Last week, before the weather finally turned warm, CD happened to look out the window and saw that our local flock of turkeys was on the prowl again. I watched them for a few minutes and decided to see if I could ease myself into their relative confidence for a rather more intimate photo session than I’ve been able to manage so far. Part of my inspiration was that several of the toms were all fluffed up and strutting, and their wattles were engorged with blood and bright red to impress each not only other but also the hens.
It was still cold, so I dressed warmly, but in drab colors, and very slowly, without making any eye contact with any of the birds, ambled through and past them, in the general direction in which they were heading.
I took up a comfortable position sitting near the upper rim of the ravine that I was pretty sure was their intended eventual destination.
Frances, my photo angel, was with me yet again, and they slowly made their way toward and around me during the next 20 minutes, passing calmly within ten feet or so, apparently concentrating much more on impressing each other than on my unthreatening proximity, and providing me with my best opportunity yet to study them up close and personal. What a memorable encounter—and happy Easter to you all!
krikitarts 
Gary, these are absolutely wonderful shots, especially the last one. The detail is spectacular!! Patience and persistance sure paid off for you this time that’s for sure :).
It was such an incredible experience to have them approach me so closely and still act so unperturbed by my presence. With me in my sitting position, they were taller than I was. They really are magnificent.
Da kann ich mich nur anschließen, die Fotos sind wunderbar geworden :) Ich wünsche Dir und Deinen Lieben frohe Ostern :)
Danke Dir herzlich, und noch einmal frohe Ostern an Euch alle!
Ich habe so viel von der Sprache über die letzten 30 Jahre vergessen, aber ich kann noch verstehen ein wenig davon … und wünschen Ihnen ein frohes Ostern, too … und danke den Göttern für Google Translate, sowie … .
Bravo, Scott! Vielen Dank, noch einmal, für Deine Mitteilung!
Du bist herzlich willkommen, Gary.
Stunning!
Thanks a lot, Ogee, I feel very privileged to have had such a rewarding close encounter!
They are dynamically not easy to photograph. You did well!
These guys made it rather easier than I had expected, and they sure made my day!
Wow, stunning photos. That first shot looks like a mutated turkey with three heads! Okay, my wild imagination is getting the best of me. :D
Emily! How wonderful to see you back again! Now that you mention it, I see what you mean about the Cerberus illusion. I hadn’t looked at them quite that way–that’s part of the value of a new pair of eyes. You made me laugh!
Wow. These faces have a lot of “character” (“handsome” just doesn’t seem to fit).
One would need a rather specialized and definitely avian-oriented eye to call them handsome out-of-hand, but the hens apparently are…um…suitably (sorry) impressed enough to invite the most impressive of the toms keep the genetic lines going in what seems to be, from their perspective at least, the right direction. Good for them–but, personally, I’m glad that I don’t have to rely on blood-engorged wattles.
What gorgeous feathers and bodies they have; their heads/faces…..well, not so much, but extremely interesting. How wonderful to have sat amongst them.
Feathers–yes, absolutely gorgeous. Bodies–hard to see because of the feathers, but yes, they must be, under all that magnificence. Heads & faces–guess you have to be one of them to fully appreciate them, but they are indeed remarkable, and I find them endlessly fascinating. It was indescribably special to have them come so close to me!
Spectacular photos. The detail on those turkey heads is amazing. It’s such a wonderful experience getting so close to these wild birds, I can imagine you must feel as i do when I have one of these (rare, in my case) encounters.
I agree with Emily. That first photo of the ‘three-headed’ turkey looks like something out of a fiction story. Clever angle of the photo, although I guess you didn’t deliberately take it to show that illusion of the 3 heads on the one body.
This was rare for me, too, Victoria. It was as if I were part of dreamlike, slow-motion movie being choreographed by someone unknown, and just an accidental player in another’s production. Unforgettable!
WOW! These are amazing and absolutely perfect!
I don’t know about perfect, but the birds most surely are amazing!
Fantastic shots, Gary! Really impressive!
Thanks, Melanie, I just couldn’t wait to share these with all of you!
Incredible, Gary…wow! Such crisp detail…and how cool that you were able to be so close to them…while they were distracted with other issues….
It’s a good thing that they were distracted, I’m sure. I would not have wanted to, um, rub any of them the wrong way!
Absolutely grotesque beings! What Nature does get up to! These are excellent pictures, Gary – the bottom one is simply out of this world – it must be a space alien! And I very much like the colours on the bird’s back in the 3rd picture down. Adrian
They really do have a whole spectrum of colors, shades, hues, reflectivity, and iridescence in those feathers, and they seem to know how to use the available light to angle them so as to present them to best advantage, whether for sensational showiness or drab camouflage. Pretty wonderful inventions!
Oh, turkeys. So bizarre. Brian Froud must have had them in mind on some level when he developed the Skeksis. MmmmmmMMMMMMMMM!
I agree completely. Every time I get the chance to observe them up close and personal, I am drawn back to the Skeksis, and he surely had to have had them in mind on more than one level when he developed their personas. Bizarre? Yes, indeed!