Black-bellied Plover in foam

I can not stress enough how difficult it is to approach a Black-bellied Plover in New York City. They are unbelievably wary of people here. Yet in Florida they practically eat out of your hand. I was thrilled when Jake Levin and I had this tame juvenile bird allow close approach. It was the first and only time that a Black-bellied Plover allowed me to get near it. I have many shots of this bird but I really like this "bird in heaven" type shot. When you have clear blue skies, the waters in the late evening light on the barrier beaches of NYC turn a light purple. It is really beautiful and something I always try to capture when photographing birds there.

Canon 1DX and Canon 500 f4 ii + 1.4x iii. ISO 1000, F7.1, SS 1/2500. Processed with DPP 4.6 and PS.

Heavenly. Love the foaming brine, and the nice light. You guys cleaned up on the beach, which must have been nice after missing out at the East Pond.

Really nice work Isaac -- I love the bubbles on the bottom 1/3. Great lighting and details. Nice DOF as well. I think I saw one of these guys at Sandy Hook a month or so ago and it was gone as soon as I thought about approaching so even more impressive. I've been meaning to try to do some shooting in NYC at some point. TFS

These guys are hit and miss up here - most very wary and once-in-a-while rather approachable. I like the overall feel of the image. I would only darken the bright area above the head as it tends to pull the eye there. I love those pale blue hues.

Exquisite capture, Isaac. It's wonderful that you were able to have such a close encounter, and come away with this stunning image. Very nice feather detail, and foamy foreground.

Geoffrey




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Isaac, Really nice environment, sharp, HA, catchlight and colors are all good. Well done.

-Tim

I really like it. The light and the foam. Grey plovers are also very wary of people in Poland also. I had managed to get close to it just once in my life. It was before sunrise and she was going into me. I saw here from 500m so she didn't see me. I had to rest on the ground under blind net and wait until she came close.

Really nice, Isaac. Wonderful low perspective, beautiful bird, lovely background. I agree with Dan regarding the bright area above the head pulling the eyes away from the bird. I also might remove the specular highlights below the bird in the surf. Thank you for sharing.

Alex if you want shorebirds then there are few better places than in and around NYC for photographic opportunities. We get huge numbers of them on the beaches and local mud flats. We get puddles where they come and roost and bathe and allow very close approach. We also have the unrivaled east pond at Jamaica Bay. Very few places allow such close approach of so many different species. Contact me and I would be happy to show you around any time.

Hi Isaac, Im glad you scored your shot with this fellow, and what a great low perspective. I do not know this species, but a great big eye he has - actually looks too big for his head. Nice and sharp where it counts, and I would just remove the larger specular highlights around his feet. I do like the blues and browns in the BG too.