Inevitable
This tawny eagle was hunting namaqua sand grouse at 13th waterhole on the mata-mata road in the Kgalagadi, he had failed a couple of times but this was the atte...
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This tawny eagle was hunting namaqua sand grouse at 13th waterhole on the mata-mata road in the Kgalagadi, he had failed a couple of times but this was the attempt that got him lunch!
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Jul, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at 13th waterhole in the Kgalagadi National Park in my home country of south africa, where my wife and I spent our honeymoon.Time
I left camp at 6am so that I would get to the waterhole by around 8am as the flocks of sandgrouse usually come to drink about 2 hours after sunrise.Lighting
As with most wildlife photography, you have very little control over lighting. In this case luck was in my favor, as the sun was still low enough in the sky to shed a wonderful even light without any harsh midday shadows.Equipment
I used a Canon 7D Mark II, with a Canon EF100-400mm L IS II. The perfect budget wildlife combination!Inspiration
I noticed the tawny eagle hanging around the waterhole the day before, and knowing that the sandgrouse usually come and drink about 2 hours after sunrise i wanted to try my luck at getting a picture of a hunt.Editing
I try to avoid too much post on my wildlife images as it tends to kill the natural look that I try to capture. in this image I recovered a bit of detail in the shadows on the eagles wing as well as toned the highlights down a bit.In my camera bag
I normally have at least 2 bodies so that I can cover the important focal lengths without changing lenses as I shoot in some very dusty environments, and nothing can ruin a beautiful image more than a dusty sensor! My primary lenses are a Sigma 18-35mm f1.8 used for landscape/wide-angle shots as well as some night photography and my Canon 100-400L IS II for mammals and larger birds, I also use a Tamron 150-600mm for the smaller bird species.Feedback
Knowing your subject and its behavior is the best advise I can give to any wildlife photographer. In this example, knowing that the sandgrouse drink at certain times, and that they are a favorite prey species of the tawny eagle made this image possible. Patience is also key, I waited and observed for almost 2 hours to get this image. Having a camera with good AF tracking and a good burst rate also helps immensely.
