July Theme - Chicks - Common Loon - Studio shot

[Randy Stout]

It was a cold and dreary day, 100% cloud cover. But, it didn't slow the loons down, so I tried to work with what I had, and went for more of a "studio" look on this one.

D700 600VR TC1.4 f/5.6 1/200s ISO 800 SB800 with Beamer, -1.0

Shot from my little boat, "Loonie Too", camera on pedestal mount.

Post: CS5, curves, selective sharpening, full frame

Wish I had a little more DOF for the moms body, but there wasn't much light to work with, and I was fighting to keep it sharp, considering the bird was moving, the boat was bobbing, etc. In retrospect, could have pushed up ISO a bit more.

Advice and comments always appreciated.

Cheers

Randy

[Gary Esman]

Very nice sir. Llike the background because it is different from other loon shots we see. The chick although extremely cute could use another round of sharpening. I thought your boat was called the Loonie Toon? :bg3: TFS

Gary.

[allanrube]

I like the iconic green-blue background better, but you did a wonderful job capturing the chick on its parent's back. Nice us of flash.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Very intimate. I like the green showing on the neck. I'm OK with the DOF, but agree the chick could use another round of sharpening. I wouldn't mins a tad more space above. I like it alot!!

[Ofer Levy]

I like this! You did a great job with the poor light! Not crazy about the cut tail but still awesome!

[Grace Scalzo]

Randy, you are one of the best at working with what you've got. I think this is just lovely and I can picture it hanging on a wall in a simple black frame. yes to chick sharpening and since the tail is cut already, what about recomposing by cutting it a bit more (so that it looks like you did it on purpose) and then tweak the other sides acoordingly? Your creativity is inspiring.

[Satish Ranadive]

Splendid image.Love the cute little one.

[gail bisson]

I like this intimate portrait but would definetely take more off the left so that it doesn't look like the tail is cut off.
gail

[Stu Bowie]

Randy, the little guy looks nice a comfy tucked in behind the parents neck. I do like the sharpness of the parents head, together with the greens, that stand out well against the lighter colour of the water. Its always disappointing when the weather doesnt play ball after having looked forward to a trip away.

[Randy Stout]

Thanks everyone for the input, always appreciated.

The chicks are always interesting to sharpen, since they are so soft and fuzzy, that they tend to look unsharp unless you make them pretty crunchy from sharpening, which I don't like. Plus, my limited DOF was the real limiting factor here.

I resharpened the chick, and did a small crop from the left.

Thanks again.