Black Guan portrait

[Greg Basco]

Hi, just wanted to share this portrait of a black guan here. No big deal, but I thought the rain and the BG made for an elegant portrait of this cool bird. I think the touch of fill-flash helped to open up the detail in the dark plumage without destroying the mood of the scene.

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Tech: Canon 5D, Canon 300 mm f2.8, Canon 2x (the old version), 550 EX w/Better Beamer for fill-flash at -3, ISO 1000, 1/320, f5.6

PP: Slight crop, standard tweaks in Lightroom, selective noise reduction and selective sharpening in PS

Field notes: These birds are equally at home in the trees and on the cloud forest floor so I placed a decaying log near a feeder station at one of my favorite lodges here in Costa Rica.

[Clemens Vanderwerf]

Great capture, sharp, well exposed. Like the rain and the drops on the shoulders. The feet look great on the log. Would crop a little from the bottom to get rid of the dark part of the log. I should try that lens + TC combination too, as I have never done that. Results look pretty good.

[Norm Dulak]

Greg, I've always admired your work, and the technical expertise and inspiration you have provided for photographing the beautiful wildlife of Costa Rica!

But would you please repost this image with a bit more feather definition in the dark regions of your bird? :S3: A modest, quick & dirty effort to improve upon you excellent image a bit is attached.

But does enhancement of some feather detail destroy the mood you are seeking here? If it does, you have my apologies!!! :eek:

BTW, Linda and I want to join you in one of your Costa Rica workshops. Please keep us posted on them.

Norm

[Marina Scarr]

Hi Greg:

First of all, it's nice to finally put a face with the name.

Lovely bird and BG. Perch works well and the rain adds a nice touch. I agree with Norm on bringing out the feather detail a bit...maybe somewhere in between the two.

[Thanaboon Jearkjirm]

Very good job with flash in bringing out details in blacks. However what make this image for me is the rain, really awesome. TFS

[Randy Stout]

Greg:


Nice feel with the rain, BG,pose.

I think there is more detail in the blacks as shown by Norm, but somewhere in between the two would work for me. I would lighten only the bird and leave the darker background for mood.

Cheers

Randy

[Stu Bowie]

Greg, I prefer your OP with regards to detail. Good use of flash, and he looks pretty happy in the rain. Cool BG.

[Katie Rupp]

Hi Greg!

This is really beautiful and has a very regal feel to it. Your original post is much more accurate as these birds are really quite dark...I remember them and enjoyed their antics!

Best,
Katie

[Alan Murphy]

Love the mood of the bird, the dark rock, rain and even the lackof detail in the first post. Made me smile.

[Pieter de Waal]

Hi Greg,

I also prefer your OP of this very stately looking bird. Nice and sharp with enough detail in the feathers. I agree with Clemens suggestion re the crop.

[Greg Basco]

Hi to everyone and thanks very much for your comments. I totally agree that the rain adds a lot interest.

Norm, I really appreciate your kind words (yes, I'l love to work with you and Linda here in Costa Rica) and your repost. As Katie mentioned, the original as shot is closest to how these guys look but I will play around with a touch of lightening on my master file.

Marina, yes, I finally decided to put up an actual picture of myself, though I liked the Costa Rican flag just fine too.

Cheers,
Greg Basco

[Jim Crosswell]

I like the rain forest feel in this image Greg! I like the pose, sharpness, rain and BG. The darkness in the OP adds to the rain forest feel.

[Doug Brown]

The raindrops create a nice mood for the image. The wet feet stand out nicely from the dark perch. On my monitor the blacks look fine, except perhaps the tail feathers which could be lightened slightly. I do like Clemens' idea for the crop.

[Greg Basco]

Thanks, Doug.

Cheers,
Greg

[Rod Warnock]

Like everything about this image, Greg !! It has atmosphere about it ( even though you stated how the perch was added), the rain added so much as did your handling of the image. I prefer the first version.
Best regards
Rod Warnock

[Greg Basco]

Hi, Rod. Thanks very much for your kind comment on the image. Glad you liked it!

Cheers,
Greg