Surprise!

This was a fun shot because there was a little story behind it and a bit of luck on my part. This male Mallard was standing on a submerged log and completely absorbed in the process of preening. I was shooting photos of the various ducks in the pond and was watching him, hoping for some interesting action. While I was looking through the viewfinder, a baby duckling swam into view behind him so I prepared to take a shot when it got close enough to the adult duck. The duckling approached from the rear and just as I was about to hit the shutter for a side by side portrait shot, it reached forward and plucked one of the big duck’s tail feathers. The adult duck apparently wasn’t aware of the duckling and it freaked out! It let out a loud screeching quack and went straight up in the air about 3 feet :astonished: Since I was already focused and starting to take a photo I was able to catch it on the way up!

Sony a6500, FE 100-400 GSM @ 400 mm, ISO-400, f/5.6, 1/3200, hand held, square crop for composition.

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Great story. You captured some very nice detail in the mallard. I like all the water action.

Way to be aware of your surroundings and what was about to happen. Excellent action photo.

Hi Gary, nice action captured - love the splashing water. Details look nice too. Glad you were able to capture this interaction so well.

Great action shot, Gary. The story behind this image is interesting too. I might experiment with a vertical crop if you have the pixels.

What a story and a shot, Gary! It is really nice when we are at the right place at the right time, with everything set to capture the action. I actually like the square frame for this, as a vertical might loose some of the water splash on the right. Just my thought. It is a really nice shot. The details in both ducks are great, and even in the droplets.