Greater Yellowlegs - feather maintenance.

Taken last month. This Greater Yellowlegs frequented a local pond for a couple of days. Myself and another local photographer got to spent a good hour or so with it before the light got too harsh. Plenty of interesting behaviours were witnessed/photographed as this guy was quite active that morning.

Canon 40D + 100-400L @400mm, aperture priority, evaluative metering, 1/2000s., f/7.1, ISO 400, -1 EC, natural light, handheld. About 75% full-frame.

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w...gs_8773-01.jpg

Great pose, lighting, and exposure Daniel.

Daniel--this is excellent. Shows the bird getting some oil I think. This is one I would definitely consider cropping in on, the water color is sweet but the bird here is much sweeter and I would say needs to dominate. Wonderful shot!

Paul

Like the preening pose with preserved eye contact. The water is to die for; I wouldn't crop away any of it.

Really wonderful pose, beautiful water /lighting / exposure and sharpness.

I agree with Doug and wouldn't crop it either.

I might have blurred the main horizontal surface weed / algae line a bit but other than that, it's really nice.

Wonderful capture!!! I agree with Paul ...I probably would go for a vertical but it is great shot with or without cropping.
Geraldo

Sweet shot Daniel, The water colors are beautiful and great behavior shot.

No crop for me either. The position of the head and the splayed tail and uppertail covert (I think) feathers make this one both unique and a winner.

Please post a standard portrait of this bird here if you would be so kind.

fabulous shot , I wont change anything here
TFS

Nice head position on this shot !!!

Pin sharp with excellent detail Dan, and I like how he has tucked his head into the tail. Amazing colourful BG too. I would maybe take a slither off both the top and bottom. Still, well captured.

I like the water too. Just for discussion purposes maybe this one might also be one to think about: A little added on the right..Sorry Dan--didn't have any canvas so I just borrowed from what was there and fudged it around.

Paul

Not to be argumentative, just throwing it out there, this I thought didn't look too bad--but I have to admit WITH the water has a much better drama to it. My only problem with the original was that the water and subject seem to be struggling for the limelight.

Paul

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Harshad Barve

fabulous shot , I wont change anything here TFS

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Harshad-bhai, When you think that an image is fabulous, please let us know why.

Hey Paul thanks for taking the time to work with my image. I like what you did with the first repost (including the smoothing out of the blueish "smudges" in the water). I really think this image works best in horizontal as I find it goes well with the diagonal elongated line of the neck/head/bill - this makes the extended canvas at right work well. (and for that reason your second crop doesn't "feel" as right to me).

P.S. I think you may be right about this guy getting/spreading some oil as it was rubbing (using its whole head)much more than it was preening...

The oil is secreted by the uropugial gland on the rump just above the base of the tail.

Yeah-- i woke up this morning at 3 am with a back ache and needed something to do cause no way I could sleep. I enjoyed your picture in all the different crops Dan. I like the longer pano one best too, and just to point out something of note, I darkened -just a little- those areas to the left of the bird. I felt that this would make him pop more and lower the comp "weight" value added because of the water on that side(Very bright, or very dark areas are heavy)--the bird basically has enough weight as is on that side. Then on the right I worked on putting in some brighter green to do the opposite of what I just did on the left--and that was to give it lots of comp weight through brightness and color saturation--now i figure the bird on the left balances pretty even with the water on the right. Tell you the truth you could even take it up a bit more there on the left from what I did.The water also I think now becomes the dominant subject of the shot--only slightly over the bird--but that's enough.

Good observation on that implied line the bill makes pointing at the lower right corner. I wasn't conscious of doing that at the time and hadn't even thought of it. But it does seem to be a factor in the overall power. Very interesting. Your exactly correct on that one.

Paul

Love those yellow legs and water. I agree about this bird applying oil from its uropigial gland. Lovely light too.

Dan I love the light on this bird and this pose is very unusual. I really like the play of the feathers. The fall colours reflected in the water are a big bonus.