I headed over to the Carolina Raptor Center early Saturday morning and again today for the PhotoWild Event. Photowild is a fundraiser for the CRC and gives photographers a chance to photograph birds of prey outside their enclosures. It is probably as close as one can get to these magnificent creatures for some extreme close up action.
The challenge to photograph these birds is to try and make it APPEAR that they are in the wild. All these birds wear tethers which can sometime ruin that appearance. I don't "Photoshop" images since I am an Aperture 3 user and most of my edits are to only enhance the RAW images that come from my camera, and I occasionaly remove/retouch/clone distracting elements, but I usually try to crop via my lens. Nothing wrong with photoshop, it's just not something I want to use now and Aperture 3 does what I need. However sometimes the truth can be interesting!
This was my second time to the Carolina Raptor Center and I wanted to really give my new Canon 7D a work out and see what it could do with my "L" Glass Lenses. I am totally impressed. Thanks to my fellow photographer and friend Cliff Black who provided me with some tips and tricks using it! Thanks Cliff! Cliff and I shoot with pretty much the same gear except the flash and the editing software! Great minds think alike!
My favorite bird is the Golden Eagle and I worked this bird for a long time. Such a noble animal. I like the Bald Eagle too, but it is like the difference between a US Marine in dress uniform vs. Combat Fatigues to me. It was raining so it made the light soft and easy to control!
The Spectacled Owl was one of the most expressive birds out there. Sometimes he looked very angry, but he was a gentle creature!
The fastest animal of the planet, the Peregrine Falcon!
We have a large Red Tailed Hawk that lives nearby and getting a chance to photograph one up close was a real treat for me!
I really liked the flight of the Eagle Owl!
Several of us CNPA members were there and we had a wonderful time fellowshipping in the hobby we love so well.
Thanks for Reading!
Mark