Harris's Hawk

[SCraig]

One of the education staff at the Nashville Zoo was holding this gorgeous critter as I was leaving this afternoon.

 

[D-B-J]

Sweet!


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[SCraig]

Sweet!

Thanks! Glad you liked it.

 

[baturn]

Cool angle on the 2nd. Very nice!

 

[BillM]

Beautiful !!!!!!

 

[SCraig]

Cool angle on the 2nd. Very nice!

Beautiful !!!!!!

Thanks, guys. They aren't native to this area, mostly to Mexico and South America it appears, so a captive one is the only way I'll see one. This one seemed to be enjoying himself greatly. He sat on his handler's arm looking at everything around him. He stared straight at me with that glare like in the second shot and I swear I could feel the intensity of it. Absolutely gorgeous bird.

 

[D-B-J]

It's just nice that you were able to get so close. I love the angle on the second, but the heavily shaded eye ruins it for me.

Best,
Jake

 

[SCraig]

It's just nice that you were able to get so close. I love the angle on the second, but the heavily shaded eye ruins it for me.

That was, very literally, as close as I could get. 1.68 meters (5.51') and the minimum focus distance with that lens is 5'

Shade was the name of the game yesterday. Not a cloud in the sky for a change. True, the shot would have been better with some cloud cover but that's the shot I had.

 

[pjaye]

Beautiful bird and pictures.

 

[petrochemist]

It's just nice that you were able to get so close. I love the angle on the second, but the heavily shaded eye ruins it for me.

Best,
Jake

While the pose is better on the second, the lighting on the first makes it the winner for me too.
Both are nice shots, but I suspect I'd keep coming back to the second to see if I could tweak the lighting in post...

I live even further from their home territory, but Harris Hawks are one of the best display birds so I get to see a fair bit of them here in the UK. (Never as close as those shots though)