birds Gyrfalcon

The gyrfalcon, the largest of all falcons, is a bird of cold habitats and my only chance to see it alive is probably during raptor shows. It's a very impressive bird, with great flying skills. I shot this photo handheld at a raptor show in the Bouillon castle (southern Belgium) and was happy with how it turned out, although the DoF was much more shallow than I expected. The bird's plumage is magnificent. Your comments are very welcome.

A magnificent portrait of this splendid raptor, which stands out well from the dark background, excellent lighting and sharpness, in my opinion the surface of the eye seems a little opaque, ciao Giangiorgio

Hi Giangiorgio,

 

thank you very much for your appreciative comments! The eye does look somewhat opaque indeed; it isn't really sharp (DoF was less than I expected) and it reflects the walls of the Bouillon castle where the raptor show was held. Kind regards, Vincent

Great wildlife photo Vincent. I like the way it fills the entire frame. Well done! Kindest Regards, Patrick

Hi Patrick,

 

Thank you very much or your friendly comments! This isn't exactly a wildlife photo; I shot it during a raptor show, in the wild I would never have come as close to this bird as this. Filling the entire frame with the head of a bird only happens occasionnally, when you get lucky. Kind regards, Vincent

Vincent...You had good attention from this big guy and clicked at the right moment.Really great look of the bird's beak area,details not often seen.I'll keep a copy in my Favorites folder to revisit!Salutations-Laurent

Hi Laurent,

 

thanks for visiting, your appreciation and keeping this one as a favorite! Kind regards, Vincent

Fantastic shot, Vincent! I wish I could do something like this! My sincere compliments! PDE

Hi Pierre,

 

thank you for your friendly comments and appreciation! I think it's not so much a matter of what you can do, but rather where you are, what your chances are and what gear you have with you. I was at a raptor show on a bright day, standing metres from these birds with a 70-300 mm zoom lens. Kind regards, Vincent

Hi Vincent - First off this is a striking close crop portrait of an absolutely beautiful raptor. I agree, the DoF is a tad bit too shallow for where the plane of focus appears - at the nares and just above and below. Stopping down to f/11 might have rendered a sharper eye (still, sharp enough to perceive the castle reflection). The colors appear natural to me, accurately depicting the bird's natural beauty. All in all, I like it!

Hi Charles,

 

thank you very much for your friendly comments! Yes, the photo doesn't have enough DoF, the eye of the raptor isn't in focus enough. I could have taken another shot if I would have seen this on my display, but I didn't, also relying on the f 8 setting that is generally enough to accomplish enough DoF, but I'm normally not so close to a bird. I'm glad you like it though. Kind regards, Vincent