Bald Eagle with Coot

[Tyler Hartje]

It was definitely worth waiting for two hours in the cold to watch this eagle catch a coot this morning! This is quite a heavy crop from the original.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5U80vgmUlcs/VGmOApAr6gI/AAAAAAAABmI/PwM46DI7I5M/w1064-h709-no/20141116-IMG_9705_edit.jpg

Photo details:
Canon 60D
Canon EF 400 f5.6
400mm
1/2000 sec
f/6.3
ISO 400
Tripod mounted
Processed in Lightroom 5 (sharpened, controlled highlights, set white balance).

[Diane Miller]

Amazing catch -- for both of you! Colors seem a bit muted. Here's a run through Nik CEP's Pro Contrast with color cast removal, with some masking below the bird, a tweak of color balance to warmer and a subtle gradient burn from the bottom.

[Edward Arthur]

Amazing catch, great patience and timing! Definitely worth the wait!

[Iain Barker]

You have capture a great moment. Well worth the wait.
The only improvement I can think of is the IQ looks to have suffered slightly with the crop but its still a fantastic image.

Cheers
Iain

[Luis Patacao]

This is a great and horrible moment, specially for the coot. Agreed with the previous comments, the IQ does seems a bit hurt from the crop, but great light on the eagle wings!

[Tyler Hartje]

Thanks for your comment and edit. Your edit seems to make the eagle stand out more, what exactly does Nik CEP Pro Contrast do? Is it anything that I can replicate in Lightroom?

[Diane Miller]

LR has a lot of control over contrast (or tonal detail), but I often find Pro Contrast very useful after I've done as much as I can in LR -- and I do think I'm good at getting the most out of LR. The other CEP feature I use often, Detail Enhancer, goes beyond that LR can do. I often want to enhance images beyond what LR can do, using PS and often the Nik suite of plugins. They offer a lot!

[Mike Herdman]

Great Timing and capture, the colors seem muted.

The expression on the Eagles eyes/face...is like...Holy Crap, I got it! :bg3: