I'll throw one in the ring....By the way...all excellent shots so far
Forgot to tell a story...Well no real story here other than a very cooperative Red Shoulder Hawk in the best light possible. It made my day and even my year!
Your NH shot is beautiful! You sure did have a great opportunity to catch this beautiful bird. Picking one best shot is not easy but I have to pick this photo.
I was taking some female RTH photos and I was quite close to her. All of a sudden,a male RTH showed up,landing on the female. I backed off a bit but it wasn't good enough to frame the whole wings. It was an awesome experience.
While I was happy to get the pictures of this greenie, I realized that for the first time in my wildlife photography experience I was willing to do whatever was required to get the shot, without any thoughts of personal creature comforts. I have stood in bone chilling cold winds before in order to get BE shots, but I was totally prepared for the occassion. This time I was unprepared, uncomfortable and I didn't care. All I cared about was the shot. It was a milestone moment for me in how serious I take this hobby.
Wow David, that is a great moment to share with us. I only say that because I have been there so many times. To me that so accurately describes one of the most rewarding aspects of wildlife photography, the more difficult the shot the more rewarding it is.
This is my pick for my 2009 fave - I only got my 40D in July this year, and have been working hard to try and learn how to drive it. This pic was taken while I was attending a Composition course, and we were doing our practical walkabout with our cameras, and I was lucky enough to be in the right place to get this particular shot. Taken with 40D and 70-200 F4 IS (which I totally adore!)
I never dreamed I might one day take a shot like this (or have gear capable of it) and I know this isn't in the same class as the rest of the fantastic images on this post, but I'm really proud of it
2009 has been the best year of my life., owning this business has been a great experience, and I hope I can keep it going until this old body is toast!
Thanks to everyone who has helped me out, been to my workshops, and thanks to all the great FM'ers that help make this site a wonderful place to visit.
24 hours in the hide (5 trips) for this freakin shot?? I must be nuts.
Wow. As with last year, I'm very impressed and entertained looking through this best of the year thread.
Like many, I've had a bit of a hard time deciding what image to select. Some images are better from a pure photographic stance while others mean more to me due to the shooting circumstances/content and more still just feel right.
The one I have picked is a bit of a combination of these three "types" - though, admittedly, this one might not have much appeal on the technical photographic prowess scale.
This was the first Boreal owl (Aegolius funereus) that I had ever seen and it was a pretty cool little moment. I spent less than a minute looking at this bird as I was sort of in its space. As you can see, it was not easy to get a clean shot, but, this owl is partly trying to hide from other, larger, predatory owls, so you might not always expect to see them out in the open.
This is a great idea! I don't know what year's offering looked like, but so far, all are incredible captures. My personal best and favorite so far is of this osprey coming in for the landing. Love the bg, lighting and details.
-Quang
So inspiring! I have seen some fabulous images this year on FM, and you guys havev inspired me to take up this hobby as a wildlife photographer. Im gonna have to wait on this one, now that I just got a new 7D today Maybe I can go take a nicer wildlife shot now than with my 50D??
It was hard for me as 2009 was the best year for me in photography. I would have to go with an image from the special day I spent with this Painted Bunting.
Conrad Tan wrote:
Well here's my contribution. A full frame burrowing owl taken in Alviso this past May back when the weather was still good Used my long-gone 50D and 400mm f/5.6. This was one of my first photos I have ever sold at the local gallery. I wish it was on a natural perch. Oh well.
JgHarrison wrote:
It was hard for me as 2009 was the best year for me in photography. I would have to go with an image from the special day I spent with this Painted Bunting.
. Great shots all, and def. a goal of mine to post next year for best of 2010.
To me that so accurately describes one of the most rewarding aspects of wildlife photography, the more difficult the shot the more rewarding it is. 
