Birds Eyes And Butterflies

The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken in Thompkins Square Park in the East Village New York. The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

I have been exploring more of my local neighborhood for birds since it has been difficult to get around too far because of the snow. The two times this weekend I visited Thompkins Square Park, I was able to get pictures of this beautiful Red-tailed Hawk as he was perched on a snowy branch in the middle of Thompkins Square Park.

The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken on Avenue C and 10th Street in the East Village in New York City. The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens.

This Red-Tailed Hawk landed on the railing of my balcony in the East Village. Does not get much better than this when I can take a picture of a Red-tailed Hawk from the warmth of my livingroom.

The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken on Avenue C in New York City. The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens.

I still cannot believe that this bird landed right on the rail of my balcony on the 12th floor in the East Village and I was there to see him at 8:30 in the morning. He was comfortably perched checking out the hood and of course the many little house sparrows, pigeons and starlings one can see from my balcony.

My camera was conveniently ready to go,including my tripod, which I really needed since I was shaking with excitement. More pictures to come.

The picture of this Osprey in flight was taken in Everglades National Park near Everglades City, Florida. The picture of this Osprey was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

This is a new composition decision for me to crop out some of the bird to create a more dynamic image. Or put another way – to try to salvage a good picture when the bird flew out of the picture frame. I had to add more blue sky on the bottom which of course for photoshop is a no brainer.

The pictures of these two Ospreys on the nest was taken in the Everglades National Park, Florida. The picture of these Osprey was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

I took this picture while on a boat in midday – not my favorite options to take pictures. I guess the subject is too compelling for me (and probably others.)

I took two different boat trips through the 10,000 islands of the western portion of the Everglades National Park. My main reaction was that if New Orleans had kept all of the original barrier islands the way they were, the force of the hurricanes would have been abated. Nature has her ways.

The picture of this Black Vulture was taken in Lehigh Acres, Florida. The picture of this Black Vulture was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

I visited a beautiful Marsh in Lehigh Acres, Florida early in the morning when there was a heavy fog covering the area. This Black Vulture was sitting on a post and very willing to be photographed. It is such a thrill to have a gotten a closeup of this interesting face.

The picture of this Peregine Falcon was taken at the Jamaica Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The picture of this Peregrine Falcon in flight was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

The picture of this Red-tailed Hawk Juvenile was taken at The New York Botanical Gardens in the Bronx, NY. The picture of this Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk was taken with the CANON EOS7D and the CANON 100-400mm lens and the CANON 580EXII flash.

I was very fortunate to be able to share part of the most beautiful fall Sunday at the New York Botanical Gardens in full fall foliage with this very accommodating juvenile Red-Tailed Hawk. It felt like he would have even shared his squirrel lunch with me if that was to my liking.

[View with PicLens]

The picture of this Turkey Vulture was taken near New Paltz, New York. The picture of this Turkey Vulture was taken with my CANON EOS7D with the CANON 100-400mm lens.

What a thrill it is to see large birds seamlessly riding the thermals on a clear crisp fall day. And it is quite the challenge to capture them when they are usually flying very high and spend only seconds in close proximity.

The picture of this Osprey in flight was taken at the Rye Marsh Conservancy in Westchester, New York. This picture was taken with the CANON EOS7D with the CANON 100-400mm lens.
It was exciting to be able to get the picture of this Osprey with back lighting and still have enough detail on the underside of the bird. The effect of the light coming through the feathers reminds me of stained glass lighting.