Apologies to All

[Arthur Morris]

I have been so swamped with travel that I have been totally absent on BPN. I promise to be more active when I return from my Tanzania safari on 20 AUG.

These Blue-footed Booby chicks were photographed at Isla Lobos, Galapagos on my recently concluded Galapagos Photo-Cruise with the tripod-mounted Canon 200-400 with the internal 1.4X TC in place at 540mm. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/320 sec. at f/8.

For tons of info on how much I love the new lens, for my and continuing complete Galapagos photo diary, and for recent Nickerson Beach stuff see the blog and the last two Bulletins.

As for the image, don't be shy: all comments are welcome.

I am posting this from the airport at Addis Ababa. I will pretty much be off line until I get back.

[Arthur Morris]

ps: getting lower was not an option as I was shooting over a low bush :)

[dankearl]

I would love to have this opportunity!
I like the big blue feet as the back drop for the chicks, so the angle does not bother me, much lower and
they would not have been as prominent.
I wish you would have had another 1/2 inch DOF to get both chicks faces sharp.
There is a PP line I think across the tail of the chick on the left.

[Gary Esman]

You are certainly missed, but when you bring blue feet back...well. :bg3: I hope you are enjoying yourself. Gary. Love the look of the one on the right.

[Cheryl Arena Molennor]

Looks like you are having fun. I like the contrast here in size showing the babes against the adults foot only. works for me

[Shawn Zierman]

Exposure is right on. Composition is excellent. There's no wondering what species of chicks these are with those big blue feet hugging them. A little more twinkle of a catchlight in the chick's eyes might have been nice, though that would have required flash, and maybe that's not even allowed there...?

[Arthur Morris]

I would love to have this opportunity!
I like the big blue feet as the back drop for the chicks, so the angle does not bother me, much lower and
they would not have been as prominent.
I wish you would have had another 1/2 inch DOF to get both chicks faces sharp.
There is a PP line I think across the tail of the chick on the left.

Hi Dan, I am fine with the dof but for the repost I worked a bit more on the face of the one in the back. But thanks a stack for catching that pp mark on the rear of the front chick--it was a shadow on the original and the result of a sloppy selection with the Quick Selection Too. I re-worked the image from scratch for the repost here.

There will be lots more on Isla Lobos in a blog post when I get back. Oh, what a morning. As for having this opportunity, shoot me an e-mail if you would like to be placed on the interested list for the July 2015 trip--I know that you are a Happy Camper :).

[Karl Egressy]

Great image. I like the babies shown against the blue feet. Nice and sharp, the composition draws all the attention to the babies.
I was fortunate to be able to see them in 2004.
Every bird lover should go there at least once in a lifetime.

[Arthur Morris]

Great image. I like the babies shown against the blue feet. Nice and sharp, the composition draws all the attention to the babies. I was fortunate to be able to see them in 2004. Every bird lover should go there at least once in a lifetime.

Thanks Karl. Or twice or nine times :). artie in Arusha, Tanzania

ps: this year on Isla del Sol with the birds on the sand was the best ever.

pps: Denise Ippolito, Charles Scheffold, and Dennis A. Holt as a booby nest with two large chicks.

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Artie, even if getting lower was an option, you may have lost the blue feet of the parent - losing quite a bit of impact. Nicely done.

[Arthur Morris]

Miguel, You are correct. Lower = more intimate = less blue feet. I should have mentioned that I could not have moved right to place the two chicks on the same plane as I was working above a bush and between two small boulders.