This is a black collared hawk from the Pantanal region of Brazil. These birds perch in tall trees that line the river when they are in hunting mode, and the prime moment to capture a picture is when they hit the water, talons extended. This is my favorite shot of these majestic birds for three reasons. I like the outstretched wings, the circular ripples on the surface of the water add a nice graphic element, and the hawk is flying straight toward my camera. That didn't happen often. My typical settings to freeze birds in flight and maintain a certain amount of depth of field, are: manual exposure mode, 1/3200, f/11, and auto ISO. I use a center cluster of 15 focus points, assuming the subject will be in the center of the frame. I took this with the Canon 1Dx Mark II which has a frame rate of 14 fps.
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