Peregrine Falcon juvenile: liftoff

We ventured down to Cape May for a few days, in generally gloomy and rainy weather. We did, however, find a few good birds including two juvie Peregrines sitting in a dead tree. For the half-hour that we stood and stared at them, they mostly sat and stared back at us. But on several occasions one or the other would take off and come back again. We had only a limited viewing window through the surrounding forest, but I was pleased to get a decent angle, albeit somewhat steep, for this takeoff.

D500, 500f4, ISO 2000, 1/2500s @ f/6.3 manual; Gitzo and Mongoose.

Well done Bill. Your patience paid off here. I love the wing stretch with the take off position. Nice detail on the bird with a good HA. Even though the bird was staring back at you, for so long, the excitement of keeping your finger on the button, would have been real good, waiting for that moment.

Will

Well captured, Bill especially given the constraints of the situation. I find it so easy to miss the moment when a lot of waiting is involved so you have achieved a great result. Looks like fairly soft light (but therefore puzzled by the blue sky background) and that has brought out great tone and colour in the bird, which you've rendered nicely. Super sharp and great detail. Composition works well for me. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Will and Glenn. Subconsciously the blue sky nagged at me, but it didn't rise to the level of consciousness as I was processing this. When you mentioned it, Glenn, it started to bother me even more. It was bluish, muted by passing clouds, but I don't remember it looking like the OP. I've desaturated and darkened it slightly in this repost. I also pinched the Levels slider from the right to brighten the light tones just a tad.

Repost is spot on! I have to say that I was puzzled by the blue sky in the OP but would likely not have mentioned it. I am glad Glenn did!
The take-off pose is terrific as are the details on the bird. I am OK with the steeper than normal angle.
Perch looks better in the repost as well.
Really nice,
Gail

Hi Bill, well timed to capture the raised wings, and I love the show of the feet just leaving the perch. Overall nice and sharp, and your RP works well.

Great patience and excellent moment of takeoff, Bill. Very nice reworking in repost. Great wing position and outstretched talons. Well done.

Geoffrey




http://500px.com/geoffreymontagu

Thank you all.