The Stretch Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

A Yellow-billed Kite that we saw around our camp quite often. It was constantly on the lookout for any scraps of food it could pick up.

It became my mission to get a decent photograph of it, and I ended up crawling around in the dirt to get close enough to it.... :-) Unfortunately the light was against me for most of the time, and this is the best I could get it. This was taken at a focal length of 500mm (750mm on the Nikon D100).

In this photograph the bird is busy grooming itself, hence the stretch.

Yellow-billed Kite (Milvus parasitus):
Its habitat is diverse, and it is commonly seen around human habitation. Its call is a high-pitched, shrill whinnying. Its wingspan is 51-60cm.

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olli (2091) 2004-02-11 3:20

What a great beautiful bird.
The yellow areas in the bird work so well with those nice brown tones in it – and in the tree. I like the pose and especially his very intensive stare. Technically very good shot – taken in quite difficult conditions. I would crop out that brown thing top left.
Very well captured Henry – again.

PechePassion (483) 2004-02-11 3:25

Oh vilaine branche en haut à gauche ! Allez hop on l'oublie ;-)

Pourrais tu me dire la distance de prise de vue de ce rapace ?
Il y en a beaucoup par chez moi masi impossible à approcher !
Les couleurs sont toujours aussi bonnes, le cadrage aurait peut etre gagné à etre un peu plus large sur la gauche.
Toujours du bon boulot Henry ! Super !

clodreno (0) 2004-02-11 4:10

What a bird.. one question Henry, is it big? I like the colors here. One day trekking in the Alps I happen to find myself in front of a huge eagle. I took pictures. I'll try to find them...
Ok , i finished to read the note.. I know the size.

avigur_11 (21301) 2004-02-11 4:36

Henry, I am amused again and again by your incredible determination to your wild animal photography mission and I admire your work and your excellent photos.
This in an amazing and a very impressive shot. Wonderful tones of brown and yellow. I like the bird's pose very much. It's a pity about the sky, but I think it is an excellent capture for these hard conditions. Anyway, I think I found a way to reduce the sky problem, see my WS. Very well done, Henry.

[workshop] [compare]

jrj (34779) 2004-02-11 4:51

From the ground to the air, what an incredible number of specimen to catch.
Great posing and excellent shot ;-)

Midnight_sun (1939) 2004-02-11 4:55

You did very well in difficult circumstances. I like the orange feathers and the detail of the face. The BG is a bit bright, but unavoidable given the angle. I think the WS cropping has largely solved this though. Great shot as usual.

carper (65598) 2004-02-11 5:07

Erg goede foto Henry,

Ik ben gek op roofvogels. Good composition, fine colours, good dof. Erg goed gedaan Henry

robbertjan (2906) 2004-02-11 5:08

Wow Henry what a great picture. What a beautiful bird! You have choose the right moment. When he turns his neck. You have captured a lot of detail. And the colors are great. The bad ligth doesn't matter. Great job!

Jeppe (18623) 2004-02-11 5:56

Mision completed - good work Henry ;-)
I been trying to take some birds shot but having problems getting close enough.
I like the position of the bird and the look in hes eye. Great details in the feathers as well - thanks for the note.

nwoehnl (120) 2004-02-11 6:45

Your note is great, to begin with. Here's a determined photographer, ladies and gentlemen ;-) Now, considering the circumstances, I think you did wonderful capturing this bird in good detail, colors and sharpness. Nicely framed by the "blurry" natural surroundings. Well done!

gepall (1808) 2004-02-11 8:01

Excellent shot of this very beautiful bird.
I like the pose and it's position.
Very well done

manny (21378) 2004-02-11 9:33

Excellent picture Henry. The colors are wonderful, DOF is perpect, timing is also good. We cant do anything about the sky (maybe we could using PS: I guess though that you are not very fond of it).

Anyway, another informative picture about the animal kingdom. Thanks.

eelliott305 (776) 2004-02-11 12:13

Another great wildlife shot Henry. The colours of the Kite`s feathers are beautiful and you caught him in a nice position with his head just turned.

Rockyboy (20582) 2004-02-11 13:21

Yitzhak has done the workshop I would do on your picture to rectify the framing. Though, your picture is very nice and even if the light was against you, this bird appear very well with good colors. Well done, Henry!

dsidwell (9745) 2004-02-11 19:27

I really enjoy the darker tones and colors here which create an interesting mood that seems to match the bird's gesture. Very fun, interesting shot. It is always a delight to see wildlife in photos, but wildlife doing things is even more interesting!

orme (6746) 2004-02-12 1:50

A great shot, Henry, especially under difficult circumstances. The colours of the feathers are beautiful, particularity those lighter colours of its front. You captured it in an interesting position. Well done.

PLD_images (7141) 2004-02-12 11:22

Another great nature shot. You are becoming my favorite nature photographer Henry. But I do miss the bikes ;-) .

Real good capture here, especially with being against the light. There is very good details on the bird. Great job again.