danjacquitaylo
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 p.3 #8 · Snowy Egret Holy Grail...YOU decide :) | |
fwyflyr wrote:
"Now, since I don't know exactly what constitute a "Holy Grail" shot, etc.... I'll just let you FMers decide. Please give me some C&C if you can, especially if you don't think so."
Up to now, I've been sitting back on the earlier posts regarding what constitutes a "Holy Grail" shot, but I think that it's time that I throw in my 2 cents worth and give you a little historical perspective. In 2005, the three of us (Thang, Dan Trinidad - Riokid, and I) spent a lot of time staking out the river along San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary trying to get a shot of the Osprey just as it grabbed a fish in the water. After countless hours that year, we still came up empty. So we became very determined to pursue this goal of getting "the" shot, a "holy grail" quest on our part. The next year, we had a very unusual situation (not seen since) where the Ospreys were attracted to fishing couple of the ponds at SJWS and were very successful at it so that there were plenty of opportunities. That year, a number of us (Thang, Dan, Laura Hughes, and a number of other local FM'ers and a few non-FM'ers) were able to take advantage of this situation and got our shots, and started posting them here on the forum too. On one of the early outings, Laura mentioned that we now have a "Osprey Club" in the way that we kiddingly had put together an earlier "Bobcat Club" (with the inside joke of a decoder ring). I said that a "Holy Grail Society" had a more distinguished flavor,and that it was more appropriate since we were trying to get "the" shot which had been our "holy grail" pursuit. Some of you long standing members will remember that we started posting those shots tagged as "holy grail" shots. There were a number of them being posted since the opportunities and odds of getting one was much better when the shooting area was more confined because of the pond boundries, as opposed to a whole length of a river with limited access at a few riverbank openings. Some of you long-standing members will recall that there was a backlash of sorts at that time with some people getting sick of this "holy grail" thing. Some people in other parts of the country said that it was a common opportunity and that it wasn't that hard to capture. Well, it was a big deal for us in SoCal at the time since it was a rare opportunity and occurance for us at the time. And some, like JB, never did get their holy grail shot that year, even with this opportunity. Even back then, an even greater or ultimate "holy grail" would have been to get a shot of a Bald Eagle just as it was snatching a fish out of the water (wasn't going to happen in SoCal). Timing is a key element of this shot. In the past couple of years, it has gotten to be more common to see such shots from around here as a large number of people have become aware of a local park that stocks trout, and the Ospreys will hunt them. It is not unusual to see 20 photographers or more lining the banks of a confined area.
"Boy that Mr. Zm guy sure is a stickler for details... gotta be an Osprey, gotta be Canon gear, yada yada yada... "
I don't know when Mr Zoom became the high priest of the "Holy Grail Society", but the main element in a "holy grail" shot is the timing of the shot with the bird in flight at the moment that it's snatching a prey out of the water. Your shot certainly qualify, and is a very unusual occurance in its own right. Another "holy grail" situation for us would be to capture an image of a raptor just as it snags a prey in mid-flight with a puff of feathers from the impact!
"In addition to the Harrier HG club you could start one for Snowy's too Danno."
"Recommend you start the "Snowy Grail" club Dan. These are fantastic!!!"
You certainly can start a "Snowy Grail" club or a Snowy Egret branch of the "Holy Grail Society".
Congratulations on getting that shot #4, a great shot.
- Ken
Hi Ken,
THANK YOU very much for the "little historical perspective" and the kind comments. I've been w/ the N&W Forum for only just over a year or so (even though longer as a FM member) so I missed all that "HG" stuffs. I kinda think all along a "HG" shot should include at least the bird (egret, etc...) before the water impact, the actual impact and one w/ the actual prey in mouth after (the main one).
I am certainly honored by those who viewed, voted (either way) and commented.
I think here I am just lucky (hence my other name, Lucky Danno  ) to have caught this and nothing else. This isn't about me...I am no better than anyone here. It's all about sharing my experience, my pictures, learn from others' and hope to have a little fun while at it.
Thank you again Ken.
Dan 
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Danno this was an excellent series, well done and very sharp and I hope to catch something like it someday! 
