Purple Sandpiper from Barnegat Light

Last time when I saw one post from Denise I went back to this place in search of these beautiful birds.

I was about to give up search on a dull cloudy evening at sunset when I saw this one clinging on to a slope of mossy rock on sea side and will only move slightly as tide crashes into the jetty rocks.


I quickly took few pictures and then waited for it to come out. As I was carrying tripod I could make this image at SS 1/160.

EXIF

Exposure Program - Manual
Canon 7D
Canon 500mm + 1.4X II TC - 700mm
Exposure 0.006 sec (1/160)
Aperture - f/7.1
ISO - 800

I am not yet decided on which one is best from the lot as I tried to capture it with different BG so Critics and comments are most welcome.

Attachment 107589

Sachin:

I really like the background, strong sense of his environment, without overpowering the bird.

Slightly too big in the frame for my tastes, but sharp, well exposed, and I think the shooting angle was spot on for this background, to keep him completely against the rock, and not cut off by the water.

A little noise creeping in some of the darker areas of the BG.

Cheers

Randy

Randy has given you a spot on critique. I truly agree with him on this little guy needing some more room. Love how he just pops off that BG with that perfect HA.

Hi Sachin,<o:p></o:p>
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I don’t mind your filling the frame with your subject. That is a classic compositional style and it lets the viewer appreciate it in all it’s glory. You have wonderful feather detail. A bit of shadow would define it’s shape better and sometimes it’s just not there.<o:p></o:p>
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It’s nice to see your work again, it’s been a while.<o:p></o:p>
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Morris<o:p></o:p>

I like this one Sachin. Great habitat and wonderful eye contact.

Sachin, Nice job finding this. I agree it's a tiny bit tight and a touch of noise is present in the background but this is a wonderfully sharp image with a nice pose and HA. Great job!

Thank you everyone about the inputs. This is almost full frame. I cropped it slightly on left. I will add some canvas to this one and remove some noise from the BG...I had small window to work through and this one moved in closer than I thought...

Excellent habitat depicted with sharp details and great eye contact. I love it, Sachin.

Very nice environment but I too would like the crop a little looser. I love the seaweed/algae on the rock and the detail on the bird.