I have to admit to not being the greatest fan of dabbling ducks, maybe because I have had to count them for so many years, but some birds stand out, like Pintail and drake Shovelers when they form their phalarope like spinning, feeding groups and more-so when they display to attendant females in the early spring. In 2008 and 2009 the main hide at Far Ings offered great views of displaying Shoveler in the days when the hide was occupied by birders and people who had some field craft and were not intent on constantly talking about their latest camera purchase or where they had been last week and five years previously. The Shoveler would often perform their display flights within 100m of the permanent hide but on a couple of rare occasions with the wind from the right direction they flew straight towards the hide in their short display flights. The drakes’ subtle actions before the display flight allow you to be ready but keeping the birds in focus as they powered towards the hide was the tricky bit. On this occasion the camera tracked the bird well and the focus was on the eyes. It was one of a few decent images I took over several days but the best in terms of wing position with the blur in the wing tips showing the speed of the action.

Canon 1D3 with Canon 500 f4 lens and 1.4x converter

1/1600th second at f5.6 and ISO500