Pair of Mallards

[Danny J Brown]

I was photographing trumpeter swans and divers from my kayak in a Mississippi backwater lake last weekend when these two mallards swam by. I took their picture and when I got back to the computer I found the image to be rather nice. Their iridescent green heads are pretty bright but they were really shining in the sun in real life so I decided not even to tone them down. I thought the water made the shot.

Canon 40D; Canon 500/4; 1/1600; f/4; ISO 200; Gitzo GT3530LS/Wimberley II bungee corded down to the floor of my Wilderness Commander 120 Hybrid Kayak (Camouflage).

[Charles Scheffold]

The shallow depth of field and vivid colors really do it for me. The HA on the bird on the right is definitely better IMHO than the one on the left, but it does not detract from the overall impact of the image - he seems to be casually glancing in your direction :)

Well done.

Charles

[James Salywoda]

Superb Danny these beauties look great in their new breeding suits and your composition works perfectly.
The colors and detail are excellent well done.

[Doug Brown]

Can't beat the low angle, and your sharpness is good. Like the pano crop. Do wish for a slightly better head angle on the bird on the left.

[Arthur Morris]

The blue of the water is killer sweet. I wish that the front bird was not angling slightly away from you.... A small crop from the bottom might improve this.