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Friday, April 22, 2011

FLYday - Red-tailed Hawk

Red-Tailed Hawk Take Off

Red-tailed Hawk Lift Off
Red-tailed hawk lifting off, then taking off from tree branch, Randolph, Maine April, 16, 2011

An homage to what our feathered friends do best, fly.

(This post is an Editor's Pick on Open Salon )

40 comments:

  1. Happy Earth Day and Friday Fly Day...cool shots!

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  2. Thank you, Dawn! Good way to spend Earth Day, that's for sure!

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  3. Excellent shots of a magnificent creature.
    AtHomePilgrim
    April 22, 2011 10:56 AM

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  4. I second Pilgrim's motion.
    Matt Paust
    April 22, 2011 06:03 PM

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  5. Marvellous ! Thank you for sharing.

    ♥R
    FusunA
    April 22, 2011 07:00 PM

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  6. Fabulous shot!!!
    Chrissie Pissie
    April 22, 2011 07:51 PMAnd..... well worth an Editor's Pick.
    Chrissie Pissie
    April 22, 2011 07:52 PM

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  7. That a creature can move through the atmosphere unaided except by its own physiology has never ceased to capture my awe and imagination. It's a kind of magic I've always desired and could never accomplish except in dreams. It's wonderful to see it in action.
    Jan Sand
    April 22, 2011 07:59 PM

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  8. nice shots. R
    Sheba Marx
    April 22, 2011 08:02 PMoh, happy belated birthday
    Sheba Marx
    April 22, 2011 08:02 PM

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  9. Thanks to all of you! Wonderful comments. I was out birding all day yesterday and came home to all these grand comments, FABULOUS! And, Editor's Pick for the seventh time on Open Salon, WAHOOO!

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  10. You get the most amazing pictures. Are they digital or do you scan them afterward?
    rated
    Susie Lindau
    April 22, 2011 09:45 PM

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  11. Susie, I am a digital shooter. I shoot with a Canon 50D and generally get this kind of shot with a 100-400mm Canon telephoto lens. Thanks for the great compliment!

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  12. Stunning!!!
    Sparking
    April 22, 2011 11:07 PM

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  13. Hawk and Prey

    The great red-tailed hawk
    rips to shreds a pigeon in the park.
    He waited hours for this moment,
    eye, wing, and leg perched to strike
    from atop a huge clock tower.
    Around and above him loom young birches
    spreading their branches like wings.
    Across from this, a courthouse, doors agape,
    dispenses justice with an iron talon.

    Behind the park, a bank cupola points toward the sky,
    its monolith a shadow spread across the afternoon.
    Before any symbol of commerce stood,
    generations of red-tailed hawks
    fed on the weaker, inferior prey,
    as this hawk feeds on a pigeon now
    under the trees.

    People walk by this scene as if blindfolded.
    They forget not long ago they lived in trees,
    prey to whatever hungry creature
    chose to snatch them from a bower.
    Now they would judge, doubt, and blame
    with a steady finger; wage endless,
    bloody war, yet call all death evil.

    The red-tailed hawk feasting in the park:
    This is the truth of the universe.
    mrtmaninri
    April 22, 2011 11:14 PM

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  14. That's quite a poem, Mrtmaninri. Thank you. As a wildlife photographer, I am always looking for the 'wild' in the being I photograph.

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  15. How long have you been shooting?I will totally honest, I am so inspired by people like you and trying to talk myself into taking the next step (like getting my own website), I just get too intimated to do so. How did you get started, if you don't mind me asking..

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  16. Yes I saw the word magnifient on the post down below, it is perfect to describe the Red Tail Hawk you have taken pictures of.
    MOMSACOMIC
    April 23, 2011 12:10 AM

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  17. Angela, I've been shooting about 5 years seriously. Thank you for the extraordinary regard for my work. Don't be afraid: launch.

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  18. MomSaComic (great username!), Thank you very much.

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  19. Those aren't easy shots to get. Very nice. From hawks to hummers they are all beautiful.
    Rodney Roe
    April 23, 2011 06:28 AM

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  20. Agreed, Rodney they are all stellar. Thanks for the comment and compliment. They are hard shots to get, all of them including the 'perched/stills.' I am very patient, and will wait nearly indefinitely. My friends are often annoyed because I'm late to meet with them having HAD to stop and photograph something on the way. And, my dentist isn't too impressed with me, but I'm delighted that there are some of you out there who are. Thank you!

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  21. Great shots, Robin! Congrats!


    -Shawn

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  22. Fantastic photos !!! Congrats on your #7 open salon.
    bmc

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  23. Hey pal,

    Congratulations AGAIN! As they say in the newspaper business, you’re featured on page 1, “above the fold”. I told you that red-tailed image was an outstanding composition, and the editor obviously agreed.

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  24. Mo Dudley commented on your link.
    Mo wrote: "nice!!! those shots are awesome!!"

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  25. Great shots as always, Robin! One of my favorite birds, but one that I've never managed to photograph.

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  26. Paul, thanks very much! I actually have photographed them lots of times, but these are probably the most impressive images I've captured.

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  27. beautiful framing - rated with hugs and a biiiiiig happy smile :) you have such wonderful eyes
    Rolling
    April 23, 2011 01:05 PM

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  28. Beautiful...what more could I say?
    Christine Geery
    April 23, 2011 03:32 PM

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  29. That they do quite well, with seeming effortlessness. Magnificent. And magnificently photographed against troublesome back-lighting.
    Brassawe
    April 23, 2011 03:37 PM

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  30. Great photo, Robin!!

    Carol Beyna

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  31. A magnificent bird of prey! Excellent photographs of a remarkable creature.
    Val W
    April 23, 2011 10:58 PM

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  32. Oh yes.....
    Lunchlady 2
    April 24, 2011 04:41 PM

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  33. Very nicely done. We have many of these where I live (rich farmland, abundant with rodents for feeding their chicks) and these photos are a lovely testament to their beauty.
    Indelible Ink
    April 24, 2011 08:57

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  34. HG, Val W., Lunchlady2 and Indelible Ink, Thank you for your comments and compliments. They are, inarguably, a stunning bird. We have lots of them here. I look for them every time I go by that particular tree as they often perch there, hunting. It sits on the margin of a huge meadow of an old farm. Just the kind of envrionment Indelible Ink refers to.

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  35. great action shots, where do you find these hawks?
    Christina Sportiello
    April 24, 2011 09:03

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  36. Christina, Thanks very much. Great to have a new reader! In Maine, Red-tailed hawks are common here through the summer months. They are mostly migratory so we don't see many in the winter, though we can.

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  37. Those are wonderful photos! Congrats on getting such good shots!
    Rachel Wells
    April 25, 2011 12:38

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  38. Awesome pic Robin. I want your talent! Our season opens Memorial Day. I hope we can meet at
    some point this summer.

    Take Care,
    Valerie

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  39. i love your work - I'm so glad that you are recognized for the unique voice that you have...keep it up and keep pming me when you do - take care friend! I'm honored to "know" you...
    Heidi

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