Sometimes you get lucky

[dc7thchild]

Leaving for a game 5pm, and 15 ft from the house is a Sharp Shinned hawk feasting on a junco (small dark gray, sparrow-like). Run back into house (leaving D2h with 70-200 VR attached in the car), grab my D70 with 80-200 and start shooting. ISO was 200, keeping shutter at 1/125. Not fast enough! That's why the 2nd pic is blurred.

[dc7thchild]

How's this for action?

[dc7thchild]

This guy knew I was watching. Lesson: don't be in such a hurry that the basics are forgotten and "the shot" is lost.

[JohnG]

oh how true. In dec 2005 I drove an hour and a half to an area that had bald eagles that nest there (they don't nest that early but the area is closed during nesting season so I took a chance one of the eagles would be around).

10 minutes after I arrived and started walking down the trail a bald eagle flew right over me - perfect lighting, perfect everything. But by the time I took off the lens cap, raised my camera the lens wouldn't focus fast enough (100-400 had to cover a LOT of range in the focus to get locked) and the bird was gone. I was there for 4 more hours and never saw the guy again. One chance, too bad, so sad, bye bye.

[matthew2000tx]

good series