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Thread: Belted Kingfisher in flight!...finally got him!

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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    Default Belted Kingfisher in flight!...finally got him!

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    This belted kingfisher has been my nemesis since I started bird photography.
    I was set up in the water waiting for the harriers to turn up and along comes this guy, hovering almost directly above me. He dove for a fish but on the way down a crow swooped down and pushed him towards me. He has grasses in his mouth from the aborted dive.
    I do wish for a better BG but am still thrilled to have gotten this.
    This is cropped by 25% ie. 75% of original retained.
    Canon 1D MKIV
    ISO 400
    SS 1/2500
    F 6.3
    Usual PP -NR, curves, a bit of vibrance added and I cloned out a piece of grass that was below his belly.
    Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
    Gail

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    Lifetime Member Jim Neiger's Avatar
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    Very nice, Gail! KFs are not easy to get. This one is a her though, not a him.
    Jim Neiger - Kissimmee, Florida

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    Avian Moderator Randy Stout's Avatar
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    Gail:

    Congrats on getting her. I have had zero luck with them.

    I like the wings up pose, bit of grass, esp. with the story of how it happened.

    The head looks just a bit soft. Might try a little bit of detail extractor in the shadow areas.

    Cheers

    Randy
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    Lifetime Member Stu Bowie's Avatar
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    Hi Gail, big congrats on getting your dream shot, and in flight too. When getting these type of shots, I will take any BG. As Im not familiar with this species, what is the difference between the male and female. I pretty much know my own kingfishers.

    OK, you would do just fine in Pilanesberg.
    Last edited by Stu Bowie; 09-26-2012 at 11:53 PM.

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    Congratulations Gail. I have yet to capture one perched or in flight. I like the tucked up feet & the wing position. The whites on the neck look a bit hot to my eye.
    Andrew

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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    Stuart- the girl has a rufous band on her chest and the male doesn't
    Jim-I meant "him" as a generic term . Sorry about the confusion.
    Andrew- the whites register 232 on the RAW but it may be the sharpening and DE that put it over the top. I will check it and review,
    Gail

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    Nice image Gail. I like the wing position, grass and composition.

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    BPN Member dankearl's Avatar
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    Very nice, I would be thrilled with this. My first of these guys a couple of weeks ago was not as sharp as this.
    They are really fast, 1/2500 barely does it.
    Dan Kearl

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    Lifetime Member Doug Brown's Avatar
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    Congrats Gail; it's one of the tougher BIF subjects out there! Good points above, but they don't take away from your accomplishment. Stage 2; KF flying against a varied BG!
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    VERY IMPRESSIVE !! We have an airlines here by the name 'Kingfisher Airlines' and they are in deep trouble ...we hardly see them fly !! You have literally caught the Kingfisher in Flight .

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    This is really excellent. I love the grasses in the bill...a subtle detail that elevates
    the success of the image imo. Very good IQ imo.

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    Excellent flight shot of KF Gail. Great wing position. Congratulation for this shot. TFS

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    Super Moderator arash_hazeghi's Avatar
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    tough shot to pull Gail and you did well here. I agree with Doug, next level is varied BG and a topside view of the wings!

    excellent stuff
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    Lifetime Member gail bisson's Avatar
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    Thanks for all the comments.
    I just realized that I sharpened incorrectly. I was using settings for doing adjustments to the RAW so that may explain the slight blur of head. Her is a repost at 0.3 pixels ( not 65 like I used before!)

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    BPN Member Bill Dix's Avatar
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    Congratulations, Gail! I spent hours in a kayak in Maine last week, trying to capture one in flight. They were all over the place, taunting me with their racket, but I never got close. Repost is an improvement. Exposure and detail very nice. The wing position, although I might have preferred it fully up, really emphases how fast she is.

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    Congrats Gail, that's quite an achievement! You must be stoked. I like the sharpening job on the repost. Excellent work freezing this speedster in action!

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    Teriffic shot!!! A big congrats on getting this shot. Great wing position and the repost looks much better.
    Very well done.

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