Goshawk by Pete Walkden
We don't get to see too many images of Goshawk on Iris, especially from the UK; postings have just about reached double figures over the last couple of years, so this stunning shot by Pete Walkden deservedly takes the winner's pedestal this week.
The power and poise of this species is there for all to see in this shot and with a perfect blue sky as a background it doesn't really get much better than this; OK, one wing is in the shadow, but most photographers would be very, very happy to have taken this one.
Fast shutter speeds are the norm when photographing any Accipiter species in flight, and Pete set the ISO to 800 to achieve 1/2500th second, at f6.3 aperture, using a 500mm lens with a 1.4× converter.
Congratulations to Pete on his POTW; also the first time a UK Goshawk has had this honour.
You can read more on bird photography from Steve Young, including product reviews and a regular Photo Challenge for readers, every month in Birdwatch magazine.
Other notable images
Great Bustard, Spain (Photo: Tom Wallis)
Little Owl, undisclosed site, Leicestershire and Rutland (Photo: Paul Riddle)
Rock Pipit, Rhuddlan, Clwyd (Photo: Tony Pope)
Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Gambia (Photo: Kath Everitt)
Little Egret, Hayle Estuary, Cornwall (Photo: Peter Menear)
Great Northern Diver, Alton Water, Suffolk (Photo: Barry Woodhouse)
Rook, Slimbridge WWT, Gloucestershire (Photo: Carl Bovis)
Twite, Musselburgh, Lothian (Photo: S Gillies)
Firecrest, Arundel WWT, West Sussex (Photo: Mick Colquhoun)
Green-winged Teal, Seaton Marshes, Devon (Photo: Tim White)
Reed Bunting, Cley Marshes NWT, Norfolk (Photo: Matt Crosby)
Pine Grosbeak, United States (Photo: Artur Stankiewicz)
Green Woodpecker, Germany (Photo: W.Schulenburg)
Peregrine, Bristol, Somerset & Bristol (Photo: Pete Blanchard)
