Common Loons feeding

[Michael Thompson]

I caught this intimate moment last weekend in calm morning waters, from the boat, handheld. i wish the chicks head angle was a little better, but i still like it :S3: Canon 7Dll, 100-400ll, 1.4xll, 560 mm, f/10, 1/800th, 800 iso, Lightroom.

[gail bisson]

I agree with your self-critique about the HA on the chick.
What is neat with this image is the parents head only above the water and its neck and body are still below the water.
Nice to see a different pose. Water color and softness are really nice as is your low POV. I would eliminate the lower catchlight.
Gail

[Isaac Grant]

I love this and by love I mean I really LOVE this. Such a unique pose with the parents head only out of the water and the little morsel for the eager youngster. I was dying to photograph loons this year and have a friend who has a boat and loons nesting on his lake every year except this year of course. Not a loon to be found. Catchlight is never something I even consider messing with. The only thing that might add a tiny bit more impact to an already excellent picture would be to deepen the tones in the water a tiny bit. The water seems a little dull compared to the deep and velvety tones of the head. What I sometimes do is go into levels, lower the mid tones to maybe 95, then increase the whites to maybe 245. Then go into hue/saturation and increase the saturation +5 or so. It is a subtle change but just gives the water a little more depth. Anyway just a minor change for an otherwise outstanding photo.

[Bob Smith]

A truly wonderful image Mike. Both eyes with a catch light, even though they are facing opposite directions, and food in Momma's beak with the little one eagerly open mouthed are the over the top details.

[Joseph Przybyla]

Lovely image, a very special moment captured. I would be thrilled with the head angle of the chick. Thank you for sharing, Michael.

[Mike Hitchen]

That is such a cool image.
it is certainly a different way to get down to the youngster's level to feed it! A low angle, pin sharp and the background is so soft. Marvellous!

[Randy Stout]

Michael:

Great demonstration of the adults buoyancy control! They are so good at adjusting it for the circumstances.

Do you know how old this chick is? I would guess 6-7 days old.

I will remove the lower catchlight if it is too distracting or causes the eye to look unsharp.

Cheers

Randy