Merlin at the Beach III - The Bath!!

[Daniel Cadieux]

It took a little while for this fella to actually start bathing, and at first it just slightly dipped its bill in the water (perhaps to rid of the blood that was on it). It then sorta slowly crouched lower, almost as if it was trying to get used to the cold water...then all of a sudden it just let it all loose in a flurry of splashing water and flapping wings...very fun to watch!! No duck-like wing flap from this guy...it took off (I missed that theme opportunity!!!) and shook the water off mid-air.

Canon 7D + 100-400L @400mm, aperture priority, evaluative metering, 1/1250s., f/7.1, ISO 400, no EC, natural light, handheld, slight CW rotation and then cropped for comp (about 75% FF)

[Jeff Parker]

Great eye contact and action. That must have been fun to watch.

[dankearl]

Extremely sharp, especially the head.
Very nice action and just a great looking bird.

[Tom Rambaut]

Love the splash and clear line of sight to the birds eye. Looks like it is having a gooooooooood time. This and the other two Merlin images are just excellent.

[Ken Watkins]

Daniel,

What a sighting you had and you have certainly made the most of it

Any more?

[Mital Patel]

Daniel,
getting better and better. love the splash and the head cleanly visible during play.

Only wish for better space around with the splash flow.

[Joe Senzatimore]

I saw the first post and was waiting for this one. Well worth the wait. Nice to be in the right place at the right time. Even better to have the skills to fully take advantage , which you did.

[Grace Scalzo]

Exactly what Joe said. Congrats on this series, Daniel, top notch all the way.

[Roy Priest]

Daniel, I have been watching your series on the Merlin and am amazed you got that close. Great trio of shots. I liked Testing the Waters best.

[Andrew Merwin]

A lovely image. I love the water droplets surrounding the merlin. The sharpness is remarkable.