1600 Pixel - Large Images!
Trumpeter Swan incoming
Some sweet light and a not bad angle on this swan coming in for a landing after its afternoon exercise.
I might have enjoyed a lower angle, but with that, I would lose some reflection.
I was happy to not see the yellow tags on the wings, so no cloning was needed. With the manual exposure and the Sony electronic viewfinder, exposure is easy, and usually very close. Especially if you know how to read a histogram.
With the A9 viewfinder controls, we can tell the camera to show the live histogram, and monitor it while we shoot. A very huge advantage!
Thanks for looking!3 in a row!
Long-tailed ducks Incoming!
A wonderful chance to catch these 3 beauties coming into look for a change of scenery. Also, it was nice to have such sweet light behind me.
Birds in Flight will always be my favourite type of shooting, but I do miss the dragonflies from last summer!
Thanks for looking!Great grey owl hunting for a natural Dinner.
It was nice to catch this flight shot as this amazing owl was moving to a new hunting position. Panning the speed of the owl was easy as I was using a Jobu Gimbal head, on an Algonquin tripod, also made by Jobu.
Let's hop for another try with these wonderful owls through the winter of 2021.
Thanks for looking!"Circle of Life" in the natural world.
A male Kestrel flew right to the passenger door of my pickup truck, and scooped this mouse out of the grass, and ventured off to the nearest tree.
On foot, my guest and I were able to move in close and capture a few images of the feeding. Often, while out photographing wild raptors, we will see a feeding. Here we can witness the falcon eating the brains of the mouse first., as opposed to an owl which will swallow the mouse whole.
Enjoy and respect Nature!February 2002 tour to Tanzania!
Special thanks to my guests, this was another excellent tour almost 9 years ago.
These to majestic beauties posed for me by a dried up lake, near our lunch area. So a sandwich on one hand, and the shutter button in the other.
Lets hope for another tour in 2021!
Thanks for looking.A young Red-tailed with a great dinner!
This looked like a first-year bird, we watch it hunt for about an hour, working the fields while perching on the hydro wires and poles.
Maria and I watched it dive down into the brush, so I drove in for a closer look. With both cameras and lenses clicking, we virtually caught the same image!
The first bite!
First, came the head of the vole. then the rest of the bits and pieces! It didn't take long, and the meal was devoured. I will not soon forget how happy Maria was to have caught a nice image of this feast.
You can see her shot in her own gallery located at the bottom of my main page here on this website.
We hope to go back up soon!
Thanks for looking!Cedar Waxwing on some breakfast!
Maria and I had about 50 of these beauties on this berry bush for 20 minutes almost a month ago, we had so much fun trying to capture them. About 800 images later, we moved on!
A difficult edit due to the heavy overcast skies, and the high iso setting (4000), but worth a try regardless. We never know what will work until we try. But wow, talk about flat light!
These beauties are always a great find, but now we are on the lookout for Snowy owls!
Have a good December! thanks for your visit!It was just one of those amazing days!
East Africa tour, 2013.
My guests and I were enjoying a nice hot breakfast on our last morning of the tour. Fun stories and great Tanzania coffee served piping hot! A beautiful morning, and we were all packed up ready to head to the local airport, about a 20-minute drive from the camp.
My brother Nas, the ground company's owner, and a great friend walked into the restaurant tent, and asked us if we would like to see a leopard on the way to the airport??
We jumped!
So, 10 minutes from camp, our 2 safari vehicles end up under this tree, with this brilliant cat in a deep sleep. Still a very cool shot. (I will edit one someday!)
15 minutes go by, and she wakes up, moves around, and models for us, maybe an hour or so with so many shots taken.
Life is about the experiences and the stories, I have been so lucky to have traveled to so many amazing destinations with all of my guests.
Let's hope for more when Civid is under control!
Thanks for looking!3 years after.
(Lately I have been editing a few images lately
from the good ole days!)
In this case, there was a bit of a story. I spent 3 hours watching for thee birds in the Niagara Gorge when finally this adult male lifted off right below me and flew to my right.
When the bird was closing in on the Falls, it turned and started a downward flight path to come towards me. It looked to me that this bird was flying with some determination!
As it was coming closer, I could see that it was moving so fast, it would be impossible for me to keep up with it. Do not ask me why I did this, I can't explain it - but I removed the camera and lens away from my eye, and shot this bird with the camera away from my face, about 18 inches, hoping to keep this speedster in focus and in the frame.
As crazy as it may seem, and as luck would have it, I when home with this shot and a big smile on my face!
Straight up luck? Indeed! With nature photography, we count on a bit of luck to help us through the hours of persistence and waiting.
July 4th, 2008
Incidentally, Daisy arrived in Canada with Maria in her tummy on July 04, 2005!
1/400 sec, f4, iso 400.
3 years after Daisy and Maria arrived to Canada.This used to be almost an obsession of mine. raptors in flight.
This is a true challenge.
This trip was with my family, and also to deliver a Jobu Algonquin to a buddy. I am looking forward to getting more into video, and architecture., landscapes too. Join me if you wish.. ray@raymondbarlow.com or 905 520 8853.
Thanks for looking!Loving the A7r4, amazing focus and superb files.
This red-tailed was actively hunting for voles, moving from perch to perch. Sweet soft light gave us the opportunity to shoot from any direction. I was able to catch several shots during this flight, but I like the evergreen trees in the background of this particular image.
Obviously a very young bird, learning survival, and what a blast to be out there in the fresh air enjoying true nature at its best!
200-600mm lens.
Jobu Support gear.Red-tailed Hawk
Maria and I had a fun experience with this very young 1st year bird. It is a long story, but I was able to anticipate where and when this bird was going to fly... on 3 separate flights!
I am not a fan of white or blue sky backgrounds, but since this is a RTH, and this shot is almost head on. It was not baited, I decided to edit at least one shot.
Later it dropped down from its perch on a telephone pole, and feasted on a chunky vole. I was able to maneuver our "rolling hide" into position for a fantastic view of the meal... both Maria and I were able to catch the same shot of the Voles head in the beak of the hawk.
I will edit that one later this coming week., for now, I am glad I am not a rodent in that field! This bird is one heck of a hunter.
Thanks for looking!Cedar Waxwing
Maria and I lucked out in a pretty woodland lot as about 40 waxwings decided to feed on these berries. I am pretty sure I fired close to 800 frames, and may likely edit one more image! That is a lot of effort for a couple shots!
Many of these birds were first year, with mottled feathers, so i won't be editing those shot I do not think.
I am always amazed at the texture of their feathers, so smooth, and clean, with such wonderful colours. And we could hear such a cute song too.
Awesome and real nature!
Thanks for looking!I am still not sure on the species!
Maria and I spent the afternoon today at a small dam with salmon and trout jumping. My first time ever trying to catch such action, and wow are they fast, as one would expect!
I fired quit a few frames, and came home with a few keepers.
And, since this is so challenging, I will definitely try again soon!
Thanks for looking.
Salmon Migration
Southern Ontario, 2020
A7r4 + 200-600OSS
Jobu Gimbal head and Algonquin tripodA fun night out with the family once again, a trip to see and photograph some wood ducks, then a quick visit to see the Marilyn Monroe buildings.
I thought that the new 20mm lens did a nice job., very sharp. Note - a little lens correction in Photoshop.
It sure is nice to have a new lens to mess with during the slow business situation. Sony rocks!October 3rd seemed be a bit of a disappointing day trip north to this awesome river. The Maples have shed their red leaves, so the colours were a bit thinned out.
Good fun regardless, taking the lessons from the last trip and applying them to this Saturday shoot. Even though I made mistakes, this is how we learn. Maybe one more run North early this week.
Thanks for looking!