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Thread: Marbled Godwit

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    Default Marbled Godwit

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    Hi folks, I have been missing on this Forum for a while now trying to devote my time to learn how to shoot wildlife and improve my PP. I'm new to photography too, have about 1 year only, but I have learned a lt from the folks here on BPN. So if you are new like me and want to learn, don't be shy to provide your comments to other folks' images. It may be scary at first, but you will get a hang of it. Just be clear and honest and that is the best way to learn. At least it works for me.

    My Summer here in Southern California was a total zero image. No birds, cloudy weather at the beach, so I'm happy to see Fall comes. I went to the beach late afternoon yesterday and found this Mabled Godwit standing on a sand dune may be a bout 5 feet from the beach, so I went down to the beach to get to an eye level shot. The sun was on the left side of the bird, not right behind me, but I chose this angle to have the bird against a background of a distant mountain. Had I moved to get the sun behind me, the background would be a clutter of reef and sky.

    I had my 500f4 + 1.4X = 700mm on and I could retreat further unless I was willing to stand in the water.

    1DX
    500f4 II + 1.4X III = 700mm
    1/4000 (I kept my SS high for other BIF shots)
    f5.6
    ISO-800
    Handheld
    AF Servo with the focus point on the neck of the bird. Ideally I would want the focus point on the eye, but I was too close and the eye was too high on the frame.
    Manual exposure. I started learning how to do Manual exposure about 6 months ago and now I shoot almost exclusively in this mode to avoid sudden exposure changes with changing background.
    Cropped just a sliver off the right hand side for composition.

    Appreciate your comments.

    Loi

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    Nice shot Loi, excellent exposure and detail, clear eye , great head angle, nice low capture angle. The blurred foreground is good, though I might prefer to see the feet and legs. However, the price of exceptionally low viewing angles is often loss of visibility of feet and legs. By the way, the bird is a whimbrel. regards~Bill

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    I'm on the road and only have the iPhone tonight, but it looks like an excellent shot to me. Great color and tonalities. I think the choice of a good BG was more important than a direct light angle, and this angle works for me. Having the light a little off-angle can enhance feather and other detail and give dimension to shapes. Having the bird facing the light is much better than having it behind the bird.

    Better luck with fall and winter weather. We had nothing but fog up here for what must have been 3 months.

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    Forum Participant Iain Barker's Avatar
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    Hi Loi
    Great image, I don't mind the oof foreground. The bird is nice and sharp and the background very clean. I also like the light.
    I'm a little unsure about the water droplets, mainly with there not being any other water in the image they seem a little bit random and make me wonder where they have come from.
    It might have been nice to have a little more room on the left but that is just personal choice.

    Thanks for showing. Iain

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Loi, great POV and the mush works oh so beautifully, excellent call. Personally I find the blue a bit drab, with a slight tweak in LR it really comes to life IMHO without any detriment to the subject, retaining the main characteristics of the original capture. FWIW, I like the droplets, just adds another je ne sais quoi to the image.

    TFS
    Steve
    Post Production: It’s ALL about what you do with the tools and not, which brand of tool you use.

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    I'm seeing it on my laptop now and see the water droplets. Even without seeing any water I think they're a very nice touch.

    I wonder if it's of interest to lighten the darks ever so slightly? How are you processing RAW files? If in LR / ACR, the Shadows slider works wonders.

    For an image that has a bright area at the bottom, I usually add a gradient there, and darken it a little, either in LR or with a Curves adjustment layer in PS.

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