Theme: Faded glory

This adult loon was imaged several years ago in early fall. The breeding colors are fading as the fall colors come on. Even the magnificent red eye becomes muted. Not as beautiful, but still I think the image tells the story of their life, the seasonal variation.

D4 600VR f/5 , 1/400s ISO 1250 Fill flash with Better Beamer

Full frame with slight leveling crop. Resisted the temptation to push the blacks, as they simply aren't as dark as the molt begins.

Advice and comments always appreciated.

Cheers

Randy

Beautifully executed IMO.
THe golden water makes this even more appealing Randy!
Cheers

Love this closeup. Beautiful details and that golden water is just great. Those water drops on the back are super cool. Only thing I would change is the whites on the chest of the bird. On my screen they look bluish gray and not white.

Beautiful image, golden water makes it pop. Thank you for sharing Randy.

Issac:

The whites to tend to gray during the molt, and the blue bands come from reflections of the water.

Thanks everyone for your commments

Randy

Great choice with the 'Fill-in' Randy, just would have liked a sliver more below, but you may have some? Again, cracking detail.

TFS
Steve

like the pose and low angle, usually BG brother than bird is hard to pull off and you did well with flash.

TFS