Marshmallow Fluff...

[Joseph Przybyla]

I captured this image of a Great Egret in breeding colors and plumage at the rookery in the alligator breeding pond in Gatorland, Orlando, Florida. At Gatorland pure backgrounds are difficult at best, working tight can eliminate many obstacles. Comments and critique welcomed and appreciated. Thank you for viewing.

Nikon D500
Nikon 80-400mm F/4.5-5.6 VRII AF-S ED, image captured at 400mm
1/500 F/5.6 Matrix Metering EV 0 ISO 180 Auto 1 WB, camera supported by a monopod
Post processed in Lightroom Classic, Photoshop CC 2020 and Neat Image for noise reduction
Cropped for composition and presentation

P.S. Learn more about Gatorland and the rookery in the BAA Middle Florida Photography Site Guide that Artie and I co-authored. It is available on the Birds As Art Online Store.

[Paul Burdett]

Lovely closeup Joe! Is the bluish colour natural?

[Krishna Prasad kotti]

Solid Image. Nice Colors on the bill and background

TFS

[Dorian Anderson]

Great look at those lime-green lores, but I liked to see a more extended pose from the bird and more room at left from you; his beak look ready to leave the frame. Beautiful light and exposure as is though.

[gail bisson]

Great title and you forgot to put "theme" in front of this!
Good solid portrait with excellent IQ and exposure.
Gail

[Jonathan Ashton]

I am confused Jo, where has the blue come from, I thought it was a cast on the upper parts but it looks more than a cast on the chest. I guess it is my unfamiliarity and it is a genuine colouration of the plumage. That aside, being critical I would say the bill tip is slightly OOF and I would lower the luminosity to show more detail in the plumage.

[Joseph Przybyla]

I am confused Jo, where has the blue come from, I thought it was a cast on the upper parts but it looks more than a cast on the chest. I guess it is my unfamiliarity and it is a genuine colouration of the plumage. That aside, being critical I would say the bill tip is slightly OOF and I would lower the luminosity to show more detail in the plumage.

Hi Jon, thank you for viewing and commenting, much appreciated. Regarding the blue you are seeing, I think too much post processing. I should have left the original alone. This is going to date me but remember when blueing was used to get clothes white, same thing here. I did the image over, here is a repost. I think the early morning light shows here. Thanks again...

[John Mack]

Very nice. Killer background and pose. I like the original.

[Arthur Morris]

A stunner. I actually like the blue shadows on the breast feathers. They are coming soon :) If it were mine, I would clean up the very few imperfections on the bill.

with love, artie

[Arthur Morris]

ps: the tips on shooting at Gatorland alone are worth the price of this e-Guide: The BAA Middle of Florida Site Guide covers that and Circle Bar B, other great Lakeland locations along with a few more great Central Florida spots including the cranes with chicks and. colts near my home at Indian Lake Estates; check out The BAA Middle of Florida Site Guide (https://birdsasart-shop.com/the-baa-middle-of-florida-photographic-site-guide/) that I co-wrote and co-illustrated with Joe.