Photo of the week!

I slipped out of the resort first thing Tuesday morning with a specific goal to shoot hawks in flight. When on our morning bikes rides we will often see hawks flying or sitting on utility poles or Saguaro cactus.  Tuesday morning I drove our bike route in hopes of spotting a bird or two.  Damn.  I scored big with this Harris's Hawk.  I was driving the Bush Highway between Granite Reef and Coon Bluff recreation areas when I spotted 2 Harris's Hawks.  One was perched on a Saguaro cactus and the one in the photo was perched on a utility pole.  The one on the cactus would have made for an awesome photo but the bird was a bit too far away.  The one on the pole was right beside the road.

The secret, well not so much of a secret as a requirement to a good action photo is light and proximity to the subject.  With these two requirements in mind I parked well off the road with the sun on the left of the bird.  I know from experience that birds in general, and this species in particular will allow you to observe them at fairly close range but as soon as you encroach in their "bubble", or comfort zone, they depart.  I had parked outside of what I thought was this birds bubble.  I got out of the 4Runner and stood quietly as to not startle the bird.  With the sun on my left I had a 50-50 chance for some kind of shot.  If the bird fly off to the left and into the sun I would have no chance for a shot.  If the bird went right I might get a shot, provided the bird flew by me and not away from me.

Okay, here are another couple of secrets to getting a good shot of a bird in flight; having the right camera settings, knowing a bit about bird behaviour, and most of all - LUCK.  Today I would have everything working for me.  I took a couple of steps towards the bird.  The second I entered the bubble the hawk launched off the pole - to the right.  It dropped a few feet in elevation and flew right by me so the sun was directly behind me and illuminating the hawk.  I locked onto the hawk and kept my shutter depressed until the hawk was well out of range.  Then I exhaled and took a couple of deep breaths.  Wow! Timing, light, proximity, settings and yes, luck.

I posted this photo on my Flickr site and added it to several "bird" groups that I often post too.  Since posting the photo it has received 7,000 views and 246 "Favs", surpassing any of my photos to date.  This Harris's Hawk it a star!

All for now.  More information on what we are up in the next post.  Enjoy your day!

Barry