Eagles and deer

[Steve Foss]

I was out running errands this morning and happened upon some deer, which of course get photographed a LOT, but it's nice to find them alongside another element that makes the photograph slightly more interesting.

And there's an eagle's nest a couple hundred hards off a county highway and in plain view a mile outside Ely. The best view actually is from the road, and the eagles aren't bothered at all by people pulling over and taking pics because there's a lot of traffic on this road.

It's a bit far for 400mm, even with a 1.6 crop camera, but ok for online posting. About 40 percent of this image has been cropped out.

It's good for environmental portraits, however, and is nest I will come back to quite a few times this summer, especially if I can swing the new telephoto/TC combo I'm looking at getting.

[Royce Aardahl]

cool!

[MN Shutterbug]

Without the sign, the first photo would have been kinda boring. The combination makes for an interesting shot. The eagle's nest is a nice find. As far as environmental portraits are concerned, this one is great. There are times I prefer those over the closeups.

BTW, what lens and TC are you considering?

[Steve Foss]

Mike, I'm planning on the 400 f5.6L and 1.4 TC. It should produce exactly the same frame as the above shot with no cropping, and since the prime is slightly sharper than the 100-400 I have, it should produce good image quality on shots like the eagle's nest.

Also, I'll lose autofocus using the 30D and that combo, but when shooting from a tripod at a fixed location like a nest, especially for environmental portraits, manual focus will work fine. I'll just run aperture up to f11 and focus on whichever bird is in the nest, and when the other bird flaps in holding a fish and flares to land, it'll be close enough behind the nested bird to be in focus.

[WCS]

Hey Steve,

Why settle for the 400mm when you can get the 600mm f/4L IS . It is only about 6 grand more than the 400! yes, I know...keep dreaming. On one of my Eagle trips to Red Wing this winter I was shooting next to a guy from the cities with the 600. What a massive, yet impressive beast that was. He had it mounted on a heavy tripod and head that looked like he belonged on the back of a military hummer firing a machine gun. That 30D he had attached looked like a toy. So go for it Steve..get the 600 and we'll all live vicariously through your lens.

One of these days when I get up to your neck of the woods, I'd like to meet you and shake your hand and tell you what an inspiration you are to me and I'm sure many other photographers that frequent this site. I do appreciate all the time you put in to share your skills and knowledge.

[mountaindew]

Steve, I like that shot of the eagles! That would be awesome set! 400 and the 1.4!? Can't wait to see the results!

[Dbl]

Good work, I like the DNR sign in the first, kind of says it all. Those eagles should keep you occupied this spring and winter, looks like a cool spot.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, everybody.

And thanks for the kind words, WCS. It's nice to hear that sort of thing now and then. Just drop me a line when you're planning to come to town.

I'd love to pick up the 600. Gotta mortgage the house, first.

I've shot the monster twice, both times with Canon Professional Services loaners, and really liked it.

Someday. Heck, if the wedding gigs keep coming as fast and furious as they have the last few weeks it might be sooner than I think.

[mmeyer]

Great stuff Steve. The eagle nest is really a nice shot.

[finnbay]

Nice shots, Steve! I've been to that nest myself, and it is just a tich far, but can't not take a photo! Things are finally starting to happen!

[Steve Foss]

Ken, you've got one of only two Canon telephoto lenses that take the fine Canon 2x teleconverter and maintain really good image quality. One is the 300 f2.8 and the other the 400 f2.8.

And you'll even be able to maintain autofocus!

We should get out there with our tripods when the young are fledged and hopping around on the nest this summer.

[finnbay]

Oooh, I'm there!

[finnbay]

Stopped by your nest today after work, Steve and they haven't moved since yesterday!

On my way home, saw something dive into the ditch just in front of me, and then this came out and sat on a limb. Best I could tell, this shrike looked like it had a big beetle or something that he had in his mouth.

This fawn was kicking up his heels, figurin' spring can't be too far away:

[Paul]

Great looking deer shot. Speaking of big glass and eagles, anyone catch the specail on Black Duck Road that aired on Kent Herbeck outdoors. The guy doing the guiding had a lense that looked like a anti-aircraft gun. I got the tail end of it during a buisness meeting last night.

[Steve Foss]

Ken, neat captures. I see the clouds moved in after the clear skies of this morning. Darn fickle spring!

[finnbay]

Yeah, Steve, you had a prettier background to work with than I did. Mine is kind of blah. Still, the background was light enough that when the shrike landed in the shade under the balsam boughs, my camera was still set for for much more light. Terribly underexposed and difficult to get much detail. Oh, well - next time.

[JR777]

I think the eagle pic is fantastic.

[DMN]

Nice shots both Catfish and Finnbay, the deer down here are starting to feel spring coming also. Now if I can just get convinced, one day is nice the next day it snows.

DMN

[Steve Foss]

Yeah, same thing here. When it was March I was wishing for April. Now that it's April I'm wishing for May.

Sigh. Just gotta learn to love the one we're with, I guess.