Swifts and Swallows

Female Violet Green Swallow perched in Yosemite Valley.

While I was painting near the Wagon Tunnel in Yosemite Valley one morning, a group of violet green swallows swirled through the air, consuming insects rising in the thermals. One swallow seemed to take interest in my painting easel set up on the bluff. She flew past me several times and finally landed on a rock just about fifteen feet away, watching me carefully. I slowly reached down and picked up my camera (Canon 1D mkII with a 400 f4 DO lens) which was set up with high shutter speed in anticipation of an opportunity to capture the fast flying birds. I managed a few shots before she resumed feeding with the others.

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