Banking Long-tailed Duck

[Axel Hildebrandt]

I photographed this Long-tailed Duck at Barnegat Light last month. It is cropped a bit more than I usually do but I liked the banking pose.

http://www.pbase.com/axelhi/image/121041431/original.jpg

1D4, 500f4, 1.4x, 1/1600s, f/8, ISO 400

[Gary Jones]

Good detail on the blacks & whites. Exposure is spot on. Would you maybe take a little off the top to make it less centred?

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Good detail on the blacks & whites. Exposure is spot on. Would you maybe take a little off the top to make it less centred?

Thanks, Gary! The long tail makes the composition a bit tricky. If you take some off the right, it looks too square, if you add canvas on the left, then you have too much negative space there and if you crop some off the top or bottom, it looks too tight for my taste. I also tried a vertical crop but was not happy with that, either.

[Alan Melle]

This is quite excellent! The duck is in a wonderful position with a perfect head turn and a catchlight in the eye. The light is terrific and there is good detail in both blacks and whites. I wouldn't consider this to be centered and the composition looks fine to me.

[Stu Bowie]

Lovely banking angle Axel, and showing good sharp detail on the top of the wings. I follow your reasoning for your comp, but if anything, I would maybe add a tad to the bottom. Nicely separated from the BG too.

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

Love that tail!
Great exposure and eye contact. One bird I would love to see in person. TFS

[RakeshDhareshwar]

The name of the bird is apt !! Love the image , but would have liked the bird, a bit off centered . The exposure is awesome .

[Marina Scarr]

By far my favorite so far. Love the way he is banking and you can see his entire top side. Exposure is on the money and sharp as a tack. Comp work great.