Mallard mania ! Drake coming in for landing

[Randy Stout]

One more from this past weekend. The previous two had been against the ice, this fellow was higher and I thought the brown background went well with his colors. The wing position not quite as dramatic as the previous two, but I thought the light was quite nice.

D4 600VR 1/3200s f/5.6 ISO 1000 Gitzo/Wimberley Manual exposure

Post: Added canvas top, bottom and right side, as he was quite tight in the original. Selective sharpening.

Advice and comments always appreciated.

Cheers

Randy

[Corey Hayes]

Awesome capture, great details, lighting and background.

[Marina Scarr]

Lovely BG and light, Randy. Pose and image not as dynamic as last one though. Nice details and sharpness. I am seeing a pretty strong blue cast in this image.

[Randy Stout]

Corey and Marina:

Thanks for your input.

Here is a slightly warmer version. The original post was true to the scene, but cool.

Cheers

Randy

[Robert Holguin]

Wonderful shot.
Love the pose, beautiful light, wonderful background, and gret comp.
I like the repost best.
Well done.

[Steve Canuel]

Agree, colors do go well. Both/either version works for me. Like the pose you captured.

[Shawn Zierman]

I love these kind of mallard images. You killed the sheen on the head...just awesome.
The warmer version is a bit more appealing I think, though either version "works".

[Sachin Saraf]

Randy, you captured this mallard in some beautiful light against wonderful BG...re post looks good without cast...

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Randy - I like the warm colors of the second shot better, although I was not at the scene and couldn't tell you which one would be more appropriate.

While I agree that the pose isn't as dynamic, I still think it's a strong composition with very nice light, great colors, and sharp details. I wouldn't make this a portfolio image (well I would, but YOU have plenty of better images). Hope to see more from the batch if you've got them.

[gail bisson]

Hi Randy,
I really like this. The thumbnail doesn't do it justice.
The sheen on the head is perfect and the IQ is so good I feel like I could reach out and touch him.
I prefer this BG to the other one and I like the OP. feels truer to the season and climate us northerners have to live in,
Gail

[PhilCook]

Warmer repost is nicer,lovely light and do like the eye contact being made in this one, beautifully sharp and standing out so nicely against the smooth backdrop

[David Salem]

Nice capture Randy. You got the sheen on the head of the drake well. Takes quite a few frames sometimes to get one like this. Like the warmer version also. Techs look great. Nice in flight shot.

[Karl Egressy]

Great pose, great shooting angle and excellent background, Randy.
The top of the wings have some blue cast on them.

[Stu Bowie]

Hi Randy, this guy just screams pop - really like how he stands out against that smooth BG. I quite like the 'casual' inflight pose, and well exposed on the head. Those greens can be troublesome sometimes.

[Uri First]

an excellent flight capture. loved the blazing colours and the matching BG.. well done!