Top lit common loon

[Randy Stout]

This fellow was imaged last week while in Northern Michigan. It was a dead still morning, on a quiet bay, with light filtering through the trees behind the bird on the shoreline. I was fortunate that the beams fell just right to illuminate the birds head and eye.

D700 600mm f/4 @f/5 ISO 800 1/800 SB800 with Beamer for fill Pedestal mounted in my little boat, the Loonie TOO!

Post: Selective sharpening, removed second catchlight, minor water cleanup 20% crop.

I debated the crop for a while, but wanted to keep the ripples. No saturation changes.

Advice and comments always appreciated.

I was fortunate to have Gary Esman along, and a great day was had by all.

Cheers

Randy

[Grace Scalzo]

Stunning, Randy. So totally beautiful with the still water, the sunlight beaming through the trees, and that hint of color on his neck. It looks 3D.

[Keith Carver]

Oh my Randy, I love it, this bird pops! Wonderful top light, BG and you nailed the exposure! Very serene and nice reflection to boot! Outstanding, congrats!

[noelle zaleski]

Randy, this is so pretty!

It really has a wonderful feel to it :S3:

[Vivaldo Damilano]

Just love this Randy, great use of flash which I am sure helped make this image pop so nicely.

[Stu Bowie]

Welcome back Randy. Tranquility at its best. Love the different coloured sheens on the head and neck, and you got yourself a great pose.

Interesting decision on your choice of crop. Yes, the ripples add to the image, but taking off from the left may have worked, as I see ripples behind him too.

Glad you had a great time. :w3

[Gerald Kelberg]

Perfect tranquility! Great image as posted, the ripples really emphasize the feeling of stillness. Wouldn't change anything here!

[Chad Caswell]

Love the light coming in from atop, great exposure and head angle. I would CCW rotate a tad.

Hope to see you out shooting sometime soon.

[denise ippolito]

Welcome back Randy, Beautiful serene image and wonderful details and lighting. I like the green tones in the water. I like that you included the concentric circle on the left. I agree w/ Chad regarding a slight rotation.:S3:

[christopher galeski]

Beautiful image Randy,love the beams of light coming through,like little spot lights on a stage,nice colors pose and ha,agree on slight rotation.well done.

[Jim Crosswell]

A real beauty Randy. I like the stillness of the water, ripples, pose and colours.

[Doug Brown]

I think the composition works perfectly Randy. Very serene. And I like how the sun catches the eye.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

What a shot Randy. I have to see this is one of the best look shots I've seen in a while. glad you kept the ripples...the various shades of greens, the blacks, light....wow. well executed and processed.

[Randy Stout]

Thanks everyone for the comments and advice.

In regards to rotation, when I checked it, I get about 1.25 degree of CCW needed to align the highlight in the eye and its reflection. Thanks Chad and others for pointing this out. Because the bird is angled ever so slightly towards us, I think it gives the impression that he is level, even though the ripples are not quite!

It was one of those magic moments, to be out on the water with a special bird, and unique lighting.

I have a lot of images from my vacation, but for me, everything came together in this one.

Cheers and thanks again!

Randy

[arash_hazeghi]

this is excellent, well done