Pouncing Coyote, Rocky Mountain National Park

I did not set out to photograph coyotes this evening, but Rocky Mountain National Park sometimes produces the unexpected.

While waiting for a herd of elk to do something interesting, movement in the tall grass caught my eye. It didn't take long to determine that a coyote was on the hunt. However, it was mostly obscured by the grass. Autofocusing on the coyote was impossible, and focusing on the grass at precisely the same distance was nearly as challenging.

Then, the coyote made a pounce to catch a rodent. On heightened alert, I readied to hit the shutter release on the next leap. This process was mostly waiting with little shooting, but it only takes one successful sequence to get the desired image.

As the coyote cleared the grass, a Sony Alpha 1 shutter release press instantly locked the FE 600mm F4 GM OSS Lens's focus and tracked through the leap.

Yes, this leap also resulted in dinner for the coyote. Of course, that dinner was mostly hidden by the grass.

A larger version of this image is available here.