Belted Kingfisher Portrait

[Allen Sparks]

Canon 7D2, 400mm DO II, 1.4x TC III, monopod
ISO 640, f6.3, 1/250s

I was waiting by a fallen tree hoping for Green Herons when this Kingfisher flew in on a branch 40 feet from me. I was able to get full body shots at that distance but then he flew in even closer (17 feet away) and I was able to take a couple of portrait shots before he figured me out and flew off. The background is the lake's surface. It was a cloudy, windy morning with a gray surface whipped up on the lake.

[John Mack]

I like the high key look and the composition with the slight head turn. Maybe some more depth of field would of helped the bill be more in focus. Nice shot nonetheless wish i could get this close to one of these guys.

[Alex Becker]

Hi Allen, great job getting so close to this guy / getting some frames off before he flew away -- I've never had much luck approaching them. A bit more DOF would help but understand you didn't have a lot of time to change settings. The bird itself looks a bit dark to me, so maybe lifting the darks / shadows a tad would help. TFS, love the 'hair' on these guys