Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III__EF50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro__1/3 sec at f / 32

On Monday, not long after the snowstorm had cleared off, I heard a loud crashing noise outside my house.  Both my 8 year old son and I were alarmed and so we looked out the front door where we thought the sound had come.  We saw nothing at first.  On occasion, we have quail fly into a window.  Searching further, we looked out a narrow window in my living room, we saw a sad site.  A Cooper’s hawk lay on the ground, twitching in its last moments before dying.

As a memorial to this beautiful creature, I made this photograph of its wing feathers.  The late afternoon sun backlit the feather patterns.  I did not want this life to pass without a tribute to its elegance.

Bill

http://www.williamneill.com/