Peregrin Falcon Delight at Rietvlei Nature Reserve

Article and photographs by Denni Raubenheimer

          Yolande and I have recommitted ourselves to posting on a regular basis on our blogs. I have a few articles in the back of my mind, but a recent visit to Rietvlei Nature Reserve (Gauteng, South Africa) has provided me with a good subject for a quick post to start the wheel into motion again.

Rietvlei Nature Reserve has given me and my wife many rewarding hours of bird watching, game viewing and wildlife photography. Recently, we have been visiting the reserve primarily for photography and when you visit a decent patch again and again you are sure to encounter great photographic opportunities.

          On the visit of interest we were a party of three photographers with two cameras and one baby to juggle (when she is older Yolande and I will be able to shoot simultaneously again:)). It was nearing late afternoon when, after having briefly stopped at Otter bridge (which is quite a productive spot for waterbirds), we headed up the road towards the reserve restaurant. At the crossing nearest to Otter bridge I spotted a raptor in a dead Bluegum tree. It was relatively high up, but it didn't look like a common species for the reserve – at least for winter months. I snapped an ID photo and re-positioned the vehicle so that the sun was roughly behind us and that my father-in-law would also be able to photograph the bird through his window. Luckily, baby was sleeping and Yolande was feeling patient :). I only realized later that it was a Peregrin Falcon – a species that I did not expect in the grassland dominated reserve. After re-positioning the car, I immediately started hoping to catch it taking flight. I was encouraged that the raptor was facing towards us and that it was facing into the wind – this meant that if it took flight its flight path would probably be roughly towards us. The waiting then began.

          I choose my camera settings for the hoped-for flight. Because the falcon was quite distant for my fixed 420 mm focal length I didn’t want my shutter speed (and thus ISO-) too high, as I would be cropping the photos. A 1/2000 s and a F7.1 (at which the D800 still has 9 cross phase detect focus points active) gave me acceptable ISOs with ISO on AUTO and using manual mode. I also wanted multiple (but not all) focus points activated in combo with Continuous Auto Focus for when the falcon would be flying. 

Peregrin Falcon testing the wind. Nikon D800, Nikkor 300mm F/4D, TC-14EII. 1/1600s, F/7.1, ISO-560.

Click on images to view larger versions.

          Then the nagging question came up – what about nice portrait-type photos while the bird was still perched? The chosen settings would not give optimal photos of this type, and I didn’t even know if the raptor would take flight in the time frame I had available to wait. I made minor adjustments that would produce better perched-photos, but not too great changes to not be able to quickly switch back. So I dialled the shutter speed down to 1/1600 (only one notch as I didn’t have firm support for the camera) and changed to a single activated focus point, still keeping the camera on C-AF. At least that’s how I remember it, but then the falcon gave a pre-flight wing stretch/flap, as if to test the wind and (I’m sure I did then make some sort of adjustment) then it jumped into flight. Luckily, I was then aiming through my view-finder and shooting away, frantically trying to keep the raptor in the centre of my frame.

In the end I’m very satisfied with how the three posted photos came out. Most of the other photos were sufficiently sharp, but didn’t have all the elements, like bodily position etc., just right. The metadata shows that I had not switched the SS back to 1/2000 s and also not the focus points to 21 activated points, but nevertheless the in-flight photos came out nicely for me – the wing tips just not being frozen on 1/1600 s. 

Peregrin Falcon taking flight. Nikon D800, Nikkor 300mm F/4D, TC-14EII. 1/1600s, F/7.1, ISO-500.

Peregrin Falcon in flight. Nikon D800, Nikkor 300mm F/4D, TC-14EII. 1/1600s, F/7.1, ISO-500.

          After identifying the raptor I was quite interested to see how often the species has been reported in recent atlas lists for Rietvlei Nature Reserve. I found this info on the Southern African Bird Atlas Project 2's website (sabap2.adu.org.za). With the grid sizes used for this atlas project the reserve covers the majority of a certain grid. It is then a fair assumption that most of the lists were made inside the reserve. For all of roughly 400 minimum two-hour bird atlas lists that were made for the grid over the past 6 or so years, the species has only been listed 6 times (and that by enthusiastic bird identifiers). What this means for me is that I was blessed with a very rare photo opportunity for where I found myself and with the Peregrin being the fastest flying bird in the world (up to about 400 km/hour at maximum speed!) I am very chuffed with having caught this species nicely in flight :)