This species, a new one for me, was the most common of the many raptors we encountered as we poked around in the small tributaries of the Peruvian Amazon a few weeks ago. Lighting was tough here -- the bird was mostly shaded -- but I did my best with some Levels adjustments, removed a few oof branches in the background, burned several sunlit spots.
D7200, 500f4 + 1.4 TC, ISO 3200, 1/500s @ f/7.1 manual, monopod from skiff. Full-frame.
The challenging lighting made it tough to get a natural balance of luminosity across the bird. The yellow rump feathers look too bright for the rest of the bird. Not an easy situation.
Is flash allowed on these outings? A little fill might have really helped. I know the bird is out aways, but a beamer would have helped.
Jim, I see it too. I've warmed it up in this repost.
Randy, I looked at some other images of this species online and was surprised how yellow the vent feathers are -- but probably not as luminous as I have them. I've toned them down here. There is no question that some fill flash would have helped. I don't think flash was outlawed (there was one night outing where I did use flash), but this was not a photographic trip per se, and I was traveling with 8 other people in a small boat so I didn't carry my full kit. If I ever go again I'll stick the Speedlight in my pocket.
Black-collared Hawk
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