Shot Talk
Shot Talk is a section dedicated to behind the scene stories of some of my favourite photos. Sometimes they’re good, sometimes they’re less than good, but I’ve learned and grown from each and every one. Enjoy!!
“The Great Blue Escape”
This photo was taken at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I had happened upon this beautiful Great Blue Heron perched high on a tree. I raced into position to make sure I could get at least a couple of shots before it flew away. Well, it turns out my haste was unnecessary; it sat there looking around, preening, and enjoying the sun for about an hour and a half! After about 45 minutes I decided to position myself on the other side of the small river that ran through the sanctuary. I was determined to be ready for when it took off so I could capture it mid-flight. So, I waited, all the while my finger glued to the focus button and my eye pressed into the viewfinder. And then I waited. And I waited some more!! It was a difficult position to sustain, so I took little breaks here and there, but I kept my eye trained on the bird the whole time. That is, until my phone buzzed with a text message... Without really thinking, I pulled it out of my pocket, opened the message, read it and replied. Well, dear reader, I bet you can imagine what happened next… as soon as I looked up from my phone, the bird had spread its wings and had taken off!! In full panic mode I swung my 200-500mm zoom lens up and after a second or two managed to get a focus lock and fired away. Out of the 7 or 8 images I shot, this was the only one that captured the entire bird in the frame. So instead of being ready and present for the moment and ending up with 30 images to choose from, I have one. And it’s not as good as it could have been. So I will leave you with this lesson; don’t text and shoot!!!
“Delayed Dinner”
This photo was taken on Manitoulin Island, Ontario, Canada. In the summer of 2021, I was fortunate to find a family of Osprey and got to spend a fair amount of time observing and photographing them. One afternoon I noticed that the three juvenile birds were particularly vocal, and the female seemed to be scanning the skies. As I did the same, the male (pictured) appeared on the horizon with a big juicy fish gripped in its talons. It was dinner time! I trained my camera on him as he approached the nest and began to snap away. But then, he veered off. Strange. He did another pass, but again, veered off. All of a sudden it dawned on me; he’s not landing because of me! So I stopped shooting, quickly scooped up my camera and got as far away as I could. I grabbed out my binoculars and followed him some more until he felt safe enough to land. I stayed away for the rest of that afternoon so as to not disturb them. That was an important lesson for me; the safety and livelihood of the animal should always come first. And I’ve been diligent about following that rule, but it had never really been an issue up until that moment. I was able to spend more time with them that summer and the whole the family seemed happy and healthy. I look forward to being able to get up to the island again to document these amazing birds (from a safe distance of course!!).
“Trigger!!”
This photo was taken in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. There was not much drama in the taking of this image, but I’ve included it here because to me it’s a moment of unfettered joy. It was a scorcher of a day, but the little guy had a blast running back and forth for pictures. He got to dress up in all kinds of costumes and ties (this was my favourite) and show off his limitless “adorability”. It was a fun afternoon and just looking at the photo brings a smile to my face. I hope it does the same for you!!
“Riverdale Raptor (or, Justin’s Lament)”
This image was taken at Riverdale Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada… with my iPhone, as you can probably tell! The reason I have included this here is a reminder to myself; ALWAYS BRING YOUR CAMERA JUSTIN!! We were in the park for a friend’s birthday celebration when movement caught my eye about 50 yards off by the baseball backstop. I took a wander over and couldn’t believe my eyes; a red tailed hawk had just perched itself there. I believe it was hunting a mouse or a vole, but it hung around for almost 10 minutes. It was literally 10 feet from me and I couldn’t believe my luck that I didn’t have my camera! I have been trying (and am still trying) to get a shot of these beautiful birds that frequent downtown Toronto. That being said, I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to be that close to a wild bird of prey and see how graceful it is. I watched until it decided the mouse wasn’t worth the trouble and it spread its massive wings and flew off. An experience I’ll always remember… for a couple of reasons!
“Kumasi”
This photo was taken at Genesis Equestrian Centre, just outside of Guelph, Ontario. Kumasi is 6 years old, and his owner, Ashley has had him since he was born. I was invited out to the centre to snap some pics of him and her riding and training, as he is working on his show jumping skills. In this particular photo Ashley was prepping him for the ride and something caught his attention at the other end of the stable. The lighting gave a nice contrast so that I was able to capture the curious glint in his eye as he looked to make sure everything was okay! I had a blast that afternoon spending some time with them at the barn. And I had been curious about his name so I asked Ashley how she came up with Kumasi and it turns out he is named after a city in Ghana, Africa. It is known for it’s colourful markets which happens to be very fitting as he has a very colourful personality! I sincerely hope that I get the chance to get back out there and spend more time with them in the near future.