Varied Tit, Shanghai

[Craig Brelsford]

I photographed this beautiful varied tit yesterday at Changfeng Park in Shanghai, hundreds of kilometers south of where Poecile varius is "supposed" to be wintering. This year a huge irruption is occurring; varied tits are moving down the Chinese coast; before this year, there were few or no records of the varied tit in the Shanghai region. The opportunity captured here arose suddenly. The varied tit, half-tame from living in the crowded urban park, leaped onto a branch just 5 m from me. I was barely within my minimum focal distance. Much of the bird is out of focus, because F/6.3 isn't a narrow enough aperture at 5 m with a 600 mm lens; but the head is sharp, and the open mouth is dramatic, and the natural green BG is simple and clean.

Device: Nikon D3S
Lens: VR 600mm F/4G
Focal Length: 600 mm
Aperture: F/6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/400
Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
Exposure Comp.: None
ISO Sensitivity: ISO 4000
Metering Mode: Center-Weight
Subject Distance: 5 m
Vibration Reduction: Not used.
Photoshoppery: Heavy noise reduction on the BG, some NR on the stick, and very little NR on the bird.


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[Satish Ranadive]

Craig:
Simple and sweet image of beautiful looking bird.Love the pose with open beak or is it calling?,colors and sharpness where it is needed.
Very nice diagonal perch and composition. TFS.

Regards,
Satish.

[Karl Egressy]

What a cute looking bird! Nice singing or calling pose, well positioned in the frame, sharp where it counts the most. Great work, Ceaig.

[John Cooper]

A great pose of this tit Craig, and the bird in singing mode adds extra impact - very sharp where it counts.

[Marina Scarr]

Super capture, Craig. Head, chest and shoulder is sharp with super details and colors. Love his pose slanted downward and his open beak. Nice clean BG. What's not to like.

[Joe Senzatimore]

Works very well. Love the clean BG and the diagonal comp.

[PhilCook]

A nice cheery looking little bird, very appealing shot in all aspects....ticks all the boxes in all aspects

[Daniel Cadieux]

I'm fine with the DOF, what needs to be sharp is. Excellent open-bill pose, and the BG is very nice. Very pleasing image Craig!

[Robert Holguin]

Sweet shot.
I really like the pose, excellent detail, great perch, and great comp.
Well done.

[Shawn Zierman]

First, it's a beautiful little bird...love the plumage.
A close second is the great subject animation....very engaging image.