Ah, the Bay Area...it's lovely this time of year. Pouring rain, gale force winds...can't wait to try to take off later this afternoon for the trip back east A quick weekend trip to visit my west coast living son as he moved to the big city from the burbs. Hopefully I will get to post some shots from our excursion yesterday where we managed to get 2 hours of no rain and even a little sun...but no card reader with me so you all have to settle for stuff from my portable hard drive which I did bring knowing I might have some time on my hands.
Hopefully you all skipped over that first part because that was a wasted 30seconds of your life you will never get back.
Ok, now to the good stuff...well, ok stuff I suppose. I really love Bateleur Eagles (Bateleur is French for tight rope walker...not sure how they got that name but I'm sure Wiki has some great made up stuff that will give us the derivation...maybe the outfits tight rope walkers wear...yeah that's it...oh I just made that up so don't quote me )...great looking birds that are basically scavengers. They are often the first at a kill so following them sometimes yields good results. Other times they just soar...and in this case that's what was happening. I have been trying to figure out what's in its talons but don't have a clue. Many are big crops but for me the interesting thing is how much the light changed going from the first to last shot...the sky is so much bluer and interesting (right UT!). I said I wouldn't post my grey hornbill...so call me a liar...but it was processed so what the hey! And the grey louries aka "go away" birds are also amongst my favorites. Just love their "mohawk" hairdoo.
And just to make it a ligit eyelaser post...a real close up....this is the star of "Eye of the Leopard"....Lagedema with probably the most famous whisker spot...sort of like Cindy Crawford's mole...
Enjoy and hope you are all having a great weekend.
Eric
Nice set Eric. The eagle looks a little bit like a vulture to me. Red face and it looks like fewer feathers around the beak (less gore sticking to the facial feathers after a meal) compared to some other eagles. I like the hornbill shot. Very good looking image.
Hopefully you all skipped over that first part Too late
Ha that SF weather sucks, cmon up here.... oops it's just as lousy I got out for one burst of Robin today before the clouds and rain came
great looking birds that are basically scavengers Sounds like our Baldies
Oh I'm having fun on your post Eric I do like the Eagle, even if I can't pronounce the name. Mean looking guy. The Grey Lourie look like Cardinals that got too close the campfire Congrats on the twofer. I don't know why you didn't want to post the Hornbill, I really like the shot Killer tight shot of Lagedema, what a beauty!! Super set Eric.
Fantastic set Eric ! Glad you got a couple of hours of sun Love the first shot . Now you have me very curious what it is carrying .
Love the lorries and the hornbill, but that last shot is outstanding !
Hey, Eric.
First and most important... that mole on Cindy Crawford is the only (visible-to-the-public) ugly part of her whole exterior!
Of lesser import- I really liked these images .
And finally: I just tested your theory about Wikipedia, and you are right; they say nothing about being able to see wild lagedema eagles in San Francisco. And, since you mention no other geographic location exCEPT San Francisco, I naturally assumed you saw them while you waited for your flight.
Damn Wiki! ()
Although it's much better than Funk and Wagnell ("Look it up in your..." from the old Laugh In TV program. 'Member?
Charlie
KCollett wrote:
Nice set Eric. The eagle looks a little bit like a vulture to me. Red face and it looks like fewer feathers around the beak (less gore sticking to the facial feathers after a meal) compared to some other eagles. I like the hornbill shot. Very good looking image.
Thanks Ken...the bateleur actually has some great feathers around its face but it does act much like a vulture.
Eric
Eric -- great shots of an eagle most of us don't get to see, many thanks for showing these. Very cool. And the leopard closeup (yet another great shot) is quite something.
Mark
Tim Kuhn wrote: Hopefully you all skipped over that first part Too late
Ha that SF weather sucks, cmon up here.... oops it's just as lousy I got out for one burst of Robin today before the clouds and rain came
great looking birds that are basically scavengers Sounds like our Baldies
Oh I'm having fun on your post Eric I do like the Eagle, even if I can't pronounce the name. Mean looking guy. The Grey Lourie look like Cardinals that got too close the campfire Congrats on the twofer. I don't know why you didn't want to post the Hornbill, I really like the shot Killer tight shot of Lagedema, what a beauty!! Super set Eric.
Safe travels my friend!
Tim
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Thanks my friend....to make it easy...you can call them Short Tailed Eagles...they are very easy to spot in the air even by me...the appear to have almost no tail feathers in flight.
Thanks about the hornbill...I guess it was a bit better than I thought at first look.
I always wonder if the leopards know how much we like to photograph them...they certainly get lots of attention.
Eric
birdied wrote:
Fantastic set Eric ! Glad you got a couple of hours of sun Love the first shot . Now you have me very curious what it is carrying .
Love the lorries and the hornbill, but that last shot is outstanding !
Birdie
Thanks Roberta...I do wish I could get a look inside that clasped talon...if I was food I would have thought the bird would have landed somewhere to feed.
Eric
tfoltz wrote:
Eric,
Fantastic set as usual, you should give Conrad a call if the weather clears
so he can introduce you to his hot spots this time of year.
-Tim
Thanks Tim...very kind words. I did pm him to let him know I was around but with the fam....I will definitely make more trips out there with my son living in town.
Eric
A quick weekend trip to visit my west coast living son as he moved to the big city from the burbs. Hopefully I will get to post some shots from our excursion yesterday where we managed to get 2 hours of no rain and even a little sun...but no card reader with me so you all have to settle for stuff from my portable hard drive which I did bring knowing I might have some time on my hands.
)...great looking birds that are basically scavengers. They are often the first at a kill so following them sometimes yields good results. Other times they just soar...and in this case that's what was happening. I have been trying to figure out what's in its talons but don't have a clue. Many are big crops but for me the interesting thing is how much the light changed going from the first to last shot...the sky is so much bluer and interesting (right UT!). I said I wouldn't post my grey hornbill...so call me a liar...but it was processed so what the hey! And the grey louries aka "go away" birds are also amongst my favorites. Just love their "mohawk" hairdoo.
#1, 6 and 7 are a close 2nd.
Killer tight shot of Lagedema, what a beauty!! Super set Eric. 
~ Ron