One Wing Over

[Michael Stern]

This Reddish Egret was a very busy bird and with the sun angle mid morning he had to shade the water and this is a prime example of how these birds "make a living". I am not sure about the brightness of the BG even though I did darken it some with a gradient and did some noise removal. All suggestions comments welcomed...and thank you for just looking!
Michael

Details
Canon 40D
Shutter speed: 1/1250 sec
Aperture: 7.1
Exposure mode: Manual
Flash: Off
Metering mode: Evaluative
ISO: 400
Lens: EF500mm f/4L IS USM

[Michael Stern]

After further review this bird just may have both wings forward!!

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Nice capture of this behavior. I like the umbrella pose and angle. The light looks a bit harsh and I would run NR on the BG. If it were mine I would crop a bit off the bottom.

[Gayle Clement]

I agree with Axel's comments on the crop from the bottom. Tough lighting conditions but I love that pose.

[Arthur Morris]

Yes to two wings and ditto Axel. In addition, with images made in harsh light you need to derease the contrast! And someo of the white reflections in the water are definitely blown. Start over after reading this thread in Educational Resources:

http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21309