Tag Archives: Osprey

Eagles and Ospreys Over Kenmore

Trips to Log Boom Park are usually to see the floatplane activities from Kenmore Air’s base but it also gives the potential for some other airborne photo subjects. On one trip a short while ago, the conditions were a little harsh with strong lighting from overhead, but the local fauna was helping out. Getting eagles there is not too unusual but the warmer weather does mean the possibility of ospreys showing up and they did oblige. No close action as they were fishing but they did get some food from the water and even occasionally managed to fly our way while carrying their successes.

Ospreys Through BFI – Not The Birds, Though

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I spent a portion of a Saturday with my buddy Chris as he was passing through town. While I was waiting for him, I headed to Boeing Field and was surprised to see a V-22 Osprey on the ramp across the field. The crew was working around it with some panels on the nacelles open but it became clear that they were buttoning things up for a while. They soon headed off and I did similarly to get Chris from the airport.

When he had made it through immigration, we headed back to Boeing Field and, while walking near the terminal building, the sound of rotors caught our attention. I barely had time to get the camera ready as a V-22 came into view. It was heading to the same area as the other one, so we got some shots of it in the semi-transitioned configuration and then went around to the other side of the field to see the pair of them parked up. I have no idea when they left but at least I got a little activity, even if on a grey and overcast day.

Osprey Getting In On The Seafair Action

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I spent the Friday of Seafair down at the shore of Lake Washington watching the flying demonstrations (and taking the occasional work call). The planes weren’t the only aviators over the lake though. Despite a TFR being in place, a local osprey decided to ignore it and cruise along the shore line. I never saw it actually dive after any prey for the whole time I was there. Instead it would just start towards the south end and gradually drift northwards. After it had completed the leg, it would return to the start and repeat the process.

Fortunately, it was very close to the shore and nowhere near the display box so there was no risk being posed to the performers in the show. However, it was quite a distraction to everyone around where I was and we would turn to watch it rather than the display aircraft each time it came through. Initially it was a little offshore and a bit of a reach with the long lens but it came progressively closer in and was right overhead on a number of occasions.

CV-22 Display

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I have seen plenty of MV-22B Ospreys in service with the Marine Corps but I haven’t see too many CV-22s with the Air Force. One of the early ones was at Hurlburt Field when I visited years ago but we weren’t allowed to photograph it. RIAT provided my first opportunity to shoot one in action. I got some shots of it on arrival day but I was not pleased with the results for a lot of them. I don’t know whether the focus was off or it was my struggles with the low shutter speed but I didn’t do too well.

They did display during the flying program, though, so I had a lot more chances to get some shots. The extra lumps and bumps make this distinctive from the USMC version but it is still a hard thing to photograph if you want to get significant blur on those giant, slow turning props. The different shade of gray they go with seems slightly more interesting than the Marine’s scheme too.

Ospreys Galore

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A trip to Log Boom Park in Kenmore is usually because I am after floatplanes. However, it is a great source of wildlife and some of the ospreys in the vicinity were keen to be photographed. You get plenty of ospreys and eagles in the area but they are usually fishing a bit further out into Lake Washington and not so close to the shore. However, a few of them were circling right overhead and even looking at some fishing opportunities in around the jetty. It would be rude to not try and get some shots of them!

Ospreys on the Hunt

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Sitting out by Lake Washington watching the boat and floatplane traffic also provided a view of the local residents fishing. These residents aren’t the humans on the pier with fishing poles. These are the ospreys. There are lots of ospreys that are around the north end of the lake at this time of year. They are circling overhead looking for targets and then swooping down to catch them.

It is not usual to get them making their catch close in but sometimes you can see them diving in the grab a fish. However, when they catch something, they do head back passed the shore as they make their way to their nests. A fish tucked under their body and held in a forward alignment to make it easier to fly with is not a rare sight. You also can get them circling overhead as they look for some food but I guess nothing too tasty was near me.

Osprey Checks Us Out

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One fun aspect of shooting by San Francisco Bay is that you get a lot of wildlife while you are killing time. Roger and I were sitting by the shore waiting for a few movements when a bird started flying in our direction. We both paid attention when we realized that it was not a gull as is normally the case. Instead, it was an osprey. They are not a rarity but they are still noteworthy. It certainly wasn’t bothered by us as it flew right over us as it headed along the shoreline. Looking up you could stare straight into its eyes as it surveyed the scene looking for its next snack. Sadly, nothing was nearby for it to dive onto and it flew off. Even so, a brief moment like this with such a cool bird made me happy for a long time afterwards. Actually, I am still happy when I think about it.

Ospreys on the Docks

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I might have been visiting Mare Island to see the museum and surrounding area but I also got to fit in some wildlife viewing while I was there. I had stepped out of the back of the museum towards one of the dry docks. One of the guys working in a business nearby starting chatting and saying how he wished he had a long lens with him to photograph the ospreys. I could hear a lot of noise but he pointed out the source. All of the high structures around the docks be they cranes or gantries seemed to have a nest on them. Ospreys were all over the place. They had access to the fishing in the water a short distance away so the metalwork was providing a great vantage point with plenty of privacy.

The noise from the nest close to me was pretty loud. A chick was obviously awaiting some food. At first I thought the parents were going to come right in but then I realized that there were so many nests that the birds I could see flying were not necessarily anything to do with this chick. I don’t know whether it had worked that out, though, given the noise it was making when any bird came close. I have no idea how much the nest impact the operation of the machinery and whether there are any restrictions on what can be done when they are in place but they are clearly all over the place.

V-22s But No Air Force One

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The President was visiting the Bay Area for a couple of days recently. This meant the arrival of Air Force One, the VH-3D helicopters, the C-17s to transport them and the V-22s that support the VH-3Ds. What more could an aviation guy want? I took a look at the temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) listed online to see when the airspace was going to be shut down. When the president flies, the airspace around him is shut down for security purposes. These closures are published (otherwise, how would the other pilots know not to fly) so it means we know when to expect things to happen.

Sadly, the arrival was on a day I was at work and was timed to come in to SFO around sunset so, even if I could be there, there was a chance that the light would have gone. (As it was, the arrival was just before the light went completely and a friend of mine did get some good shots.) The departure, on the other hand, was scheduled for Saturday morning. That I could manage. I figured that getting there early would be wise since I would not be the only one trying this so getting somewhere to park might be tricky. Plus, if they went early in the slot, I wanted to be ready.

I checked the TFR the night before and got up early the next morning. I had some breakfast and headed out. I arrived in plenty of time but did need to park quite a distance away. I got to the bayshore trail and found a few other guys with cameras. However, word quickly reached me that he had gone. I bumped into a friend of mine and he told me that he had checked the TFR earlier that morning and saw that it had been brought forward. He rushed out and got there just in time. I arrived about 20 minutes after they took off. Curiously, as I had been driving across the San Mateo bridge, I had seen a large jet airborne near the airport and wondered. Now I knew.

There was a silver lining to this disappointment. With Air Force One safely on its way, the V-22s were free to head out. The three of them took off in close succession and turned in our direction to head off down the peninsula. They didn’t come terribly close but I did get my first shots of them since they replaced the CH-46s that used to provide support. (Many moons ago I did see the CH-53Es that used to be undertake this role. They looked fantastic!)

Marine Week

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En route from a day with a client to the airport I had a spare hour to pay a visit to Boeing Field in Seattle. I figured that my time window would mean there was nothing much to see and I didn’t have anything longer than the 24-105 with me anyway. However, when I got there I could see an interesting collection of USMC machines on the opposite side of the field and the Blue Angels were parked up near the Museum of Flight.

I took a ride around to where the Marine helicopters and V-22 were parked and got chatting to one of the crews. He explained it was the start of Marine Week and offered a chance to walk around the ramp with one of the crew. I was not going to refuse that. Mario kindly showed me around and let me shoot anything external. They had three UH-1Y Venoms and three AH-1Z Cobras along with a single V-22. One fof the Cobras was marked up in special squadron colors. I took a walk around all of them and grabbed a few shots while chatting with Mario about what it was like to support these machines. He had worked on the UH-1N before converting to the Venom so he had some interesting perspectives on the relative reliability of the two.

These machines were going to be progressively moved across to the other side of the field as part of the public displays for Marine Week and the first of the Cobras actually was towed while I was there so my timing was excellent. However I did have to go and then my timing let me down as, while I was driving away, I saw an AV-8B Harrier II coming down the approach. Oh well. I still did better than I had expected.