Bonaparte's Gull Skipping

[Grace Scalzo]

From Long Island's North Shore. This is a great spot in rough seas and wind as the fornicata get knocked out of their shells and gulls have a field day. I love the diminutive Bonaparte's Gulls which we only see here in the winter months.

1/2000, f10, iso800
Canon 1Dmk4, 500 f4 + 2.0 tc + tripod mounted


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[gail bisson]

Hi Grace,
Did you get a SeaDoo for Xmas?!!:bg3:
You are nailing these waverider shots.
I really like the dark blues against the white plumage.
Exposure and DOF are spot on.
A tricky composition because one wants to keep all the water droplets in the trail but I think I might want a bit more room in front of the bird. Problem with that idea is that the bird becomes centered....hmmm, I will have to think about this
I like how the wave crest ends near the RLC
Gail

[Randy Stout]

Grace:

The bird is skillfully captured, excellent pose and techs. Rough seas show well, nice trail of drops.

I think the crop is about right, when balancing out the drops, waves and room to fly into. I could see more on left, but getting quite pano (which I like!) and as Gail mentioned, bird too centered.

Cheers

Randy

[Grace Scalzo]

Gail, Thanks for your thoughtful comments. I did not get a SeaDoo, was standing on dry land (but did get quite wet!) as I was too close to the water's edge. I toyed with the comp and if you follow the eye and beak, they both lead down into the corner of the frame, so to my eye, this worked better than having the bird centered. Also if you follow the line of the drops through the eye and down the beak, there is a nice semi-circle shape. I hope others weigh in on this.

[Marina Scarr]

Great job on getting such a small flying bird sharp with the 2x on the 500mm, Grace. Not an easy task and you succeeded in making it artistically pleasing as well. Love the light, the waves and the water spray.

[arash_hazeghi]

sweet! love the exposure details and the water trail! excellent sharpness!

[dankearl]

Maybe the best Gull photo I have seen here!
I don't know what to say, I would like to critique, but I have none.
The crop is about perfect, I would not want this to be a pano.
The wave looks terrific, f10 at only ISO 800 is superb, very nice light you had.
The drops add a lot and it looks like a spotlight on the Gull.
One of your best for me.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Grace,
I like this as presented! Nice flow to the drops and with the gull looking down.....takes my eye through the image without too much space for my tastes :bg3:.

[PhilCook]

Nice water movement in this, especially the front most wave crests which give this that elusive 3D look. Love the droplets leaving the bird, timed perfectly Grace, and the Gull is sharp too....maybe more room on the left for composition.

[Arthur Morris]

Love the SH and the image design with the splash at the back. Coming back on the 14th just for a bit...

[Nick Palmieri]

Real nice capture Grace. The wing position is nice and the trailing water drops add a lot. TFS

[Satish Ranadive]

Grace:
Magnificent flight pose of gull with full wings up captured.
Love the way bird pops up against beautiful ultramarine blues,rocks waves and trailing droplets.
Rest as usual superb.

Regards,
Satish.

[Shawn Zierman]

I enjoy the use of space, action, lighting, details, and overall composition, and generally
find myself in agreement with all the pleasant things mentioned by others.

[Tim King]

I like the dangling feet and the water droplets. And a great fishing pose as well.

[gail bisson]

I have come back to this shot a couple of times now and I agree this crop is just right!
Gail

[Joe Senzatimore]

Loving the contrast in this one. Real sweet.

[Jonathan Ashton]

Just love it, the image has a beautiful quality, the detail in the feathers is exquisite, the trailing water droplets and the rough sea make for a really eye catching image..

[Grace Scalzo]

Thanks everyone. Glad you liked this one, because I did too. Such a pretty little gull with interesting behavior. Lots of fun to photograph.