Female Wood Duck

[kevin Hice]

Shot this a couple weeks ago in Nd slough. Had some opportunities this year for wood ducks. The weather has not been cooperative cold with lots of windy days is not conducive to my floating blind as it acts like a fishing bobber. I don't really care for cloudy days water is just ugly IMO.
Choppy water in the slough just churns up the sludge as most sloughs are very shallow. Processed with Dpp 4 Photoshop, Topaz noise. Did some work on the eye as it was terrible with highlights all over. Comments and critiques appreciated.
Canon R3
Rf 600 f/4 L
840 mm
Manual
5.6
1/1600
ISO 5000

[Jonathan Ashton]

The hen looks fine but for me there are too many ducklings out of focus, consequently my eyes are constantly roving.

[Mike Poole]

I love the idea, the low POV, the waves - just about everything apart from the 2 ducklings closest to the camera. Tough call I know, you did everything right from your end, but thats the 'fun' in nature photography!

Mike

[William Dickson]

I don't mind the OOF chicks....It looks real dreamy especially with that POV......Well done Kevin....it works for me

Will

[Brian Sump]

Kevin, this is a very sweet frame. I like the Wood Duck hen as well as any hen probably and when you get that iridescence to pop it rocks.

Really nice composition - love the pano framing. Wonderfully low and intimate.

I know there will be a good bit of indifference RE the oof chicks, but it doesn't really bother me here. It would have been so nice, however, if the one in focus was looking back a bit - or all being a little more parallel to the lens.

Anyhow, still very fun to view, TY.

[jack williamson]

I wish for more of the little ones to be in focus but mom was perfectly exposed and tack sharp.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Fun image indeed, despite conditions that you do not prefer. Impossible to get them all in focus, but man do I wish the front one in the middle was not there as it is obstructing the one chick that is sharp which also happens to have fun waterworks dropping off its bill. Glad you went for the opportunity as it turned out very well.

[Randy Stout]

Kevin:

Great shooting angle, mom looks nice. I don't think all the chicks have to be in focus to make this type of image work, but at least some, preferably the ones closer to you, need to be, at least for me. Daniel made a good point about the one chick that is in focus, is blocked partially.
I appreciate the challenge of a floating blind in windy conditions. That is the issue that has kept me from using one, plus the fact that the loons are always cruising all over the lake, and I couldn't keep up with them!

Cheers

Randyt

[David Pugsley]

The OOF ducklings really don't bother me. There is next to zero chance of ever getting a shot like this with all the subjects in the exact same plane so I'll take this any day over not pressing the shutter button.

[Randy Stout]

When I see a group like this, I agree, always take the shot, but go try a series of smaller f/stops to get the best possible DOF. The ISO performance is so good, as is noise reduction, that there is a lot more flexibility than there used to be.

Randy

[Gabriela Plesea]

Oh Kevin, this is such an awesome sighting! And fun too, those little ones are so sweet :tinysmile_shy_t:

Mom is sharp with good detail, just wish more of the chicks were in focus. If you have this opportunity again perhaps worth focusing on the nearest subjects, at the cost of mom fading away?

Really enjoyed this scene, made my evening. Sorry to come in so late, we have issues with electricity in SA so no internet for most of the day, I really enjoy browsing through this Forum and learn a lot from everyone posting here.

Thank you so much for sharing,