My First Kingfisher

[Troy Lim]

95631

Hi from South East Asia. It was my first KF, not sure what type, so please help...:t3
Met up with two talented photographers from Singapore and drove Johor and got some KF shots.
I must say I have a whole new appreciation for local photographers, the shooting conditions in the tropical climate is entirely different than what i am used to. It was cloudy at first, rained the night before, and tall trees in the jungle was blocking most of the light. At times, light would hit the BG and created some bright spots. A lot of shots were useless due to the fast movement and low shutter speed used of this little guy.

Hope you like it, processed on MBP, hope it is ok.

Exposure 0.02 sec (1/50)
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 500 mm
ISO Speed 1250
Exposure Bias +1/3 EV
Flash No Flash

[bill caskey]

I certainly don't know what it is, but it is beautiful. Wonderful image. I wish that we had those here in Texas.

[Dumay de Boulle]

Congrats, and a fine first. You have done exceptionally well considering the settings. Love the colors and the perch balances the comp nicely. I would for my taste take a small slice off the top % bottom, but again thats personal. Great image Troy!

[noelle zaleski]

Congrats Troy!! :5

He is beautiful!!

[Stu Bowie]

Congrats on your first KF Troy. Certainly a colourful fellow, and sorry cant help with the ID. Good sharpness for the ss, and you have done well with the exposure considering the conditions you described. Comp wise, I would go vertical here. I would take off from the RHS to just outside line of the tree trunk. I would take off the top, and add to the bottom if you have.

[stuart wanuck]

lovely lovely lovely

[Lorant Voros]

Troy. What a kingfisher! Amazing colors. I would go vertical as well. Congratulations.

Lorant

[dankearl]

Very nice, soft light and great color.

[Geir Jensen]

Congratulations. It was incredibly beautiful colors of the bird. I would have had the bird a little higher in the picture, but only slightly. It was a great photo and a beautiful background.

[Bill Dix]

Beautiful little bird, Troy (a new one to me). Red/yellow/orange colors gorgeous against the green BG. Congrats on the KF capture. I (and everyone else, I guess) ran into the same lighting issues in Costa Rica: low light in the rain forest, with bright patches poking through the canopy just to throw off your exposure settings. Light on this little guy looks ok to me.

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Nice image, Troy. I'd definitely go with a vertical crop here.
I can image shooting conditions being tough where they hang out.
I think this is an Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher, although I wouldn't bet the ranch on it.
Harshad Barve, who has some killer ODKF shots will keep me honest if he stops by :w3

[allanrube]

Great capture of a beautiful bird. Love the food and big eyes.

[Harshad Barve]

Hi Troy , this is Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher (Cyex erithacus), with subspecies – erithacus (black-back) and rufidorsa (red-back)

Your image shows rufidorsa (red-back)subspecies

Excellent capture of theses tiny rockets
TFS

PS , This is what we found in India, the erithacus (black-back)

http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php/71866-India-Wins?highlight=ODKF
(http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/HERE)

[Roger Clark]

Hi Troy,

Very nice image. I really like the colors on this guy and the contrast with the green background. Very different from the kingfishers I've seen in Africa. I like the crop as is. I'm not sure how a vertical crop would work with the tree to the right.

Roger

[Ofer Levy]

Very nice! Would crop off the top and add some to the left to make it more of a 2:3.

[RakeshDhareshwar]

Wow ! The first you get is a Oriental Dwarf !! The prey in the beak is a bonus !!

[Jim Crosswell]

Nice image Troy! I like the colours, BG and sharpness under challenging conditions.

[Mark Itol]

Very nice, Troy. Shooting inside the forest is indeed challenging. Congrats on your first KF, indeed an Oriental Dwarf.

[Melissa Groo]

Fantastic job, Troy! Looking forward to more images from your trip!