Here's a pic I captured of a male California Pelican in partial breeding plumage last weekend. This is the beginning of the breeding season and there are already large numbers of pelicans in partial breeding plumage and a smaller number in full breeding plumage. The opportunities to get close and fill your CF card are exceptional this year. In addition, the Double Crested Cormorants are beginning to show signs of their breeding plumage, which can be a spectacular sight.
Two important warnings. First, if you're interested in getting as close as possible to these birds, it's highly likely that this will be the final year to do this. Because of the incredibly foul stink that's caused by the bird guano and Sea Lion feces, the city has decided to attempt to relocate the Sea Lions and re-open the rocky areas to human activities. This would cause the pelicans and cormorants to move their rookeries to other areas where they wouldn't be disturbed. The second warning is to be prepared for the foul odor when the wind shifts. Even to photographers who relish the opportunity for these close-in shots, the odor has become a bit much to bear.
Canon 1D MK IV
Canon EF 300mm v1 + 1.4 TC at 420mm
f/5.6 1/4000 ISO 800 hand held
As always, I appreciate all comments and suggestions.
Light looks like it was getting harsh, but well exposed and I like the incoming pose and wingspread. Pano crop works well too. Thanks for the heads up for people who may want to travel to this spot...
Thanks! The shot was taken around 8:30 am so the true light wasn't actually harsh. But what can't be seen in the photo is that he's setting down on a bleached sandstone cliff that acts as a reflector bouncing the light up into the open wings and face. It radiated even more light on the camera screen jpeg. But you're right, the combination of the actual and reflected light do make it somewhat harsh, so I'm going to play with it some to try to tone it down. I appreciate the feedback.
Nice shot Bob. I like the wing spread and the HA. Exposure and details look good too.
Wow, I sure hope they dont mess up this important wildlife location. Amazing that these restaurant owners and home owners dont reaize that thats why people come to their community is to see the wildlife and the scenery. Too bad.
They do need to find a balance rather than just banishing everything. The odor is extremely strong, but at the same time, I was stopped by tourists from many countries asking for details about the sea lions. Sadly, no one asked about any of the birds though. At this point, it does look like the official plan is to attempt to move the sea lions, but hopefully our local Audubon groups and the Scripps Institute of Oceanography will organize an effort to respect the birds' nesting areas. Unfortunately, the city completely decimated an important flyway stop over spot last year, so there isn't a lot of optimism that they'll make the right choice.
Very interesting story to go along with this good image.
Great wing position and nice and sharp.
Is this posted at the maximum size of 1200 x 900 pixels? if not, you should take advantage of the new posting sizes to help us old folks see the bird and the details better!!
Gail
Hi Gail - Thanks for your question as it looks like I messed up the dimensions. Somehow, I keyed in 400 rather than 900 in the LR export parameters, resulting in a final image size of 963 x 400. I'll know to check closer next time.
Hey Bob. Looking forwarding to seeing you in a week or so! The light looks fine, but I might try to bring up the shadows a bit. As Gail pointed out, files can be 1200 pixels wide and 900 pixels tall.
Hi Doug. Thanks and I'll definitely work on the shadows. One of my major goals this year is to learn Photoshop and I just signed up for the photographer's CC deal. From the very helpful and friendly feedback I've gotten here over the past couple of months, I can see that's something that would really improve my images. So thanks to everyone who has been kind enough to comment.
Looking forward to shooting in La Jolla with you Doug. Because of the plentiful bait fish all along the coast here, the pelican population is huge and this is looking like it could be an epic year.
Pelican - landing gear down and La Jolla update
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