South American Bittern display

[Ivan Sjogren]

A displaying South American Bittern from the marshes in southeastern Brazil. These birds are very hard to get a good view off, let alone a good photo. I spent some weeks in the wetlands in southern Brazil a few years ago. One magic morning I was walking down a dirtroad towards the ocean, passed a small bush to find this male Bittern out in the open ready to do a display. I crawled down the side of the road and witnessed the bird blow up to a ball and call out a sound that travels several kilometers. Great experiance! It was impossible to get closer and I also didn't want to risk distrubring the bird when I didn't have camo or a hide. Therefore I went for a frame that included some habitat instead of a close portrait.

All comments welcome!

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV | Canon 500mm f/4 L IS USM II | ISO 640 | f/5.6 | 1/1000s

[gail bisson]

Ooh....what a great sighting. I would love to see this in real life.
I love the way you framed this. Great environment and the bittern looks awesome.I have never seen this bird so I cannot comment on color accuracy etc but bird looks good.
Would LOVE this in my files.
Well doen,
Gail

[David Salem]

Great looking display from this unique subject. Techs look good overall and I like that you got it in a smoother BG. Only thing is if you are not opposed to cloning I would remove the 5-6 white dots on the top, otherwise, Nice capture

[Arthur Morris]

Lovely bird and image. I love the sweet light and the display. You might tone down the green funkiness behind the bird on the left frame-edge and lose the white area on the LR frame-edge.

with love, artie

[annmpacheco]

Good suggestions above, really nice opportunity to capture this display, wonderful to see. I like the comp and placement of the bird. Did you happen to see another bittern responding?

[John Mack]

Very neat looking bird. Like that it is all fluffed up. The composition and details look very nice.

[dankearl]

Man this is a nice frame.... the little blue touches in the BG, the pose, I agree about removing the brown vegetation behind the bird.

[Jim Crosswell]

Great image Ivan! I like the display pose, setting, IQ and composition. Good fieldcraft as well being both patient and considerate.

[Ivan Sjogren]

Thank you for all the inputs and suggestions!


Good suggestions above, really nice opportunity to capture this display, wonderful to see. I like the comp and placement of the bird. Did you happen to see another bittern responding?

Hi Ann, no I didn't see or hear any other bittern. Although a friend that works as a local guide in the area saw a juvenile in the same marsh later that year.

[Mike Poole]

I love this one Ivan, great pose, and the low POV is a killer - great work

Mike

[Chris van Rooyen]

Absolute stunner! Just getting the species is remarkable, let alone displaying! The habitat works well for me, I always prefer to see some context. One to be proud of:cheers: