This is from two days ago, the second day I saw this juvenile male actually fly. For a week previously he and his sister had been making tentative liftoffs just a foot or two above the nest then right back down. But he obviously did some more advanced flight training and soloed when I wasn’t there. Three days before this he had dried blood on his right side (you can see the steak here) and the next day he had a broken primary on that side. But he seems to have figured it out now.
Canon 1DX2, 400 DO II + 1.4X III (560mm), hand held. ISO 1600, 1/3200 at f/7.1. The only LR processing is shadows lifted slightly. Into PS to lighten eyes and darken light on right edge of leg. Ran Dfine while there but not really needed. Lightened very slightly and sky color tweaked slightly.
They have been flying mid-day when the wind comes up but the light is not good then. I'll try sunrise tomorrow in hopes of some better light before they head off, but it will be luck to get something in the few minutes of good light I'll have. It's been so clear here the last few days that last night there were quite a few stars visible with light from a full moon that looked like a lighted movie set. Then will go for sunset -- I don't think it's that important to catch the afternoon wind now that they're actually flying.
Nice wing angles here Dianne and it's beautiful to have every single feather displayed wing tip to tail to wing tip, with a lovely cock of the head as if to say" Do I know you--oh ya, you're the gal that was taking pictures of me and my sister yesterday.". The bright patch on the leg is OK with me as it's not too omnipresent and it gives some lighting context to the image by showing us, which occurs subconsciously right from the moment we see the image I think, where the sun is.
Juvenile Osprey early flight
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