Great Egret

[Joseph Przybyla]

I captured this image recently at Circle B Bar Reserve in Polk County, Florida. I was photographing the bird perched on the branch when I noticed it crouch, a sign it might take flight. I only had time to zoom out giving the bird room to jump up into the frame. Comments and critique welcomed and appreciated. Thank you for viewing.

Nikon D7000
Nikon 80-400mm F/4.5-5.6 VRII AF-S ED shot at 260mm (390mm FFE)
1/1250 F/5.6 Matrix Metering - 1 EV ISO 100 AWB, camera on a monopod
Post processed in Lightroom 6 and Photoshop Elements 10
Cropped for composition and presentation

[Ian Wilson]

Good anticipation Joe. Unfortunate harsh light and perhaps a little down on detail due to movement blur. Regards, Ian.

[Randy Stout]

Joe:
I do like the launching pose, the inclusion of the perch for context. Yes, somewhat harsh light, and in a perfect world, would prefer not to have the head merge with the wing edge.

Cheers

Randy