ML344570241

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Media notes

Although being able to see the gull clearly through the scope, trying to obtain a photo, at max zoom, was another thing. I started snapping photos immediately after viewing it, seconds before it flew. I tried to aim my camera in the direction of Joe's scope. I "believe" the gull in the center of the frame is the Heerman's Gull. We had to crank the saturation on the photo so we included the Herring and GBBG for comparison. The dark gray upper that continues around the bird with striking white head leads me to believe I was lucky enough not only to see the Heerman's Gull, but to obtain a (horrible) photo of it.

Observation details

Sitting on far rocks. Dark gray body with a striking white head, maybe because of the contrast, it looked super white. I was only rewarded with a 4-5 second look through Joe Bourget's scope. THANK YOU JOE for getting me on the bird! After that, the bird flew towards the West low along the top of the water, very close to the waves (at least from my vantage, that's what it looked like). I was able to follow it for less than 20 seconds with my bins but at that point, it was only a figure and it was soon lost. Viewing was tough at that point because of the loss of light, the shimmer/heat, and the distance. Although I would have loved to see this bird on the beach for a longer look, I am thrilled to have seen it at all. I was snapping photos while it was on the rock but they are barely identifiable and I am hoping my friend will be able to make something useful out of it.

Technical information

Model

Canon PowerShot SX70 HS

Lens

3.8-247mm

ISO

640

Focal length

247 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/6.5

Shutter speed

0.01 sec

Dimensions

2203 pixels x 2094 pixels

Original file size

1.74 MB