Red-tailed hawk in Northern Virginia
January 17, 2010
While driving along Route 7, I often see hawks and other birds of prey. Saturday afternoon I spotted a red-tailed hawk and luckily was equipped for the occasion. Here’s a video of my initial impressions (images after the jump):
I was pleased to have spent a few minutes with it, and nearby residents told me that it’s a frequent guest of that area.
While it was obviously a little uncomfortable with my presence, I was still pleased with the shots I was able to get. As it took off, I fired off a burst and grabbed the shot below.
I’ve never had a ton of luck photographing hawks, so it was a nice surprise for the day. In the future I’d like to work with some longer lenses, because the 200 is very much on the short end for birds.
By the way, what do you think of the little video snippets?
Wildlife in Photography 
January 17, 2010 at 12:14 pm
The only way to improve the video is – next time, don’t wear your seatbelt, I mean you are the clint eastwood of photographers….great in flight shot though.
January 17, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Very nice pics!!
I personally don’t feel really strongly either way about the videos – it might be a nice addition to include your camera gear and a little explanation in each one so they’re more instructive rather than just ‘diary-style’.
January 17, 2010 at 1:55 pm
Oh, and please don’t stop wearing your seatbelt! haha
December 14, 2010 at 4:32 pm
I see a hawk almost daily for about 3 years now. There were a lot of squirrels but now they have diminished thanks to this hawk and new neighbors are moving in like Turkey vultures (over 50)to pick up after it’s scraps. The hawk is very big and similar pattern to this one but it also looks like a Cooper hawk in the legs. I’m still looking it up. I took pictures with my cell. It let’s me get relatively close to picture it, it does hesitate a little though. It’s the first hawk I’ve ever seen! It’s beautiful!