I haven't posted any images for quite some time. I created this image last weekend in an area know as Oxford Mills about 40 minutes south of Ottawa. I have two friends who own 35 acres and who's home is nestled in a pine grove. They regularly feed a large flock (30-40 birds) of wild turkeys during most of the winter.
The birds are still vary wary of strangers so I spent almost two hours kneeling down on the frozen ground at -23 ° C ( approx -27°F) to wait for the birds to come in close enough to photograph.
The lighting was difficult because almost all the time teh birds are under the shade of the trees with occasional sun beams shining through. Also with so many birds moving around it was difficult to isolate the big Toms. Once the seed appears its mayhem so I had to take advantage of things before they were fed
I was back again this morning and now on my third trip they appear to be at least more tolerant of me since I haven't posed any real threats.
I would have preferred to have the two Toms displaying fully in the image, and it is a busy with two partial birds a well, but I do like the display contrast with the middle bird letting down his feathers.
Canon EOS 40D, Sigma 50-500mm at 226mm on BushHawk with fill flash. 1/200 seconds, F 6.30, ISO 800. Full frame.
Last edited by Stephen Stephen; 02-06-2010 at 08:55 PM.
Pretty cool. Looks like maybe a bit too much flash, but you were probably trying to make up for the contrast between the sunlight on the guy on the right.
Cool image Stephen, I've tried many times to get one of these guys stuttin his stuff..nicely done, thats three decent Toms..Its a wonder they let you get that close, they've been getting hunted in that area pretty hard.
Thanks for sharing
I like the contrast between the warm and cool light in the BG. Good to have the flash fill showing the iridescence. I like the poses of the 3 main players and don't mind the clipped one on the left but the one on the right is a little distracting but unavoidable. Wondering it a tighter crop and edge vignette may be an option to explore.
Tres Amigos - Wild Turkeys
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