Pectoral Sandpiper.

[Daniel Cadieux]

I was already flat on the ground photographing an American Golden Plover when from the corner of my eye I saw a couple of shorebirds land. Took a quick peek and to my delight they were two Pectoral Sandpipers - right in perfect range for this full-frame image! I turned my attention towards them but this one seemed surprised at me and took this "alert" posture for a few moments before beginning its' foraging activities. It was tough choosing between these guys and the AGP as they are both rather uncommon (but not rare) here especially for photography and compared to the usual suspects (Leasts, Semipalms, Yellowlegs...). Luckily both species hung around cooperated nicely for me...

Canon 7D + 500mm f/4 II + 1.4TC, manual exposure, evaluative metering, 1/1000s., f/5.6, ISO 400, natural light, handheld, FF, darkened pupil and cloned out large second catchlight, a couple of distracting white elements in the FG eliminated via clone, thought about removing the feather at right but decided it looks OK there.

[Randy Stout]

Daniel:

Sharp, well exposed, really get the sense he is watching you.

Soft background.

MIght try darkening the foreground just a bit to help it recede visually, reduce its impact.

Cheers

Randy

[Karl Egressy]

Nice low angle shot, might even be too low as the feet are covered. Great alert pose showing the back. Sharpness and IQ are excellent. Great work Daniel.

[Richard Flack]

Beautiful shot Daniel, I have spent many hours trying to find this species in South Africa (where it is a rare vagrant). It is a beautiful bird, which you have captured really well. Love the low angle, glint in the bird's eye and the little flower and feather (which just add to the image). Awesome, clear BG. Well done! Did you get any of the front of the bird?

[Ivan Ellison]

Lovely low angle and nice turn to look at you. We have one on a local res in Bolton recently, it is a rarity in UK, might post one or two myself. Well done with taking this.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Thanks guys. Richard, yes I did get some of the front of the bird too.

[christopher galeski]

very nice,nice light and pose,sharp with good detail.

[arash_hazeghi]

excellent look back pose with great details and low angle have combined to create a beautiful image. I may clone out the white feathers sticking out int the left side near the border

TFS

[gail bisson]

Nice image Daniel. I like the attentive look back pose and all the colors in the image.
Although I usually love your low POV I wish you had been a little higher so we could see his feet.
Gail

[Girish Prahalad]

lovely shooting angle & the colors are really nice through out the image.
comp & details are excellent.

[Frank Schauf]

Beautiful portrait, great details and eye contact.