Sunday, 28th February 2010
Fairy Tern
by Sebastian Kennerknecht
White Terns (Gygis alba) also known as Fairy Terns are aerial acrobats. Their small body in conjunction with their long wing and tail feathers allows for extreme aerial maneuvers as well as long distance flights, a necessity for this seabird.
This image was taken on Sand Island, the main island of Midway Atoll. It is occupied by 63 people and two million birds. A true paradise.
Equipment: Canon 30D, 24-70mm f/2.8
Sebastian Kennerknecht
I was born in Munich, Germany and moved to the states when I was ten years old. Wildlife has always been my passion and I am now trying to showcase their beauty and need for conservation.
Website: www.pumapix.com
Fairy Tern by Sebastian Kennerknecht was photo of the day on Sunday, 28th February 2010. It is tagged Birds. You can leave a comment below.
22 Comments
Jeff Swanson
Nice work, Sebass!
paul whitton
very nice focus!
not easy on a shot like this! great job
Jeannie Armstrong
Beautiful!
Don’t you need someone to carry your camera case when you go to places like that?!
paul whitton
oh nice website by the way and good luck with the stock photos, nice work!
Pauline Jones
Brilliant focus; well done.
Su
What a super shot love that sea too!
Brett
Very nice ..
Marie Dunphy Harding
Great focus; not sure if I’d consider it a paradise, being out-numbered by 30 thousand Terns though!
Wayne Christensen
You caught this tern in a great position. Nice background. These interesting little guys don’t nest, they lay a single egg on a ledge or in the crotch of a tree. Congrats on your potd.
Ursula
Nice use of light as the angle brings out the detail in his wings. Now we know why they got the name “fairy tern”! Congrats!
Grete
Wonderful capture, I like the sharpness that has! Congratulations and greetings
Ellen Empson
Good technique to get the Tern so in focus at such a large aperture…great catch!!!
renee
Wow, this is really a beautiful shot I really like it, well done.
Sebastian Kennerknecht
Thanks for all the nice comments guys. Thanks Jeff!
In case you guys are interested:
Mode: Manual — not sure I would still do this
Shutter: 1/1250
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 200
Thanks again!
Sebastian
Mike Inman
I lived on Midway when I was a boy in the 60′s and fairy terns was a common sight along with the Goonies! How did you get on Sand Island… to visit? I would love to go back!! Thanks for the memory…
Tim Andes
This is really ONLY bird photo I’ve ever been impressed with. This is incredible.
mike
I like his bright white color.
Catrin Hinrichs
gorgeous seabird photo !
Bertie
Love it!
Anurag
At the focal length you are shooting, you must be very close to the bird!!!
Sebastian Kennerknecht
Jeannie: That’s the only time I have been to a far far away place to photograph.
paul whitton: thanks!
Mike Inman: we were out there with biologists who were placing tags on black-footed albatross, without them we wouldn’t have been able to go there.
Anurag: yeah, you are right, about 12 inches
rob
You gotta be kidding! Amazing!