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Feeding the Fledglings
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Feeding the Fledglings



A Barn Swallow feeding its fledglings at the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary.

A Barn Swallow feeding its fledglings at the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary.
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cameraNIKON D800

settings Aperture 71/10 ISO 1600 Shutter 1/2000 Focal Length 800/1 

upload_dateJun, 2016

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63 Comments | Report
jtmoore71
 
jtmoore71 July 01, 2016
This a good capture and the composition is well placed.
Eduardbetz Platinum
 
Eduardbetz August 04, 2016
Amazing capture, beautiful !
null_and_void
 
null_and_void August 12, 2016
very cool shot!
Havelock
 
Havelock November 07, 2016
Great shot! Amazing!
Gita
 
Gita November 30, 2016
Super moment !!
TWirtz
 
TWirtz November 30, 2016
What a great capture!
AliAlzuhair
 
AliAlzuhair December 02, 2016
Cute!
iamtherie PRO+
 
iamtherie December 16, 2016
Awesome photo!
FullexposureUK Ultimate
 
FullexposureUK February 11, 2017
Great Capture, timing is spot on .
DavidWillison
 
DavidWillison February 15, 2017
Awesome!
EdithNero
 
EdithNero March 18, 2017
Amazing capture,great timing ????????????????
Michaela_Hedges
 
Michaela_Hedges March 24, 2017
I love this photo!
jlappen
 
jlappen April 19, 2017
Oh my goodness; what a magnificent shot! Congrats. So well done!!!
Kjf82
 
Kjf82 April 22, 2017
Brilliant
annmeredith PRO
 
annmeredith April 24, 2017
Dramatic shot, your held in that moment
tiarajanebantugan
 
tiarajanebantugan April 26, 2017
Amazing!
Seawitch21
 
Seawitch21 May 04, 2017
A dream photo
marcosbello
 
marcosbello May 06, 2017
WOW PHOTO
silverwood
 
silverwood May 14, 2017
Incredible shot
matej007
 
matej007 June 03, 2017
Fantastic capture
melkav PRO+
 
melkav June 04, 2017
Magnificent capture! Love it!
irinaphotos
 
irinaphotos June 07, 2017
Great shot
kathyk_abq
 
kathyk_abq June 15, 2017
Fabulous capture! Great light and timing!
Chaztastic1 PRO+
 
Chaztastic1 June 16, 2017
EPIC!
tropicalkmv
 
tropicalkmv June 16, 2017
Awe inspiring!
tmlakshmi PRO
 
tmlakshmi June 21, 2017
wonderful shot
SpiritAndSoul
 
SpiritAndSoul June 26, 2017
Fantastic shot! I love this!
deannagreenburg
 
deannagreenburg June 28, 2017
Oh wow!!!!!
karinmcfarlane Platinum
 
karinmcfarlane June 29, 2017
Wow, great shot :)
Marcpen
 
Marcpen July 10, 2017
Great capture
123cathy
 
123cathy August 12, 2017
Don't forget me
IndieMoto
 
IndieMoto August 16, 2017
Amazing!
pictorila
 
pictorila August 18, 2017
amazing moment!
kristitimmons
 
kristitimmons October 01, 2017
Amazing capture!
kristitimmons
 
kristitimmons October 26, 2017
Perfection in every aspect!
meggurrz
 
meggurrz November 22, 2017
Amazing picture!!!
vernkrause
 
vernkrause December 11, 2017
Great timing!
Shebeme2
 
Shebeme2 December 26, 2017
what a hard working mom! Taking care of her babies!
sap
 
sap March 03, 2018
Oh my..so amazing
sap
 
sap March 03, 2018
Great capture..love it
AvigayilPhotography
 
AvigayilPhotography March 05, 2018
Congratulations! This is such a sweet photo. :) Keep up the good work!
LauraMK
 
LauraMK March 10, 2018
Oh my word this absolutely stunning! Precious & proud moment! So talented !!!
Dean706
 
Dean706 March 24, 2018
Wow
Dean706
 
Dean706 March 24, 2018
Wow
AninditaDatta
 
AninditaDatta March 27, 2018
Beautiful
kimayers Platinum
 
kimayers March 31, 2018
Breathtaking capture!! Amazing work
marniebee
 
marniebee May 02, 2018
Breathtakingly beautiful! Wow!
Sherry53
 
Sherry53 May 07, 2018
Fabulous photo
Ibraheem_ALSinjlawi
 
Ibraheem_ALSinjlawi June 09, 2018
Good one!
dineshdina
 
dineshdina June 13, 2018
Really awesome capture, inspirational...
susieclark
 
susieclark July 05, 2018
Over the top awesome
annnvrs
 
annnvrs July 22, 2018
Absolutely one of the best shots I’ve ever seen!
Byronfairphotography PRO+
 
Byronfairphotography September 02, 2018
Awesome capture. / Voted
crue_la PRO+
 
crue_la September 23, 2018
Nice job! The slight blur of mom's wings just add to the feeling of movement and the colors are also gorgeous.
MaryAnne306 PRO+
 
MaryAnne306 October 31, 2018
Outstanding capture and great composition. Congratulations on all your awards!
lindiekolver PRO
 
lindiekolver November 03, 2018
Great shot! Technically difficult because of the sheer speed everything happens. They are like flint, these birds. Well done!
IreneNo PRO
 
IreneNo November 11, 2018
There are just no words. Incredible is a word that just doesn’t give it justice. Congrats on an amazingly awesome capture
LINYLIZAMARNETTE Platinum
 
LINYLIZAMARNETTE January 16, 2019
I love this.
Phil_Bourrillion Platinum
 
Phil_Bourrillion March 03, 2019
Very cool!!
posertaker14
 
posertaker14 April 07, 2019
"Now repeat after me, A...B....C...
Happy_Hippy
 
Happy_Hippy October 24, 2019
beautiful
gman176
 
gman176 November 11, 2019
Superb capture! Love everything about this image.
Dreamcatcer
 
Dreamcatcer September 21, 2020
wow top draw

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#Barn Swallow #swallow #birds #animal #wildlife #nature #arcata marsh #humboldt
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Behind The Lens

Location
I found these swallows on an abandoned railroad trestle crossing Butcher's Slough at the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary. The Barn Swallows nest on the municipal buildings across the slough, and these fledglings were probably taking one of their first flights outside of the nest.
Time
I took this photo during the early evening. I try to time my photography outings to coincide with the pleasant evening light and the concurrent uptick in animal activity.
Lighting
Only natural light is at work here. This was taken on an overcast day, which helps control harsh highlights and shadows.
Equipment
I shot this with a NIkon D800 and Sigma 300-800mm zoom lens, handheld.
Inspiration
The Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the most prolific wildlife hotspots on the Pacific coast, and it's a rare occurrence when I don't find something new to marvel at there. During an evening walk, I spotted some small birds on the old trestle, and moved as close as I could without disturbing them. As I looked through the viewfinder, I realized that they were young swallows, and I stood ready to capture a feeding session when the parents returned.
Editing
I made basic color balance and contrast curve adjustments to this image and cropped it for composition.
In my camera bag
For photographing birds in the wild, I usually use a Sigma 300-800mm zoom lens, handheld. I have shot much of my wildlife photography on a Nikon D800, but I recently upgraded to a Nikon D500.
Feedback
Barn Swallows create cup-shaped nests out of mud which can often be found under the awnings of buildings during the summer in North America. Their young tend to fledge in late summer and remain near the nesting site for several days until they can fly properly and feed themselves. During that period, their parents continue to feed their young, which is your best opportunity to get a feeding shot like this.

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