Common Loon in the Shadows

[gail bisson]

Something different for me.
Yeah or Nay? These guys are not very pretty when in non breeding plumage... I thought about cloning out the bottom most part of the reflection.
Canon 1Dx
F 600mm and 1.4X
ISO 800
SS 1/1600 F 8.0
I struggled to get this shot properly exposed. Lots of deletes ( and swear words...!!)
Not much PP- small crop, increased saturation, NR on the BG, DE at 4% on loon, USM to JPEG
Comments and critiques always appreciated and learned from with thanks,
Gail

[Sidharth Kodikal]

An emphatic yay from me. Love the dark fg bg and the low shooting angle. I like your bird placement and comp too. Excellent details and exposure. There's a bit of blue in the shadow on the chest (but maybe it's natural color - I haven't seen this bird irl)
The three eyes in the reflection are a bit spooky. For that reason alone, I'd crop everything after the first eye in the refl and add space to the top.

[gail bisson]

Here is a repost as per your suggestions Sid. Thanks

[Daniel Cadieux]

Love the dark surroundings combined with the nice light hitting the subject. Perfect head angle. I prefer the rotation and darker BG in the repost but I prefer the reflection of the OP. Looks like the wing is starting to gain some breeding colours?

[Karl Egressy]

The dark background draws all the attention to the bird, Nice low shooting angle and excellent HA and eye contact, Gail. The repost based on Sid's critique is a nice improvement.

[dankearl]

RP is very good, I like these kind of bird photo's a lot. all the emphasis on the subject.
I also like the placement high in the frame, unconventional but works well withe the dark PP.

[Randy Stout]

GAIL:

I think I recognize the species of that bird.

I have always liked that look for loons, and it actually works better with non breeding plumage or juvis, because the breeding color blacks blend into the black background and you lose the separation.

As a matter of taste, I would leave the first eye reflection,but remove the rest below that, as the repost reflection doesn't look natural to me.

Was this on the Atlantic?

I am concerned that the loon season will be sig. delayed here, as the only open water is the rivers, the lakes are all still frozen solid.

Cheers

Randy

[gail bisson]

GAIL:

I think I recognize the species of that bird.

I have always liked that look for loons, and it actually works better with non breeding plumage or juvis, because the breeding color blacks blend into the black background and you lose the separation.

As a matter of taste, I would leave the first eye reflection,but remove the rest below that, as the repost reflection doesn't look natural to me.

Was this on the Atlantic?

I am concerned that the loon season will be sig. delayed here, as the only open water is the rivers, the lakes are all still frozen solid.

Cheers

Randy

Hi Randy,
I am glad you commented on the picture because you are the loon expert around here and I value your input.
This was taken on the Mira River about 200 yards in from the Atlantic Ocean. They are staying remarkably close to the riverbank and catching lots of crabs. This is my first time being able to get this close to a loon.
Gail
PS. Some of the juvies have a big bump on the top of their head. Can you tell me what this is? Is it normal?

[Randy Stout]

Gail:

Do you have an image showing the bump? I have not seen that on my local juvis, but I only see them the 1st year, and then they don't come back north here for 3-4 years when they are ready to breed, so perhaps I just haven't seen it.

Thanks for the input on your shooting location.

Cheers

Randy

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Gail,

With the natural contrast of the image, how about a BW conversion. I think that would be a great way to present this image. I also think I'd go with a reflection that is between the OP and the second post.

Miguel

[Frank Schauf]

Excellent pose and good exposure control in repost, nice deep shooting position.

[Sandy Witvoet]

Hi Gail, beautiful capture.... I prefer something between the OP and RP re: reflection...pretty much what Randy said. (RP almost looks digiscoped). Wonderful low POV.
I think the Loons are just as pretty in non-breeding plumage... although not as "striking" as breeding, there is plenty of detail to be had. Not totally sure, but the "head bump" has shown up for me, depending on the Loon's posture... not necessarily a male/female/adult/juve kinda thing. My best guess for the adults to return here is about third week of April.... since our lakes still have about two feet of ice on them.

[Rob Melone]

Of course the light is wonderful Gail. I also like the detail and how the loon is positioned in the frame. You may want to try cloning out most (if not all) of the reflection and then re-cropping a little tighter. The red eye of a common loon is pretty amazing so a little color boost might also help. I like it Gail!