This species is not a common visitor in New Jersey, but a small group has been seen off and on over the past several years, visiting a cornfield a half-hour from home. I stopped by several weeks ago, and was lucky to find them not far from the road. A roadside redcedar provided some cover, and I got a few frames before they discovered me and moved on. Our visitors seem much more skittish than those I have seen in Florida. I always enjoy getting a shot that shows adult and juvenile together. Full disclosure: in this case one frame had the adult in focus, while the next frame was sharper on the juvenile. I borrowed the juvie's head and neck from the latter and put it into the former. C&C appreciated.
Nice PP work, I would not have known.
They pop nicely from the BG and you had a nice angle.
The ones where I live are very skittish also, can hardly ever get close...
This image works quite well. I like the environment quite a bit, and the cranes just fit right in. I'd like to see a tad more room on the bottom for the virtual legs/feet. I also feel there is a bluish cast to the cranes.
Hi Bill,
I too, like to see the juvie and adult together.
I would like a bit more room on the bottom for the legs and I would smudge/soften the tree trunk directly behind the adult.
The light on the faces is great.
I cannot tell you transplanted heads so great PP work.
Gail
Like these two set in winter tones Bill. Love the detail, red mask quality, and clear red eyes. Remarkable PP work. One of these days I hope to see these birds at this location.
Thanks everyone. As to the color cast, the whites on the cheeks in the OP are almost exactly neutral, so I had assumed that the birds' coloration was correct under these lighting conditions. But here's a repost with a slight (7%) warming filter applied to the entire image. I'll admit that the birds do look better. I always resist applying a color adjustment to just a portion of the image -- it tends to result in an unnatural look in my experience -- but perhaps here I might have applied the warming filter to just the birds. (??) Per Gail's suggestion, which I always agree with, I've also softened the brightest tree trunks behind the birds. Thanks for everyone's comments and suggestions.
Wonderful shot from two beautiful birds. I prefer the repost, too. Love the pose of the two birds and the details. Foreground and Background works fine.
Sandhill Cranes, adult and juvenile
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