Male Snail Kite

[Don Lacy]

Spent the other day photographing Snail Kites as they finish up their nesting season and was able to get a few flight images. I always knew flight photography was hard but after yesterday I have a new found respect for the photographers who have made this their specialty it takes a lot of skill to consistently get keeper image.

This image was only possible due to skill and Knowledge of Ron Bielefeld http://whistlingwingsphotography.com/html_home.cfm?menu_itemID=875859&load=html a biologist for the state of Florida who is also a excellent photographer and guide. His Knowledge of Snail Kites and their behavior is impressive and was of great use getting us into position and prepared for what the birds were going to do.

1D MKIII, 400 DO f/4, 1/2500 at f/5.6, Manual Mode, Evaluative Metered, HH, Cropped and canvas added to bottom.

[Karl Egressy]

Nice banking pose and good sharpness and details, Don.

[John Rowell]

A nice capture of what must be a very fast subject. I like the banking pose, would consider cropping a little tighter. It might just be because I'm on a laptop, but sharpness seems good but not tack sharp. Maybe you could have traded a stop of speed for a little more DOF?

[Daniel Cadieux]

I like the pose and tail flare. Wish it was a bit bigger in the frame, and placed more to the right. Still a fine image, glad you had fun honing your filght photo skills!

[Melissa Groo]

Don, this is terrific. I just spent a few days down in Florida and had the opportunity to photograph them in various canals around N Fort Myers. They are tough! Getting the head angle right along with a good wing angle, is pretty tough. They're either looking down hunting or they're flying away from you with a snail. Nice pose you have here, and great comp.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Love the topside view Don! Excellent specs but a bit too much room for my tastes.....but you know how that goes:2eyes2:. A species I hope to get to photograph one day soon!

[Marina Scarr]

Glad to hear you were out practicing your flight photography. Agree on too much room here, a little too centered and not the best far wing position. That said, it's a very good start. Ironically enough, I spent several hours last week working on my flight photography down at the beach with 4 tern species. I figured if I can work on getting those small, fast birds in flight and diving, the bigger ones ought to become a piece of cake. Glad you enjoyed your trip with the snail kites. Looking forward to more.

[Ofer Levy]

I like the pose, eye contact, light and colour. A bit small in the frame.