Not in Bosque [Crane]

[Miguel Palaviccini]

With all of the Bosque crane images we've been seeing, I decided to go out shooting this morning to see if I could capture something worthwhile. While I've never been to Bosque (at least not yet), I do have the please of living in Gainesville, FL where the cranes are plenty this time of year. Depending on the rainfall that we get, they can stay in various locations overnight. However, it's a sure bet that they will make their way to one of the local cow pastures. I arrived at 7 am, just minutes before sunrise and was able to capture some nice images of them flying in. My favorite of the morning, however, was this one. He just happened to walk into the right light and decided to shake it up a bit. I decided not to clone out the falling feathers as I thought they added to the image.

Added canvas to the top and left and cropped a bit from the right. Top section of the bg was cloned a bit to remove distracting elements.

Shooting info (was set for BIF):
Nikon D800 | 500 f/4 | 1.4x
1/1250" | f/6.3 | ISO 1250

Comments, critiques, and suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.


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[dankearl]

Very attractive photo. Miguel.
Has the D800 look to it, very nice sharpness and DOF on the crane.
Nice BG.
A bit more at the top if you have it would look nice to me.

[Karl Egressy]

Florida is a great place for Sandhill Cranes for sure. I like this image, as it has very nice light and the ruffled feathers are always a winning feature to most of us.
Great picture, Miguel.

[John Cooper]

Hi Miguel- I really like this image of the Crane. Beautiful early morning lighting, excellent detail in the ruffled feathers and I love those 4 falling feathers ideally caught in the shaded portion of the BG.
Another vote for a little more canvas at the top. But well seen and taken!

[Doug Schurman]

I really like the lighting, head angle and the 4 feathers falling. Nice sharpness too.

I also agree that I would like to see more room at the top. You almost get the feeling the bird is ducking down to fit in the frame.

[Shawn Zierman]

I never knew that sandhills could be found outside of Bosque.... :)
Sweet light here, and those falling feathers are an appealing detail.
Excellent processing, sharpness looks great, the pilo erection gives some
sweet volume to the plumage. But yes, more room on top, too cramped as is...

[christopher galeski]

nice image,well sharp and good detail,nice light,agree on more room above.thanks.

[Satish Ranadive]

Miguel:
Absolutely superb image in wonderful lights.Love the colors,great details and nice BG.

Regards,
Satish.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Miguel, I really like the layers of feather detail on this fellow, sharp, and glad to left the falling feathers. Another vote for more room on top.

[Melissa Groo]

Miguel, I love the light and all that silvery texture. Beautiful portrait. Another vote for more room on top.

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Thank you all for taking the time to comment! Looks like it needs a little more room up top (and prob a bit on the left and right to keep the aspect ratio).

[Jim Crosswell]

I like the setting, details, sharpness and falling feathers. Another vote for more room up top. I used to camp at Paynes Prairie and ride my bicycle on the trail to Gainesville. Great area you live in Miguel.

[Roger Clark]

Hello Miguel,

Beautiful image. Compare this image with Artie's image: Too Many Good Sandhill Crane Flight Images.... (http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php/105798-Too-Many-Good-Sandhill-Crane-Flight-Images)
also posted today. Artie's image was made at very low phase angle (sun almost directly behind Artie's back), while this image is is at a phase angle of about 30 degrees (sun about 30 degrees to the right). This image shows beautiful form in the nice shading around the bird's body, and wonderful detail in the feathers due to the micro shading from the sun off to the right. I really like images like this. Well done.

Roger

[Dennis Zaebst]

+1 for Roger! Love the texture and detail in the feathers and the hint of side-lighting.