Drake Wood Duck

[David Salem]

Caught this guy taking off a few years ago at a local pond. Hope you like it.

1DMkIV---700mm---f6.3---ss1/3200---ISO640---HH@4:25pm---35%crop

Thanks as always for looking and for your input. I appreciate it.

David

[gail bisson]

Perfect forward wing position and perfect head turn.
Light and BG are great. I like the 2 little drops.
Comp is excellent.
I see a bit of OOF grass over the tail which is not a big deal. The reason I bring it up is that I am hoping that someone out there has a PP trick to remove the color. About a year ago, someone posted an image of a GBH with a grass crossing over the bird and someone posted a detailed response on how to "almost" eliminate the color off the bird. If that person is reading this please reply!!
Sorry for going off topic on your wonderful image,
Gail

[Joe Senzatimore]

Perfect in every way. Great color and detail.

[Ian Wilson]

Thank you David, a wonderful moment, beautifully captured. Regards, Ian

[Iain Barker]

I think this is a perfect shot of this duck. I was a little unsure about the water droplets with there being only two of them but I can see why you kept them.
TFS
Iain

[Karl Egressy]

Excellent forward wing position and nice overall image, David.

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

I believe this is a fantastic image David!

Love the light and pose given by the duck. BG goes so well with the bird´s colors too.

[Jim Crosswell]

A real beauty David! I like the wing position, IQ, BG and composition.

[David Salem]

Thanks for there comments everyone. I appreciate it.

Gail, no problem on asking for info on my thread, I would be interested to find out also.
I know for sure the duck doesn't have any grass in front of him as the background is 50 feet behind him and there are no reeds in this pond.
I am on my phone but I do see the green on the end the tail, funny you mention did cuz I've never noticed it before. maybe it's an anomaly or could it be that a breeding Drake like that has green on his tail , not sure gotta go look it up when I get home tonight. I'll let you know what I find out.

[David Salem]

I think I just learned something today. I looked at the original and there isnt any grass or reeds in front of the tail. I got on the web and looked at a bunch of woodie shots and found quite a few with a green hue to the tail. Looks like it's most prominent on breeding plumage or older drakes and it is seen in the right light angle like the speculums.
Something new every day!

[gail bisson]

Thanks for the info David!

[MiroslavMaric]

Good BIF shot. Good wings position, like the eye contact, sharpness, colors of bird & BG. Cheers! Miro

[stuart wanuck]

Like the flight capture well done

[Stu Bowie]

Hi David, love the flight pose with the wing position, and how the colourful head is raised above the wings. Sharp where it counts, and overall, well exposed too. The colour of the BG sets the duck off nicely. Well captured.

[Andy Shepherd]

That's a quality flight capture, David. Love the iridescent colours on the head.

[Sidharth Kodikal]

Sweet pose, excellent colors and a nice comp, Dave. Exposure is spot on and this drake couldn't have chosen a more complementary bg for you. Nicely done.

[Binu John]

Fabulous shot, David! You nailed the focus and captured the best wing position!