photographing Road Runners (bird not the car :-)) (Page 2): To find one, you have to take a left turn at Albuquerque. Seriously, I have lived in New Mexico for about 30 years and have...

adm

To find one, you have to take a left turn at Albuquerque. Seriously, I have lived in New Mexico for about 30 years and have never tried to photograph one but I do know that they can be very skittish. Therefore, try to be as unobtrusive as possible. Using a long lens will help. Using APS-C or Micro 4/3 will be an advantage here.

adrianpd

Here's one the other day at Sierra Vista Park in Ventura California

pmorin Loc: Huntington Beach, Palm Springs

dduncan wrote:

My wife and I will be retiring and moving to New Mexico soon.

Do any NM natives have any tips for getting a photo of a Road Runner?
Every time I have seen them, they appear, then are gone in a millisecond.
Hard to get a shot off.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

I get to see them often in my desert travels. The suggestion of going to a golf course is a good one, as is just getting used to the area you’re moving into. I have found one that lives very close to my home in Palm Springs and another that lives by the Sushi restaurant I go to. This one is from the golf course I frequent just a few miles from my place.
You will find them all around you wherever you live in the Southwest, just make a note of where and what time, then go back to visit that place on your mission to capture the image.
P

(Download)

jdedmonds

Isn't there a good chance that a runaway road runner will eventually come back to the same place? So you might consider hunkering down where you were when you first saw it and being patient.

Unclehoss

My experience from living in the Arizona desert was that it is more a matter of technique than equipment. Most of that typical wildlife photo technique. Moving slow, being quiet and frequenting areas that your subject frequents. No sense in looking for a penguin in New Mexico. Identify food sources near your new location and get there early and leave late.

WillC2000 Loc: Georgetown, TX

dduncan wrote:

My wife and I will be retiring and moving to New Mexico soon.

Do any NM natives have any tips for getting a photo of a Road Runner?
Every time I have seen them, they appear, then are gone in a millisecond.
Hard to get a shot off.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

I took this shot at the Rio Grande Nature Center State Park in Albuquerque a couple years ago. This guy jump up on the sill of the bird blind I was in. Having a long lens on my camera, I had to back away from him to get this shot. Here’s wishing you a happy retirement.

Bunky1151 Loc: Florida

Two Words -- Beep! Beep!

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

dduncan wrote:

My wife and I will be retiring and moving to New Mexico soon.

Do any NM natives have any tips for getting a photo of a Road Runner?
Every time I have seen them, they appear, then are gone in a millisecond.
Hard to get a shot off.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

Roadrunners act the same in CA as NM. Yes, rather elusive and fast. I've seen them in the Mountains and Deserts of southern California. I believe once I even did capture a photo of one! Coyotes are more often seen.

PierreD

dduncan wrote:

My wife and I will be retiring and moving to New Mexico soon.

Do any NM natives have any tips for getting a photo of a Road Runner?
Every time I have seen them, they appear, then are gone in a millisecond.
Hard to get a shot off.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

They are sneaky and a bit unpredictable. Their modus operandi is: Show up and show off when no one is around with a camera. This said, it is a common SW desert bird and with time and patience you will succeed. Best to look for them in the morning (esp. summer), when they often bask in the sun and generally, are more active than during the hot part of the day. BTW, correct spelling is Roadrunner.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

dduncan wrote:

My wife and I will be retiring and moving to New Mexico soon.

Do any NM natives have any tips for getting a photo of a Road Runner?
Every time I have seen them, they appear, then are gone in a millisecond.
Hard to get a shot off.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

Go to a zoo.

kphotoer

We live in Nob Hill, and there are quite a few resident roadrunners who hang out here. Just walk around the neighborhood in the mornings. They are often in our yard looking for lizards.

One photo:
https://scontent-dfw5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/53202216_10213785213249152_6080290861990543360_o.jpg?_nc_cat=100&_nc_oc=AQl7CHLMmsjooJ1gqMYRfGyxF7hdlW6R0t0iUanCu4VIagmdSJTxdXXyrR76sx_w5bwCgWegoruwmL0MSClVSW3c&_nc_ht=scontent-dfw5-1.xx&oh=b802229825f4708d83f829f13b61e53b&oe=5D8C9FCE