Brown Pelican Sunset

[Bill Dix]

Time for one more small-in-frame. From Ft. DeSoto in February. After photographing Big Red in the North Beach Lagoon at sunset, I turned the other way and walked over to the beach where Brown Pelicans were flying around. I only had a couple of minutes, and in that time, try as I might, I couldn't get one to fly directly across the center of the orb. This is as close as I came.

D500, 500f4 + 1.4 TC, ISO 3200, 1/1000s @ f/6.3. This kind of shot was new to me and I was trying (mistakenly) to expose for the pelicans, so grossly overexposed the sun. In post, I used Levels to turn the bird into a silhouette.

[Isaac Grant]

Strong shot Bill. Very pretty. I like everything here. Tried in Washington to get Gulls against the setting sun but it didn't come the way I wanted. Funny when I was reading your setting I was thinking ISO 3200 into the sun is strange. Despite that I think this came great.

[Glenn Pure]

Bill, you've recovered a really nice shot in the circumstances. Thank goodness for RAW and the dynamic range it gives us. I think it works very well with the pelican not fully over the setting sun. The silhouette is nice and sharp too which isn't always going to be the case with a big lens at that distance. Overall, one I'd be very pleased with if it was mine.

[Bill Dix]

Thank you Isaac and Glenn.