Driving home the other day I spotted a flock of waxwings raiding a berry bush beside the lake. I quickly raced home, grabbed my gear and returned to the site. A flock of about 120 of them were still working the trees. All the ones I saw clearly were Bohemian, like this one. The main challenge was the distracting backgrounds of the gnarly tree or the bright whites of the cloudy sky. So I focussed on an area where the background seemed quite good and waited. Here is the result. Glad I didn't put it off for the next day as the birds have not returned. I opted to reduce the prominence of a branch in the ULC. All comments welcomed and appreciated.
Canon Mark IV, 500mm f/4L II, ISO:800, f/5.6@1/320, EC: +0.7, AP, AI Servo AF, evaluative, gitzo 3530, jobu HD2
Very nice, like the berry in bill, how it matches the red of the eye, tongue showing,very soft light. I could see a sliver cropped off the top. Glad your efforts to get your gear and return were rewarded.
The dash home for your phot gear paid off Dan. The selected BG works well separating the waxwing from the tree branches and the berry in bill always adds impact. Good effort.
Fantastic image. Love the soft diffused light. The pose, berry in mouth, tongue visible, perfect head angle,
tail slightly split by the twigs....just really sweet! Great job achieving the background and relatively clean
composition in this scenario....not as easy as you've made it look.
Lovely shot, Dan. Soft light and great techs. Nice pose with berry. Good job handling the ULC. URC is a bit busy but the bird stands out nicely; don't know how you could have done better. Glad you were able to seize the moment.
A perfect angle on this bird to show all the identification characteristics. I appreciate your difficulty in getting a clean BG with these birds when they are feeding - your patience certainly paid off here. Superb plumage detail.
The prize
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