Life and Death...

[Arthur Morris]

Blue-footed Booby chick and dead chick at nest

This image was created on the 2013 Galapagos Photo-Cruise with the hand held Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (with the internal TC in place at 420mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/250 sec. at f/11 in Manual mode.

Central Sensor/AI Servo-Surround/Rear Focus on the base of the chick’s bill was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image see a larger version.

As for the image, don't be shy. All comments are welcome. Microscopic and LAB color analyses are not needed :)

See more life and death images from this trip here.

BPN members are invited to join me in the Galapagos in July 2015 and apply a $500 BPN discount to their final balance. Click here for details.

[Marina Scarr]

This is an amazing image, Artie! In one frame, you have documented the survival of the fittest. The positive of the rambunctious chick trumps the negative of the emaciated remains of the other.

[Diane Miller]

Sad, but beautifully documented. I wonder about taking a little more off the top -- my eye goes to the tail feathers more than I like.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Marina and Diane, No negatives or sadness for me. It is what it is. As Marina says, "survival of the fittest. Diane, I have already cropped from above and below. Any more off the top would spoil the balance for me. I also got a bit greedy with the initial capture and had to add a bit of canvas left and right.... Zooming out a bit would have been a lot easier.

[Lorant Voros]

Once again, Artie, a photo that clearly tells a story. When I see images like that I agree that "A picture is worth a thousand words". I value this kind of work a lot.

[Daniel Cadieux]

What I find is an important detail here is the point of the adult's bill peeking into the image and actually pointing towards the dead chick's corpse, with healthy baby looking up at it. It makes for a great triangular story-telling "loop"

[gail bisson]

The story told here is what is important and is what I like about the image.Top marks for showing the natural history
The IQ is good (of course)but...
I am not liking this composition. It seems very unbalanced to my eye. I find it very tight right and left and the cut off adult trumps the dead chick at the left.
I think that you are completely correct in your assessment that you should have zoomed out to include more or all of the adult.
Were you able to get one of the 2 chicks without the parent?

[Arthur Morris]

The story told here is what is important and is what I like about the image.Top marks for showing the natural history
The IQ is good (of course)but...
I am not liking this composition. It seems very unbalanced to my eye. I find it very tight right and left and the cut off adult trumps the dead chick at the left.
I think that you are completely correct in your assessment that you should have zoomed out to include more or all of the adult.
Were you able to get one of the 2 chicks without the parent?

No to the last question. As for wider, I was thinking just a bit wider here. I did create some that included the whole adult--in those you the dead chick becomes a speck.... I do like the balance between a good view of both chicks while still giving them a bit of room. In the original frame there is a bit of triangular background above the adult's tail and that was NG.... Thus my chosen crop :)

[Juan Carlos Vindas]

Nature is nature, yes it is sad to see that they both can´t live but it is what is is.
I like the vivid eye contact and the contrats of hard stones and soft feathers. If mine, I would give a tad more room on our right.

[Binu John]

Excellent shot and story, Artie! Perfect exposure and IQ. Thanks for sharing.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Binu and JC. JC, I already stretched the right side a bit and did not want to over-do it. I should have zoomed just a bit wider :) Too greedy.