The birds lay one egg with the peak of the laying season in the first week of December. Hatching takes place 79 days later with both partners sharing incubation duties. I took pictures of this pair for about an hour and was amazed by their tender mutual preening and obvious affection. I was very lucky to get this shot when the incubating bird stood up to turn the egg. The proud and happy parents croaked with delight. This was an unexpected capture with the focus of attention suddenly changing from the birds to the egg which unfortunately is close to the bottom of the frame. I would be interested to learn people's opinion on whether this has fatally compromised the composition. The shot was taken from a respectful distance where the birds were completely relaxed and unconcerned by my presence. Our group had a permit from the NZ Dept of Conservation to go a short distance into the colony to take photographs. Critical feedback welcome - thanks for looking.
Canon 5DIII + 300 mm f/2.8L II + 2x III extender, Gitzo 3532LS, Kirkphoto King Cobra gimbal.
Av priority, f/10, 1/1250 sec, ISO 400.
PP in DPP: crop, adjust WB, brightness, shad/h'lights, USM, RAW-jpeg. PS Elements: removed dead flower head BL, downsize, USM.
Excellent shot! Really nice exposure and love the HA and expression of both the birds! Not leaving more room in the bottom make sense in this case as you wanted to exclude much of the out of focus vegetation in the foreground from the frame. I like the way you presented it.
More on the bottom would not have hurt, but not fatal, in my opinion. I love the birds' gazing toward their egg, the lovely environment that you have artfully included, and the excellent sharpness throughout.
Hi Ian, love the 'excited' poses from both birds, as both their beaks are open. Exposure spot on, and your shooting angled worked out well to show the egg.
I am really enjoying this image, as well as your series. I see how you focused on the nest with eggs and the parents apparent joy over it. I have to admit that I am missing the environment from the previous images but completely understand why you chose this composition here. It works.
Thank you to everyone who gave me feedback on this image. I had a lot of reservations about the composition - it seemed to break too many rules but your comments have convinced me that the strength of the imagery gets it over the line.
Kind regards, Ian