Nicolas. When printing on paper or canvas, I don't leave any 255 pure white in the image, but reduce it from about 248 to 250 so as not to leave noticable white patches.
EXPOSITION d'art champêtre: Village en arts, le 6, 7 et 8 juillet, 2012 sous les chapiteaux dans le parc Le Picart et rue De l'Entente du quartier Saint-Nicolas à Lévis.
Cheers,
Mike
Merv Jones - D-Day Paratrooper
Merv Jones breezes through another June 6 D-Day anniversary at a weekly veteran's coffee and breakfast gathering at a local Quebec City shopping centre where I hoist my Canadian Airborne Regiment and Canadian Forces Medical Services flags.
Merv, who turned 89 recently, is one the very few surviving members of the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion who jumped into Normandy in the wee hours of the morning, hours before the actual invasion landings begun. Always an optimist, Merv's goal is to hang around for another 11 years to make it to 100!
Bravo Zulu, Merv -
Airborne
Visitor At The Crack Of Dawn
This Great Blue Heron was caught in the light at the crack of dawn. This kind of light provides a high-contrast image with perhaps, as a downside, more noise in the dark background as a trade-off.
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens with 1.4II Extender on a monopod @ 1/1000, f5.6, ISO 400, +2 1/3 exposure compensation.
Cropped to decenter for composition purposes. The usual digital treatment of contrast, colour, sharpening, a bit of noise reduction for the background, etc.
Cheers,
Mike
Postscript
A congratulatory greeting is hereby sent to a friend and world-renowned nature photographer from across the Atlantic for his recent wedding. The old fart knows who he is! ;-)
EXPOSITION d'art champêtre: Village en arts, le 6, 7 et 8 juillet, 2012 sous les chapiteaux dans le parc Le Picart et rue De l'Entente du quartier Saint-Nicolas à Lévis.
This Is My Branch!
An osprey and a crow have a little dispute for the possession of the tree.
In this case, the crow eventually won.
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens with the 1.4II Extender on a monopod @ 1/1250, f6.3, ISO 400, +1 1/3 exposure compensation.
Slight crop for composition purposes. Two branches behind the crow's beak and wing clonned away. Background despeckled after sharpening to reduce noise.
Cheers,
Mike
EXPOSITION d'art champêtre: Village en arts, le 6, 7 et 8 juillet, 2012 sous les chapiteaux dans le parc Le Picart et rue De l'Entente du quartier Saint-Nicolas à Lévis.
Spring Delight - Ring-Necked Ducks At Dawn
This flight of Ring-necked ducks was caught in an early morning spring light againts a complimentary background. They are not all that common in our area and are probably just briefly here on their migration run.
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens with the 1.4 Extender II on a monopod @ 1/1000, f5.6, ISO 400, +2 2/3 exposure compensation.
Slight crop to de-centre the birds for composition purposes. Background despeckled following sharpeninng.
EXPOSITION d'art champêtre: Village en arts, le 6, 7 et 8 juillet, 2012 sous les chapiteaux dans le parc Le Picart et rue De l'Entente du quartier Saint-Nicolas à Lévis.
Cheers,
Mike
Reach For The Top - Osprey
This Osprey wants to make sure that the target is reached with this one-time effort.
Canon 7D with the 500L f4 lens with 1.4II Extender on a monopod @ 1/1000, f5.6, ISO 400, + 3 exposure compensation. Taken eary in the morning. Cropped for composition purposes. Some halo caused by sharpening on the wings reduced by blurring.
Cheers,
Mike
