Diagonals - First set of a series

Eight images in which the subject lies along (or near) a diagonal line. 

Click on images to see a larger version


Great-tailed Grackle

Great-tailed Grackle - NABA International Butterfly Park (TX) - Nov. 2009
Nikon D300, 300mm f/4 + 1.4x teleconverter
1/160 sec at f/6.3, ISO 800


Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher - NABA International Butterfly Park (TX) - Nov. 2009
Nikon D300, 500mm f/4 +1.7x teleconverter
1/1000 sec at f/10, ISO 800


American Bittern

American Bittern - Everglades (FL) - Jan. 2010
Nikon D300, 500mm f/4
1/320 sec at f/8, ISO 400


Orca

Orca - Witless Bay, Newfoundland - August 2010
Nikon D300, 70-200mm f/2.8 at 200mm
1/1250 sec at f/4, ISO 400


Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk - Ft. Morgan (AL) - Sept. 2011
Nikon D300, 500mm f/4 + 1.4x teleconverter
1/1000 sec at f/5.6, ISO 320


American Avocet

American Avocet - Bolivar Peninsula (TX) - Nov. 2016
Nikon D500, 500mm f/4 lens
1/2000 sec at f/8, ISO 3600


Crested Caracara

Crested Caracara - Viera Wetlands (FL) - March 2012
Nikon D700, 500mm f/4 + 1.4x tc
1/2500 sec at f/8, ISO 1600


Curve-billed Thrasher

Curve-billed Thrasher, southeast of Fountain (CO) - July 2016
Nikon D500, 500mm f/4 + 1.4x teleconverter
1/1250 sec at f/8, ISO 560

David Sparks

I retired in 2005 after 40 years of research and teaching at the University of Alabama in Birmingham (24 years), the University of Pennsylvania (8 years) and the Baylor College of Medicine (8 years). Photography is my retirement hobby.

Nature photography, especially bird photography, combines a number of things that I really enjoy: bird-watching, being outdoors, photography, travel, messing about with computers, and learning new skills and concepts.  I now spend much of my time engaged in these activities.

David Sibley in the preface to The Sibley Guide to Birds wrote "Birds are beautiful, in spectacular as well as subtle ways; their colors, shapes, actions, and sounds are among the most aesthetically pleasing in nature."  My goal is to acquire images that capture the beauty and uniqueness of selected species as well as images that highlight the engaging behaviors the birds exhibit.