Who's your daddy?

This past Winter, we have this female kestrel taking residence on my birding trail. She was eventually chased away by the peregrine falcons who also live in the general vicinity as the falcons begin their nesting season. We had a good time during her stay.

I should have gotten lower on this shot but she was on a palm tree when she flew down to the ground to get some rocks to help her digestive system. This is the lowest I could get, too before she flew back to the tree. That this happened in the golden hour is a bonus.

What technical feedback would you like if any?

Any

What artistic feedback would you like if any?

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Pertinent technical details or techniques:

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Nikon D500 and Sigma 500 f/4 lens at f/4.5, 1/3200, ISO 5000 (hoping for some flight shots), handheld.

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@adhikalie

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Sure is nice lighting. Looks as if you were fairly close, which I’ve found hard to do with a Kestrel. Also, unusual in my experience to get it on the ground. I like the pose and the detail is good and the Kestrel blends in well with the background.

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Superb light here. One can see why these blended so well with the environment. Perhaps a little contrast boost on the chest and body plumage would make it stand out a little better.

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Thanks, @Allen_Brooks and @David_Schoen! Indeed, some contrast boost would work out really nice there on the chest.

Excellent, Adhika. Yes, lower would have been nice, but this works very well as posted. I really like the eye contact and I rarely see this species on the ground and certainly not in open ground where you can see the detail of the way it stands, which I find very interesting.