Am. Kestrel in Breeding Threads

[Bill Sharkey]

Mating season has begun for some species :)

Shot with Canon MkIII and 400mm5.6 lens at 1/1600, f8, ISO 400 and handheld on bushhawk.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3628/3400026234_07e83b4d98_o.jpg

Thanks for looking :)

Bill

[Harold Davis]

fantastic pose, bill! nice light too. may sharpen the face area just a bit more.

[Dan Walker]

Love the fanned out tail here, and like the alulas extended. Only wish that the wings were a bit more "broadside", but still good. Great colors

[Chad Griggs]

What are the breading threads? (newbie birder)

[Desmond Chan]

Like the perspective and the pose. May be a bit more sharpness as already suggested. One thing I'm not sure is whether it would improve if there's more room on the right of the bird. But your crop as presented is totally understandable. Nice job catching the kestrel.

[Stu Bowie]

I like the banking angle in this, together with the colours. I would maybe do some selective sharpening. Still, very well captured Bill.

[Kim Rollins]

Very Nice! Good capture.

[Bill Sharkey]

Thanks everyone for all the great critiques :)

Bill

[Marina Scarr]

You did extremely well to capture this bird in flight. They are so fast that it's tough to do. The vivid colors, fanned tail and head turn really send it over the top for me.

[Doug Brown]

Pretty spectacular pose Bill, and nice sharpness too. I might lighten the head just a little, and I would add some canvas in front of the bird.

[Mike Tracy]

Any of my suggestions have been covered.

The fanned tail is what separates this from most Kestrel images. They are always flying so fast I never realized the dominance of Grey on their wings. One of the better KIF's I have seen.