The Sora is a hard bird to get a photo of. I got lucky and could see and photograph this one while at the Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma.

They are a small waterbird that are more often heard than seen.

How I Got The Shot – Sora

I was photographing a Red-winged Blackbird feeding on the ground near the auto tour road. The Sora walked out of the vegetation feeding on what looked to be snails. It was close to my pickup which made it difficult to photograph because of the long lens I was using.

I was using a Canon EOS 7D Mark II camera with a Canon EF 500 mm f/4L IS USM lens. I also had a Canon 1.4x III extender on the lens. I had this setup resting on a bean bag draped over the open window of my pickup.

Taken on April 30, 2020

Camera Settings

• AV Mode
• Back-button focus
• Aperture f8.0
• ISO 640
• Shutter speed – 1/1000 sec.
• Auto White Balance
• Single Point, Continuous Auto Focus
• Exposure Bias – +1 EV
• Multi Metering
• Focal Length – 700 mm

Here is another bird I got lucky to photograph: Orchard Oriole