This loon is looking intently at something - and it's not me. That's one of the reasons I like it. The image was taken earlier this week at a nearby lake where 20 or so loons plus ducks, grebes, and mergansers congregate while waiting for the ice to melt on the lakes around here and farther north. Occasionally a loon will swim near shore to forage on crayfish and offer photo opportunities. 40D, 500 f/4 +1.4X, 1/2500, f/7.1, ISO 400. Comments are welcome.
With the shutter speed you had it appears you could have gone to F/8.0 to increase the dof and get more sharpness to the top of the head and the end of the beak. While the breast is hot, the overall image is good. Loons are very difficult to expose for, especially when they go from location to location in quick bursts or dive and come up near darker waters. Keep after them and I hope to do the same here.
Excellent composition, and the exposure looks good. The whites may border on hot but it looks just as I see it with my naked eye with these guys. The water drops sprinkled on the head and face add alot to the image :-)
This is a nice one Steve. I like the pose with the bill in line with the body. I also like pics where the subject isn't staring directly at me. The color of the water is nice and goes well with the loon. I like the subtle greens you've captured and the red of the eye doesn't look too overdone (although I've never seen one of these in person).
Steve
I think it's a fine image of a bird that's notoriously difficult to expose properly. I like the crop, the water color, and the sharpness. While Grady makes a valid point about DOF, I don't think this image suffers from a lack of it. Nicely done!
Loon
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote