500 and the obligatory duck shot!

Had the 500 now for just under 5 weeks & since day 2 of it's arrival I got laid up & since then have only been able to take a pop at the birds in the garden.
Been desperate to de virginate my lens of Duck syndrome and today managed to go to the mainland.

I have great pleasure then in presenting a pretty boring if not plain, common Mallard duck & drake..

nice captures, congrats on the 500!

Well done on getting the 500 nice shots by the way.

The economy must be better where you are. Nice shots.

Nice ... your gonna love that 500 if you dont already.

It is nice "having" to shoot a duck isn't it? Congrats on getting it done!

Congrats on the new 500. You will love it.

Nice shots with the new glass. I imagine the 500mm lens will hold its value better than most stocks right now.

Thanks all - Yep, 200% happy with it, & so much so it's been glued to the camera for the past 5 weeks now.
It took a bit to get used to it, but I think I've pretty much got it sorted now, and slowly find I'm able to hand hold it for longer (when it's not on the tripod aimed at the garden).
Just looking forward to being able to walk / travel a bit more now to put it to good use & practice.