A few from the weekend.

[JacaRanda]

Here are a few or more from the weekend. The American Kestrel may be my favorite of all raptors.

1. IMG_1697-1 by JacaRandaPhotography, on Flickr

2. IMG_1809-5 by JacaRandaPhotography, on Flickr
3. IMG_1808-4 by JacaRandaPhotography, on Flickr

4.
IMG_1805-3 by JacaRandaPhotography, on Flickr

5.
IMG_1782-2 by JacaRandaPhotography, on Flickr

Would you crop or rotate the spider/web differently? I am wondering about having the spider dead center.

BTW, the spider is best viewed large.

 

[baturn]

The shots of the kestrel are beautiful and I like the spider web as is, except I almost wish the spider wasn't there.

 

[JacaRanda]

Thank you baturn. Interesting, I never would have thought about the spider being removed.

I just peeked outside and the web is gone. However, it's that time of year so there will be plenty others. It freaks me out thinking about physically removing one of these fat little suckers from it's web.

I will try my hand at Photoshop though

 

[MSnowy]

very nice set

 

[rodbender]

Great shots of the Kestrel I can never get close enough to them

 

[SCraig]

Love the Kestrel as well. I've never seen one in the wild, but have seen them in captivity. Beautiful birds.

 

[astroNikon]

I love the pictures and the background bokeh too
With the spider I do love the design of webs, but not so much the spider - the same as baturn

 

[JacaRanda]

Great shots of the Kestrel I can never get close enough to them

I know the feeling. We had been stalking this guy for about a month. Yesterday, he swooped down and came back to the perch with a nice fresh scorpion. Perhaps it was too tired to move so it let me within about 10 yards.

 

[sm4him]

Those Kestrel shots are really nice; I particularly like the last two. I'd be tempted to clone out that branch that sticks up behind his wing, on the left side of the photo.
I've seen two Kestrels in the wild, but like rodbender have never gotten close enough for a decent photo of one.

I also really like the spider web, WITH the spider. I don't mind it centered in this instance because of the symmetry of the web, but IF I cropped it, I'd take some off the top and the right, let the spider be a little more up toward the top right corner.
If you get the chance to do it again with another web, and the spider is there, you don't usually HAVE to physically move them. Just blow on it, and usually they'll take off like a rocket.
Err...I mean...in THEORY, that is...not that *I* would ever go around blowing little spiders off their webs. Unless it suited my photographic purposes.

 

[baturn]

I didn't really mean remove the spider. I just thought the pattern of the web would stand alone, if you found one sans spider.

 

[JacaRanda]

Those Kestrel shots are really nice; I particularly like the last two. I'd be tempted to clone out that branch that sticks up behind his wing, on the left side of the photo.
I've seen two Kestrels in the wild, but like rodbender have never gotten close enough for a decent photo of one.

I also really like the spider web, WITH the spider. I don't mind it centered in this instance because of the symmetry of the web, but IF I cropped it, I'd take some off the top and the right, let the spider be a little more up toward the top right corner.
If you get the chance to do it again with another web, and the spider is there, you don't usually HAVE to physically move them. Just blow on it, and usually they'll take off like a rocket.
Err...I mean...in THEORY, that is...not that *I* would ever go around blowing little spiders off their webs. Unless it suited my photographic purposes.

Thank you Sharon. I just imagined my wife shooting video of me doing the spastic heebie jeebie dance as the spider scurries away after blowing on it.

I thought of removing some branches in several of those shots. Like some others, I get lazy or impatient with Photoshop. I took the day off today and have been reviewing videos on layers and layer masks etc.
I think I have seen them all more than 5 times.

The football game in a few hours will be my excuse for the interruption this time.

 

[DarkShadow]

Awesome set bro. I Love them all but the Kestrel is my favorite.