Merlin finishing breakfast


Posted by Bruce Sherman on Sun Dec 19, 2004 4:04 pm

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Two friends and I have been watching this bird for about a week. She has been fairly regular along a short stretch of highway between Corpus Christi and Port Aransas, TX. It is amazing how approachable she is, particularly when she has food.

When I took this shot I was about 30' from her. We watched and photographed her from this distance for about 10 minutes. When she had completely finished eating, she sat and preened for several minutes and then non-ceremoniously flew off.

1DII with 600 and 1.4X TC, ambient metering -1/3 (ISO 400, f10, 1/800). Cropped about 10%.

Thanks for looking. All comments appreciated.
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by Jim Zipp on Sun Dec 19, 2004 4:06 pm
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Boy, not often you find a "tame" merlin! I'm glad you guys are taking advantage of that!! What a cool shot :D .
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by talusman on Sun Dec 19, 2004 4:07 pm
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holy cool.... the leg is awesome!!! I like the contrast btw her talons and her prey's. perfect exposure and background. The perch isn't perfect, but with everything else this has going for it who cares? Awesome!

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by Ofer Levy on Sun Dec 19, 2004 4:43 pm
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This is beautiful! Well done!! :D
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by Don Schoenfeld on Sun Dec 19, 2004 6:00 pm
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Killer!!!!! In more ways than one.

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by mcameron on Sun Dec 19, 2004 6:50 pm
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Very cool and unusual! Nice pleasing backround too.

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by Ken Newcombe on Sun Dec 19, 2004 7:21 pm
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Nice one Bruce, seldom does a Merlin allow this close a look though like most raptors when feeding they are less likely to move off. Well done!
 

by Cindy Marple on Sun Dec 19, 2004 7:30 pm
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This is so sharp! Great image with that foot hanign out of the bird's beak.
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by Bob Ettinger on Sun Dec 19, 2004 7:47 pm
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Great job, good detail.
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by Jim Urbach on Sun Dec 19, 2004 8:42 pm
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Bruce,

Real sharp,I hope to see more images of this merlin.

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by Ken Scheben on Sun Dec 19, 2004 8:55 pm
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This is TOO cool Bruce. Think I'll drive over to KFC and order a bucket of legs. :wink: Awesome pose, comp, background and sharpness. Way to go.

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by dfrench200 on Sun Dec 19, 2004 9:39 pm
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Fantastick shot! Super sharp!! Wonder what kind of bird that 'was'. :D
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by BrianS on Sun Dec 19, 2004 9:43 pm
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Oh man that is wicked -- cool shot.
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by Wayne Nicholas on Sun Dec 19, 2004 9:48 pm
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Too real. I absolutely love it.
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by Alan Murphy on Sun Dec 19, 2004 11:00 pm
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Bruce, this is amazing!
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by Rob Palmer on Sun Dec 19, 2004 11:28 pm
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Beautiful background and light. You are lucky to find a nice tame one. I'd like to find one around here that tame. Congrats.
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by Nick Dunlop on Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:04 am
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Nice shot! Merlins can be so tame sometimes. I've walked up to several over the years and had them fly very close to me on several occasions. Unfortunately I never had a camera. I'm glad you did!
 

by Juan E. Bahamon on Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:18 am
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Bruce:

This is freaking awsome, I am jealous, please tell me about this spot. Sincere congratulations.
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by Bruce Sherman on Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:38 am
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Juan E. Bahamon wrote:Bruce:

This is freaking awsome, I am jealous, please tell me about this spot. Sincere congratulations.
Juan,
We have been seeing this bird right along the highway on Mustang Island heading toward Port A. About 90% of the time that I see it, it is on a fence post on either side of the highway in the area from the Mustang Island State Park entrance to the fire station. The best strategy seems to be to slowly drive along the shoulder of the road in both directions. I have never had to drive more than two round trips (between the state park and the fire station) to see the bird. Once I find the bird I park some distance away and then slowly walk toward the bird. If the bird does not have a meal you could probably get within 600 + 2X TC range. If the bird does have a meal (I have seen this only once) it is possible to get very close to the bird.
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by photosbyvito on Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:45 am
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awesome shot! just amazing! the addition of it's meal is great :)

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