Kitchen Window Raptor

This article features a small collection of kitchen window raptor photographs that were captured over the past several days. We just started a 28 day ‘stay at home’ order issued by the Ontario government so our ability to create new photographs will be limited for the next month or so.

Half the photographs in this article were captured by my wife using an E-M1 Mark III and an M.Zuiko 75-300 mm f/4.8-6.7 II. Here is her selection of kitchen window raptor images.

OM-D E-M1 Mark III + M.Zuiko 75-300 mm f/4.8-6.7 II @ 300 mm, efov 600 mm, f/6.7, 1/400, ISO-5000, cropped to 3581 pixels on the width, subject distance 12.5 metres

These were captured yesterday through our kitchen window in late afternoon fading light, about 1/2 hour before sunset.

OM-D E-M1 Mark III + M.Zuiko 75-300 mm f/4.8-6.7 II @ 300 mm, efov 600 mm, f/6.7, 1/400, ISO-5000, cropped to 3538 pixels on the height, subject distance 12.2 metres

This time of year we often have hawks hunting in our backyard. We keep our bird feeders stocked and our pond running to provide birds with a source of fresh water. The small birds that frequent our backyard provide a food source for some raptors in the area.

OM-D E-M1 Mark III + M.Zuiko 75-300 mm f/4.8-6.7 II @ 300 mm, efov 600 mm, f/6.7, 1/400, ISO-5000, cropped to 2696 pixels on the width, subject distance 12.5 metres

I’m not the best at identifying bird species. My best guess is that our images are of a sharp shinned hawk or a Cooper’s hawk… with my guess leaning toward a sharp shinned. Perhaps readers more experienced with species identification can comment.

OM-D E-M1X + M.Zuiko 100-400 f/5-6.3 IS with M.Zuiko MC-14 teleconverter @ 560 mm, efov 1120 mm, f/9, 1/1600, ISO-3200, cropped to 3711 pixels on the width, subject distance 26.7 metres

My kitchen window raptor photographs were taken using an E-M1X and an M.Zuiko 100-400 mm f/5-6.3 IS zoom with M.Zuiko MC-14 teleconverter.

OM-D E-M1X + M.Zuiko 100-400 f/5-6.3 IS with M.Zuiko MC-14 teleconverter @ 560 mm, efov 1120 mm, f/9, 1/800, ISO-320, cropped to 2992 pixels on the height, subject distance 29 metres

The raptor was at the back of our yard a couple of different times on this particular afternoon, perching on the rear fence in various positions. I adjusted my shutter speed between photographs hoping to capture it in flight… but no such luck.

OM-D E-M1X + M.Zuiko 100-400 f/5-6.3 IS with M.Zuiko MC-14 teleconverter @ 560 mm, efov 1120 mm, f/9, 1/1600, ISO-3200, cropped to 3801 pixels on the width, subject distance 28.8 metres

I would have loved to have had the closer-in kitchen window raptor photographic opportunity that Mother Nature gave my wife… maybe next time!

Technical Note

Photographs were captured hand-held using camera gear and technology as noted in the EXIF data. Images were produced from RAW files using my standard process. Crops are noted as appropriate.

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