Male Anhinga (non-breeding plumage)

[WIlliam Maroldo]

Sony A850~Sony 70-400G@400mm~ISO 1600~1/400sec~F7.1~manual exposure~HH~overcast~1-14-2011~ Houston, Texas~CS5
Comments and critique welcomed. regards~Bill

[Chris Korman]

Interesting, it is almost the mirror image to the one Arthur Morris posted. Though yours has more of the neck showing, which I like. Though his variant had a more interesting character of light, though less black feather detail in neck region. Hmm.. a combo then... :) Are those grey feathers molting? I don't know about the climate of your region from the one taken in Florida, but it'd be interesting to hear if this is a migratory bird?

Sorry to pull a Columbo, but one more thing, about how far were you from the bird?

[WIlliam Maroldo]

This Chris. Some migrate, some don't. This one does not. I've taken many pictures of him over the last few years and he winters at a small urban lake. The "gray" feathers are actually white, and thats the way ther are (not molting). I should have made a correction in PP to make them whiter. In a few months the area around the eye will become turqoise blue, and the white feathers more of a brown.This happens quite a bit earlier in the year in Florida than Texas.
With this specific bird I have developed a considerable degree of trust over the years, and I can get within minimum focus distance if I move slowly. This was not always the case. Regards~Bill

[Chris Korman]

Thank you William for the Bird information. :)

[Pieter de Waal]

Superb image William. Nice subtle light with great detail in the black feathers and good eye contact. Lovely BG to go with it.