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Captured this summer and just waiting for this theme...
This is one of this fledgling's first flights. I was fortunate to find the family nesting inside a hollow tree. There were four little ones and I watched them for several weeks as they grew and then fledged. I had metered off of some vegetation that was similarly colored.
50D, 400mm f/5.6
Manual mode, f/8@1/1000, ISO 400 WB 5100K
AI Servo autofocus, HH, no flash
Was the vegetation in the sun or was it shaded?
Artie, I was shooting the birds on perches in the sun, so it was probably in sun. I would have opened up a stop for this shot. It would be cool if cameras recorded the meter reading while in manual mode because I can't remember. Generally, I will open up 1 to 1 2/3 stops for a backlit subject in the sky depending on how dark the plumage is. Does this sound reasonable?
I think you did a fine job on exposure for this. Love the light coming through the wings. Nice comp. as well.
Tough exposure which you handled well. Good detail too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kerry Perkins
Hi Kerry, The are two things that most folks miss in situations such as this:
1-you meter off the vegetation that is in the sun but the bird's underparts are shaded.... For me, the bird here is still well under-exposed and I would bet that you lightened it in post :)
2- if you open up enough to properly expose the bird's underparts then you will toast whatever small part of the head is sunlit....
So, you did pretty well here. With a 50D the values you suggest should do well but remember to push as far to the right as you can while getting only a very few blinkies on whatever portion of the bird is lit by the sun.
Thanks Artie, I understand and I have not been so lucky in all of these situations. This one is in that state of "not properly exposed but not a silhouette". You are so correct, "fill light" in LR2 was my friend. :cool:
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I will often shoot at +2 or even +3 stops if I have a dark bird against a bright sky and fully cook the sky as it shows in RED when I open via ACR. Artie is right about lightening in post process I think. There is a bit of visible noise especially in the darker areas.
Nevertheless it is a wonderful capture with nice wing position and sharp as.
Also a huge congrats for the accolades in the photo comp recently.
Cheers
