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Thread: Close Encounter With A Cooper's Hawk.

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    Super Moderator Daniel Cadieux's Avatar
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    Default Close Encounter With A Cooper's Hawk.

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    I've never been able to get so close for so long to this species...what a chance encounter it was! In my excitement I did not realize I was at only ISO 400 giving me a relatively slow shutter speed in the woods. I'm normally pretty steady handholding but here I was in a precarious stance trying to avoid some ugly background stuff creeping into the composition The only way to get a fully clear view was to stand and crouch on a few half submerged logs out into the now dry and very muddy inlet (one of the very few advantages of the ongoing drought here this summer)...luckily a got a few sharp frames! I do wish for a less steep angle on this young fella.

    ****Update, as I finished posting this image it started to pour like CRAZY!!...I can hear a sigh a collective of relief from all the outdoors
    ****
    Canon 7D + 100-400L @400mm, manual exposure, evaluative metering, 1/200s., f/6.3, ISO 400 (hitogram checked), natural light, handheld, a few "see-through" white ares in the foliage covered with green via clone tool. Slight crop for comp (almost FF).
    Last edited by Daniel Cadieux; 08-05-2012 at 11:51 AM.

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    If this were mine, I would sharpen it a bit. It seems a little soft.
    Nice over-the-shoulder pose. Good background
    My repost, hope you like it: (contrast mask sharpening applied entire image -- if I had the raw I'd mask out the background....)
    Name:  DanielC_coop.jpg
Views: 110
Size:  240.9 KB

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    BPN Viewer thijs broekkamp's Avatar
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    Fantastic shot, very nice. Like the background a lot !

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    Good looking Cooper's hawk with nice light. Congrats on the rain! Send some our way please.

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    Great image and a truly fantastic find, Daniel.
    I had them a few times in my backyard and also at Burlington and they tolerated me very well.
    No wonder, my first name in my mother tongue means; Karvaj which is more or less the equivalent of the Cooper's Hawk European distant relative.

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    Lifetime Member David Salem's Avatar
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    Hi Daniel,

    Great find. Good job even getting a few shots off. Very illusive raptor. This what we call in the falconry & raptor community, a "passage female" , an un-molted yearling. I have had many of these as great hunting companions.
    As you know, most raptors have a juvenile color, "a passage ", and the adult color, "a haggard". Some raptors can have a very marked difference when molted like the male of this species. AKA as the "The Blue Dart". Keep looking.
    Your work is always very nice and this is no exception. The sharpening and contrast on the re-post really made a big difference. Nice Image.

    David

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    BPN Member dankearl's Avatar
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    Great opportunity and you made the most of it.
    Really cool head turn and perch.
    One of the prettiest hawks for me, surprising how common they are, yet you don't see that many nice photos of them.
    This is very nice.
    Dan Kearl

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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    What a great find and thanks David for the informative narrative.
    Great composition and clean BG.
    I like the sharpening in the repost especially around the head.
    Well done,
    Gail

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    BPN Viewer Giuseppe Varano's Avatar
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    Amazing bird and very nice portrait. Nice head turn and clean background.

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    Beautiful portrait, great pose and colours.

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    Daniel, as ever, a great looking image from you.

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