Prairie Falcon Take-off (c)

[Bill Dix]

Another image from the Free Flight demonstration I saw last week. The raptors were trained but not tethered, flying around several acres of Sonoran Desert habitat.

D7000, 500f4, ISO 2000, 1/2000s @ f/7.1 manual, gitzo and mongoose.

[Brian E. Small]

Very nice Bill. Is this done at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum?

[Raybel Robles]

This is beautiful, the dangling feets with the taking off tho the side pose is perfect. Sharp image all around.

[Bill Dix]

Very nice Bill. Is this done at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum?

Yes, Brian. In Tucson. I was thrilled to "discover" this place on our recent trip to SE Arizona.

[Brian E. Small]

Yes, I've been there many times Bill..............but the free flying raptor show is fairly new I believe. They've always "showed" birds of prey before but I think this is somewhat new. Anyway, thanks for sharing............

[Gerald Kelberg]

Love that pose! Looks fantastic against the blue with just enough perch and vegetation.
Great!

Gerald

[christopher galeski]

Nice take off shot,love the BG,nice perch,good detail in the bird,pleasant light.

[sasan nejadi]

nice shot , good detail and love the pose

[Geoffrey Montagu]

Great capture, Bill. Like the light IQ and the angled take-off, detail and those bright yellow feet. Like the crop as well.




Geoffrey

[Robert Kimbrell]

Well done Bill, Beautiful colors here, Nice sharpness and what a beautiful pose. Excellent light.

[gail bisson]

This is very nice Bill.
I really like the color palette and the soft light.
Terrific take off pose that give great lines to the image,
Gail

[Bill Dix]

Thanks everyone. Your comments are appreciated.

[David Salem]

I looked at this a while ago on my cell, but now that I see it on my monitor, it is even more stunning than I first thought. If this were a wild shot, it would be as good as it gets. Given that it is a captive set up shot, it's still about as good as it gets for the type of shot. The fact that you caught her in a perfect Pose, and a beautiful perch, and a perfect specimen, in a great-looking background, with killer details and exposure, is totally awesome. I love takeoff shots and I can't stop looking at this one.
I would print that in a heartbeat!!

[Bill Dix]

I looked at this a while ago on my cell, but now that I see it on my monitor, it is even more stunning than I first thought. If this were a wild shot, it would be as good as it gets. Given that it is a captive set up shot, it's still about as good as it gets for the type of shot. The fact that you caught her in a perfect Pose, and a beautiful perch, and a perfect specimen, in a great-looking background, with killer details and exposure, is totally awesome. I love takeoff shots and I can't stop looking at this one.
I would print that in a heartbeat!!

Thanks David. Yes, I was pleased when I saw this one. It isn't exactly a set-up. The raptors were flying free over several acres, and I had no idea where they would perch, but not a wild shot, to be sure. One takes what one can get, I guess.