Loon stretching its wings

[Yves Matteau]

I was canoeing in the lake when i could slowly come very close to this loon . I could take many pictures and this one look very special for me. What do you think?

[Jim Poor]

Interesting behavior and pose with a really nice color to the water. Looks like the focus was not on the eye and there was not enough DoF to keep the eye sharp. Some selective sharpening in that area might help. The whites are really bright under the wing. Maybe they could be toned down a bit from the RAW file.

Posting the technical data is always helpful.

[Steve Maxson]

Interesting pose. Loons are very neat birds and are often photo subjects of mine here in MN, but I haven't been able to capture quite this behavior - yet. I agree with Jim's comments above. Too bad the bird is turned slightly away from you.

[Yves Matteau]

Interesting behavior and pose with a really nice color to the water. Looks like the focus was not on the eye and there was not enough DoF to keep the eye sharp. Some selective sharpening in that area might help. The whites are really bright under the wing. Maybe they could be toned down a bit from the RAW file.

Posting the technical data is always helpful.


Thanks for the comments....Sorry, i forgot the technical datas. Here they are:
1/500s
Iso 400
f/9
180mm
Exp. comp. -0.33

[Steve Foss]

Yves, it's a nice photograph, and simply being close to loons carries its own rewards. I have many, many loons shots and only a few showing this behavior. Like in yours, in mine the birds are all pointing somewhat away from the camera. I agree that these kinds of images are more compelling when the loon is facing toward the camera, and of course I'll keep trying for that. Hard to beat a nice morning or evening on calm water with soft light trying to make our images better and better. :)

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Great pose and angle. Aside from the hot whites, it would have been nice if the loon would have faced you more.