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Goose doing a fly-by
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Seeing all the fantastic posts on the Hummers thread I figured another popular area for wildlife photos is Birds in Flight. Anyone interested in sharing BIF photos?

I'll kick it off with this Great Egret captured this morning down by the Snake River. It was well past sunrise when I came across this guy fishing along the bank of a small side channel. The sun was getting pretty high in the sky but we've got a lot of smoke from Western forest fires which diffuses the light a bit (can't even see the Tetons from Jackson right now) so I thought I'd give it a go. I sure wish he'd flown towards me but I really liked the darker mountainside across the river as a background.

Nikon D5, 500mm PF @f/6.3 1/1250' ISO 500

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So what are folks capturing for Birds in Flight?
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Male Kestrel bearing down. Tough shot, luck involved!
 
My BIF training is going to Legg Lake and shooting birds. The D-500/500pf is the first long lens that I could really hand hold and sitting on a walk stool makes for a stable platform for me to practice.

I started with Canada Goose learning to pick them up as they fly low across the lake honking their arrival. In about 3 weeks (1 day/week) I became proficient enough to capture a full-frame shot in an interesting pose.

Next was ducks. The quackers are much less predictable. I have less time to pick them up before they land. Still they are a pretty bird. (not full-frame)

Finally Pigeons. I get lots of opportunities but few good ones as they are typically far away (serious crop)

Next up are the grackels. (No BIF of grackels yet)

All shots 1/3200 F8 auto ISO GRP
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My BIF training is going to Legg Lake and shooting birds. The D-500/500pf is the first long lens that I could really hand hold and sitting on a walk stool makes for a stable platform for me to practice.

I started with Canada Goose learning to pick them up as they fly low across the lake honking their arrival. In about 3 weeks (1 day/week) I became proficient enough to capture a full-frame shot in an interesting pose.

Next was ducks. The quackers are much less predictable. I have less time to pick them up before they land. Still they are a pretty bird. (not full-frame)

Finally Pigeons. I get lots of opportunities but few good ones as they are typically far away (serious crop)

Next up are the grackels. (No BIF of grackels yet)

All shots 1/3200 F8 auto ISO GRPView attachment 24812View attachment 24813View attachment 24814
I bought my first digital camera last July. A d500 with 200-500. I started with BIF. I figure if I can get somewhat accomplished with that the rest will be easier to fall in place. At present I have a frame count of a little over 10,000 on the setup. I've added a couple of lenses but I don't use them very often yet.
 
My BIF training is going to Legg Lake and shooting birds. The D-500/500pf is the first long lens that I could really hand hold and sitting on a walk stool makes for a stable platform for me to practice.

I started with Canada Goose learning to pick them up as they fly low across the lake honking their arrival. In about 3 weeks (1 day/week) I became proficient enough to capture a full-frame shot in an interesting pose.

Next was ducks. The quackers are much less predictable. I have less time to pick them up before they land. Still they are a pretty bird. (not full-frame)

Finally Pigeons. I get lots of opportunities but few good ones as they are typically far away (serious crop)

Next up are the grackels. (No BIF of grackels yet)

All shots 1/3200 F8 auto ISO GRPView attachment 24812View attachment 24813View attachment 24814
Excellent Tom! 👍👍👍
 
Having a lot of fun with green herons lately. Shot from a pontoon boat with D500 + 200-500.

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A little variety, D500/500Pf
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I caught this great blue heron with a lighting situation that would normally be bad. Early/mid afternoon sun on his back and flying away from the sun. But, the shadows do not reach his head so the head and eyes are well lit, his feet are well lit, and his underside is getting reflections from the water. I did seem to miss critical focus on his head but my main point here was about the lighting! Shot with D500 + 200-500.

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