Surreal Gull Blur

[Arthur Morris]

I photographed this Glaucous-winged Gull near Homer, AK on a day when it was too dark to make sharp images.... With the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens and the 1.4X III TC (hand held at 280mm) with the EOS-1D MIV. ISO 50. Evaluative metering -2/3 stop as framed: 1/15 sec. at f/13.

Don't be shy; all comments welcome.

[Brendan Dozier]

Very cool & dramatic looking blur, Artie. Love the sense of motion in wings, and really like what is going on in the LLC, with the texture, and fine brushed-like lines giving a sense of energy and forward motion. Looks like it could be frantically trying to avoid a coming storm!
Experimented with cropping the top details out, but that seemed to take away from the drama, and stormy-like feel.

[Paul Lagasi]

I got the same feeling as Brendon, this bird is frantic to get away from something.....very nicely composed..TFS

[Richard Lovison]

Artie,

Love the drama and mood in this one created by the dark water and the white Gull. The blur and "s" shape of the bird and splashed water are beautiful as well as the color of the water highlights. Wonderful.

Richard

[Kerry Perkins]

Cool lighting situation to allow you to make this interesting blur. I like all the furious action and the placement of the gull in the frame. Some very different colors and cotton candy textures, almost like glass!

[denise ippolito]

Artie, This reminds me of a Jan van der Greef image. Love the flow of the wings and the detail in the water.:S3: A sliver more room on the bottom maybe.

[Arthur Morris]

Artie, This reminds me of a Jan van der Greef image. Love the flow of the wings and the detail in the water.:S3: A sliver more room on the bottom maybe.


Agree. It was inspired by Jan's stuff. I almost named it in his honor. Learn about Jan here (http://www.birdsasart-blog.com/2011/03/06/another-dutchman-jan-van-der-greef-abp-iiflash-comments/). And yes to a bit more on the bottom. I don't have any but could add a bit....)

Thanks all. And yes, the stuff on the top is very important to the compositional balance and final image design; this was a crop from the top. The bird was coming to tossed fish.

[Arthur Morris]

Whew, This took a lot longer than expected. Thanks again Denise.

[denise ippolito]

Looks great!!:S3:

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Arthur, the repost is awesome! The additional room on the bottom really adds to the image. Love the amount of motion in the wings and the black water.

[Judy Howle]

I love the dramatic colors and the detail in the water. Very nice blur Artie!

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks again all. Safe on Midway :)

[Indranil Sircar]

Awesome composition, Artie. I love the dark waters and the waves on top. The blur just stands out!