I'm not much of a birder.....that is to say I take pictures of birds as opportunity allows, but I never was one to actively seek them out. That is but for one. There are a lot of Great Blue Heron's in my area and I'e always wanted to be able to get a shot of one in a natural setting.
Something always seemed to get in the way of getting a shot I was happy with. They were nested and too far away, I didn't have the right camera/lens and/or the time of day was just not conducive....the lighting was trash. You get the point.
That all changed yesterday when, after work, the wife and I went on a training hike(training for our Yellowstone vacation later this year) when she saw a Heron hunting at a pond in the park. Luckily, I had the Nikon D500, 300/4E PF, and the TC-14EIII.
I stalked my prey, ever so slowly taking pictures at different intervals as I approached, just in case it were to get spooked and fly away. I was able to get roughly 20-30 yards from the bird before I stopped. I didn't want to stress the bird while it was hunting, so there I stayed. Got a few good shots, but this one attached is my favorite.
So far, this has been my best shot of a Heron to date. The search for my "Eleanor" of birds is over. However, I won't give up opportunities to get even better shots in the future if the present themselves.
*For those who are not movie aficionados, the term Eleanor is used in the movie "Gone In 60 Seconds", where the main character is a car thief and the only car that has eluded him in all his years is a Shelby Cobra, which he names Eleanor.
