Birds of Prey: The Ultimate Prize for a Bird Photographer

^{Note: This tip comes from page 2 in Tobie Schalkwyk’s free eBook - Bird Photography: Birds of Prey}

Birds of prey photography is the pinnacle of nature photography.

As much as I love all forms of nature photography, nothing beats the self-satisfaction of looking back at a good shot of a bird of prey and then thinking to yourself, ‘Yes, I love it!’

Obviously, some images are a level ‘above’ others depending on what the bird of prey was doing at that moment in time, but even a good, clear image of a stationary raptor invokes pleasant emotions from any passionate bird photographer.

Before we go any further, let’s define what we mean by ‘birds of prey’: birds that hunt and eat vertebrates.

Some of these vertebrates may be quite large in relation to the size of the bird to an astonishing degree.

According to this definition, vultures may appear not to be 100% at home, but they are generally counted among them.

Birds of prey (also known as raptors) are roughly grouped as follows:

• Eagles (massive wings, large strong feet/talons used to kill prey)

• Ospreys (fish hunters)

• Kites (long wings, relatively weak legs)

• True hawks (woodland birds hunting from a perch)

• Buzzards (medium to large raptors with strong bodies)

• Harriers (hawk-like birds with long tails and thin legs) Vultures (carrion eaters, usually with heads and/or sometimes necks void of feathers)

• Falcons (medium size with long, pointed wings) · Caracas (broad wings, naked faces)

• Owls (night hunters)

You may be wondering, “Why mention all of these groups? I know what a raptor is!”

Tip #1: Well, the main traits of each individual group will play an important role later when we discuss where to find these birds and how to photograph them.

Besides, when you come across a raptor, wouldn’t you like to know what kind it is?

Tip #2: Birding knowledge is just as critical as the expensive lens attached to your camera.

Want more? If you want to learn more about bird photography, and capture beautiful shots of your own, we recommend downloading and printing out Photzy’s 10 Bird Photography Cheat Sheets (Special bonus available now!)