Crested Barbet Portrait

[Gabriela Plesea]

Myself and Andre met this interesting character during a trip to the Kruger National Park a few years ago. We had to walk away - or rather drive away - from many lion and leopard sightings because too many people were present at such sightings and their behavior was unacceptable to us. So we concentrated on the little things instead...This is one colorful chap who nearly sat on my lens... I have a very heavy and not-so-nice-looking support for my camera (very sturdy though, made in Hluhluwe by the local engineering firm) and he seemed quite happy to sit on it and nibble on a few peanuts...Eventually he settled down on a perch nearby and we were able to capture him in all his beauty.

D300S
Nikon VR300mm F2.8
ISO400
1/250s (whew, I cannot believe it, luckily he was very still...I would not do that now...)
F7.1

[Lyle Gruby]

This is absolutely beautiful. IQ is fantastic. That bird is hard to stop looking at. Just curious, is the BG natural or did you lighten the area around the bird?

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Very sharp indeed. good call on the f-stop. Nice colors and a very interesting BG. It must have been exciting.

[Marina Scarr]

Very unique bird and well captured. Love all the fine details and colors. HA and DOF are spot on. I would crop a tad from the top. For me, it's too much dead space and detracts from your gorgeous subject.

[dankearl]

Wow, very cool bird.
Sharp and nicely done.

[Arthur Morris]

Perfect head angle, EXP, and amazing detail on the beautiful subject. Thanks a stack for your membership support.

[Gabriela Plesea]

Thank you so much for your comments! Lyle, the BG is natural, I almost changed it last night because I wanted to try something new with this old image, but eventually decided against doing so. I do not remember exactly what was behind the bird, the original looks a bit duller of course but the same pattern on the BG, just gray in colour. What I do remember is that the subject was sitting on a log on the ground and the bushes were (conveniently) quite far behind, which helped. I was shooting from the car and the bird was quite close, which might explain my decision to shoot at F7.1. I have more images of this Barbet, one quite interesting image with him on the log, digging for little worms...

Marina is right about the dead space-I was just afraid not to end up with a square crop. Perhaps I should crop from the top and then also from the right side? Not much detail on the bird there anyway...

I thank you all for your input, much appreciated!

Kind regards

[Satish Ranadive]

Excellent portrait of beautiful bird. Wonderful colors,tack sharp,nice lights and composition.Seeing for the first time.
Would like see profile picture of this barbet. Love the frame.
TFS.

Regards,
Satish.

[vishaljadhav]

WOw the wonderful IQ on the bird looks fantastic
the colors look great, i may be tempted to reduce a silver off the top but i still like it as presented as the subject is so strong in the frame that my eye doesnt wander anywhere else
very nicely done

[Daniel Cadieux]

Well, if you crop a bit from the top you can always add that amount back at bottom if you have it. Pretty cool subject, and as a fan of portraits I am digging this alot.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Gabriela, great angled pose of the Barbet, and you have exposed the colours perfectly. Im not sure if this was at one of the picnic spots or in your camp, but I normally go after the Hornbills. :w3

We have a nesting box in our back garden, and we have a pair who have produced two chicks, each year, for the last 3 years. Not sure if its been the same pair coming back each year, but they seem to enjoy our loving garden.

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

Beautiful portrait with some great detail.

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

Barbets are well known for their particular poses! love the whiskers on this one and the clarity, how lucky you guys were!

[Diane Miller]

WOW! Stunning portrait! I agree with a crop from the top -- nothing wrong with an aspect ratio that fits the subject.

[arash_hazeghi]

excellent head shot with great details colors and pose!

[Roman Kurywczak]

Very nice all around!!!