I recently went to the edge of the Niagara Gorge to photograph some vultures gliding on the thermals and was greeted with such a large group it was almost like going to a vulture convention.

NOTE: Click on images to enlarge.

These were only the birds gliding up higher in the thermals, there were many more lower down in the Niagara Gorge.

While vultures are not the most photogenic of birds they do make good practice subjects.

My apologies for the unusual exposure settings on some of these images. I inadvertently brushed the shutter dial against my leg and cranked up the shutter speed beyond where it needed to be.

There were so many vultures circling over the gorge and I was firing off so many consecutive short image bursts that I didn’t even notice that my settings had changed. A lesson reminder for sure.

Visiting the Niagara Gorge in the afternoon is often a good time to see vultures in flight.

As they traverse up and down the gorge they are often close enough to fill the frame of your photograph.

Depending on the angle of the afternoon sun, and Lady Luck, it is also possible to get the occasional image with nice highlights on the wings and backs of the birds.

When I first arrived at the gorge I took a few images with a Nikon 1 J5 with a Zacuto F-Finder attached via some elastic bands.

You may notice some differences between the images taken with the V2 and the J5.

All of the images in this article were taken at the Locust Grove Picnic Area. This area is just south of Brock’s Monument on the Niagara Parkway (on the way to Niagara Falls), immediately after going around the traffic circle. The driveway is on the left-hand side (Niagara Gorge side). It is marked with a very small sign that is easy to miss!

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