This One Tried for a Sneak Landing....

[Arthur Morris]

On our last morning at Midway, we were photographing the birds using the runway when I noticed this bird coming in for a landing to our left. I swung the lens and created three images, this being the best. I was using the two AF sensors below the center and they were right on the bird's face for this image. Thus, this was cropped from the top and the right. I opted to remove a chunk of naupaka bush from the lower right corner.

Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens (hand held at 200mm) with the EOS-1d Mark IV. ISO 400: 1/1600 at f/2.8 was one full stop open from the white sand of the runway. Visit the blog (http://www.birdsasart-blog.com/) for lots more Midway images and see also yesterday's Bulletin (http://www.birdsasart.com/2011/04/23/birds-as-art-bulletin-371/).

E-mail me if you are interested in Midway in the spring of 2013. I will be in the Netherlands next April and Japan in March :)

[Jamie Douglas]

Amazing flight pose and such awesome soft light. The sky texture couldnt be better IMO. I'd say I am brave enough to make the comment that I think this is flawless.

[Stu Bowie]

What a great wingspan, and I like the incoming angle with the splayed feet. Well exposed, and the browns of the underwing make him stand out better against the lighter sky BG.

[Manos Papadomanolakis]

I really like the dynamic pose,wing position,exposure!!!

[Pieter de Waal]

Lovely spread wing and landing gear. Like the touch of morning colour on the wings. Must be a treat to be able to get so close to these birds on Midway.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks all. And yes, Midway is amazing and the early morning light was sweet that day!

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Artie, what a shot. terrific wing position, dangling feet, no bill merge...and strong comp with great light. way to go...

[denise ippolito]

Soft beautiful light and nice in coming pose. Love the feet.:S3:

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Gorgeous bird, nice exposure, impressive wing span. Dangling feet look great too.
Very sharp from head to tail, I guess f2.8 was enough dof.
There's what looks like a big dust bunny above the birds left wing tip.
Also, I see a halo along the wings especially on the top side.

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Sidharth,

Thanks for stopping by.

re:

Gorgeous bird, nice exposure, impressive wing span. Dangling feet look great too.

Thank you sir.

Very sharp from head to tail, I guess f2.8 was enough dof.
No need to guess; the whole bird is sharp. :) D-O-F is also a function of distance to the subject and these are big birds....

There's what looks like a big dust bunny above the birds left wing tip.
Thanks for pointing that out. I do not believe that it was dust; if it was, it would have been a dust elephant. Likely an o-o-f White Tern or possibly a small white cloud. IAC I fixed the master file.

Also, I see a halo along the wings especially on the top side.

I do not worry about JPEG sharpening halos that can only be seen by tilting the screen.:)

I do appreciate your careful and helpful critique and you sharp eyes.

ps: Thanks Denise!

[Grace Scalzo]

I love the clouds, they are icing on this very sweet cake. As for the sharpening halo, I don't like it. (I see it no matter how I tilt the screen).

[Arthur Morris]

i don't see it at all when i am square to the screen and it ain't evident in the master file so i am not gonna lose any sleep over it :S3:

[Kiran Poonacha]

Very beautifully done guru, nice pose and crop adds well...

[Rocky Sharwell]

Gorgeous...sounds like an amazing trip.

[Arthur Morris]

Rocky, or should I say Shocky, as in I am shocked but happy to see you here. What have you been up to???

[Krijn Trimbos]

Gorgeous all round! I especially love the killer light and pose. Those feet are amazing! Killer Artie!