Cindy Marple
May 2025 - Gila Landing
About the Image(s)
Gila Woodpeckers build nest cavities in giant Saguaro cactus. There are a couple of families in my local park. They also eat the pollen of the flowers, so they’re actively flying around in the cactus garden. I wanted to try getting one in flight, a challenge because they fly short distances and you can never guess when they’re going to go. I set up the camera for flight with shutter speed of 1/2500, f/8, ISO1000 and then just tried to react when I saw one fly in. I managed to get on this one and the focus acquired and tracked it as it approached landing. The image is rotated and cropped, slight exposure adjustment from the original.
2 comments posted
Small(ish) birds are quite hard to capture because they dart around so quickly, and I usually give up in frustration. Here you did a really good job of catching it in perfect sharpness and pose. The wings are fully extended and as a bonus there are interesting radiating patterns under the wing, and the sun angle shows that off. I can't believe the bird finds a place to land amidst all those needles. Color balance is spot on. Great! Posted: 05/12/2025 00:45:46
Cindy, Your image shows the nice patterns under the wings and the needles really add to the interest. I know how difficult it is to get an image when the bird is landing . Great job. Bruce Posted: 05/12/2025 14:59:07